Press Review

		Izvestia Kommersant Nezavisimaya Gazeta Rossiiskaya Gazeta Krasnaya Zvezda Komsomolskaya Pravda Moskovsky Komsomolets

Izvestia
www.izvestia.ru

A blackout in the United States and Canada on Friday left a large part of these countries without electricity. The electricity supply was restored Saturday morning in several districts of New York. U.S. President George W. Bush announced the need to overhaul the electricity-distribution system. (1,2, Rossiiskaya Gazeta, 2,3,Kommersant, 1,4, Krasnaya Zvezda, 1,3, Komsomolskaya Pravda, 1,2, MK, 1,2, Sovetskaya Rossiya, 3)

Experts and federal government officials in Russia have said an energy catastrophe like the one happened in the United States and Canada on Friday would be impossible in this country. In a short interview UES head Anatoly Chubais explains why. (1, Rossiiskaya Gazeta, 3, Komsomolskaya Pravda, 2, MK, 1,2)

Artur Arakelyan, head of the recently bombed military hospital at Mozdok, is the only person so far accused of responsibility in the deaths of 50 people in the bombing. In an interview he speaks about his reaction to the accusations against him. (1,8)

Scandalous showman, popular poet and leader of the rock group Leningrad, Sergei Shnurov, intends to file a lawsuit against the group's former record company, Gala Records. In an exclusive interview he talks about his motivation for bringing the action. (1,10, Kommersant, 9, Zhizn, 7)

The UN Security Council almost unanimously endorsed a resolution Friday hailing the creation of a Supreme Ruling Council in Iraq and the launching of a UN mission in Baghdad. A story comments on the document's main provisions. (2,Rossiiskaya Gazeta, 4,Krasnaya Zvezda, 3)

An Izvestia Supplement is devoted to scientific discoveries. (3-6)

In an interview academic Yevgeny Fedosov, director-general of the State Research Institute of Aviation Systems, and Yevgeny Kablov, director-general of the All-Russian Institute of Aviation Materials, talk about serious problems in aviation science and its major task: the creation of a fifth-generation plane. (3)

Using highly economically efficient steam and gas turbines in building new power stations and restoring old ones is a priority, according to the national Energy Strategy through 2010. Many developed countries have begun to use them, but it is still a new trend in Russia. The construction project of the Luch gas turbine heating energy station has been launched in Belgorod. A story examines the project noting that it is a step forward in boosting this national energy strategy. (4)

Italian scholars have managed to establish that an ancient man, who lived 5,300 years ago, was killed in an armed clash that lasted for two days. A story examines how scholars arrived at this conclusion. (4)

Biology may be excluded soon from school curricula. A story includes a letter by a group of biologists, who have applied to their colleagues with a request to support them and the school subject. (5)

The British Council has begun to accept applications from young Russians with a higher education who would like to take part in the Chevening-2004/2005 scholarship program. A story examines the program. (5)

In an interview Cambridge University graduate Andrei Laptev, who won the Chevening scholarship, talks about how he won it and about what opportunities it opened for him. (5)

The one-family-one-child policy of the Chinese authorities has led to negative results. A story examines them in detail, saying that Beijing residents have now been allowed to have a second child. (6)

Several thousand children spent their summer vacations in Moscow doing various illegal jobs in violation of the Labor Code. A story gives concrete facts to illustrate the point. Anna Golubkina, Director of the Zashchita Moscow city law center, comments on children's illegal jobs. (7)

The Tretyakov Gallery marked the 110th anniversary of its official opening Friday. The museum emerged on the basis of the private collection of Moscow art patron Pavel Tretyakov, who in August 1892 gave his and his brother Sergei Tretyakov's collections to Moscow as a gift. Brief. (7)

The first official drag racing championship in Russia's history was to take place at the rowing canal in Krylatskoye Saturday. Brief. (7)

The Jazz in the Hermitage Garden festival over the weekend (Aug. 15-17) has attracted many performers from the USA, Britain, Italy, Mexico and the Czech Republic. Brief. (7)

The Natural Resources Ministry on Friday summed up results of its inspection of the Losiny Ostrov national park, in which it found 160 violations, most of which were connected with improper documents on using land by private and state-run companies. Brief. (7, MK, 2)

Moscow police have solved the murder case of outstanding scholar Grigory Bondarevsky, who was killed on Aug. 8. A story details the case. (8, Kommersant, 4, Zhizn, 4, Komsomolskaya Pravda, 7, MK, 1)

The Prosecutor General's Office on Friday brought in an indictment in one of the criminal cases against MMM financial pyramid founder Sergei Mavrodi. The charge is using a fake passport. Brief. (8)

The Federal Security Service, or FSB, has detained a group of swindlers who traded in fake certificates for awards such as the Hero of Russia title and other decorations. The swindlers, under the cover of "Association of Heroes," made local authorities help them receive credits, plots of land, apartments and dachas. A story describes the association and its "heroes." (8, Rossiiskaya Gazeta, 5, Kommersant, 1,4, Komsomolskaya Pravda, 6, MK, 1,8)

Police have detained contraband dealer Dmitry Pereverzev, who pumped alcohol through a plastic hose to Lithuania. A story gives details. (8)

Kommersant
www.kommersant.ru

OMON on Friday stormed the women's rehabilitation center belonging to the Yekaterinburg City Without Drugs fund. Its leaders were beaten and detained. A story describes the operation, focusing on what center director Maxim Kurchin said about it. 1,4)

Domestic traders after a 6-month interval again overcame the 500-point mark on the RTS index Friday. In this way they marked the fifth anniversary of the default, having demonstrated that neither the past crisis nor the standoff between Yukos and authorities has affected the growth of the domestic stock market. (1)

Central Election Commission head Alexander Veshnyakov on Friday presented Vybory, an automatic state election system, specially developed for the upcoming State Duma elections. A story examines the system in detail. (2, Rossiiskaya Gazeta, 4, Nezavisimaya Gazeta, 2)

The high-level group created to resolve issues connected with the single economic zone of Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine held its seventh and last session in Astana, Kazakhstan, on Friday. A story comments on its decisions. (2, Rossiiskaya Gazeta, 4)

The draft budget for 2004 was discussed on Friday in the Kremlin and the State Duma. Vyacheslav Volodin, leader of the faction renamed from Fatherland-All Russia to Fatherland-United Russia, on behalf of all centrists arrived in the Kremlin on Friday morning to meet with President Putin and to praise the draft and the government. A story describes their meeting. (2)

Former speaker of the Supreme Soviet of Russia Ruslan Khasbulatov has said he is refusing to take part in the presidential elections in Chechnya, saying that there are no conditions in the republic now for holding such elections. A story comments on his statement. (3, Nezavisimaya Gazeta, 2)

Candidate Leonid Mayevsky, running for the gubernatorial seat in the Omsk region, on Friday spoke about mass human rights violations in the region. He said results of the upcoming elections on Sept. 7 will be falsified. Mayevsky also said he had officially notified UN Human Rights Commissar Bertran Ramcharan about it, and he promised to send international observers to the region. (3)

The State Duma faction Fatherland-All Russia on Friday announced the change of its name to Fatherland-United Russia. A story comments on the faction's decision. (3)

Chechen rebel Mogmad Musalayev, 28, was detained in the Volgograd region on Aug. 14. He is suspected of organizing a murder attempt on the bodyguards of Chechen administration head Akhmat Kadyrov. A story describes the operation. (3)

The French government held an extraordinary session Thursday to discuss an emergency situation caused by the continuing scorching heat in France. According to medics, this natural disaster over the past two weeks has left 3,000 people dead. Analysts believe that this disaster will have serious consequences for the Cabinet's political future. A story describes the emergency situation and the government session. (4)

The MiG domestic aircraft-building corporation on Friday concluded the first leasing contracts on the delivery of Tu-334passenger planes. They will be bought by the Aerofrakht and Atlant-Soyuz airline companies, the co-founders of the National Project 334 marketing company that was created to push Tu-334 on the market. A story examines the deal that was made possible by the support of Moscow's City Hall. (5)

The government commission for protective measures in foreign trade has completed an investigation in relation of foreign bearings suppliers. The import duties imposed by the commission this week will concern only one type of this product: ball bearings. But domestic plants that two years ago initiated the anti-dumping investigation against foreign producers are pleased with this result. (5)

All six of the world's leading tobacco companies are hoping to acquire a tobacco subsidiary of the Turkish state-run monopoly Tekel, Sigara Sanayi Isletmereli AS, which is to be privatized late this year. Such tough competition may raise its selling price to $4 billion. The company is currently valued at $2.5 billion.(5)

The Railways Ministry's Passenger Transportation Department head, Sergei Kozyrev, said Friday that the price of tickets on general trains will go down by 13 percent and by 11 percent in special compartments starting Sept. 1. A story comments on his statement. (5)

Economic Development and Trade Minister German Gref on Thursday evening signed the final variant of the government decree concerning the mechanism for distributing unselected chicken import quotas. It represents a victory for importers since the ministry has introduced into the document all demands that were insisted on by market operators. (5)

Deputy Prime Minister Boris Alyoshin said Friday that Russia will meet all its obligations on the creation of the An-70military-transport plane, and its tests will be completed in the shortest possible time. The Organizing Committee of the Moscow air show MAKS-2003 has decided to allow demonstration flights of its test model at the show. (5)

Mikhail Smirnov, President of Mobile Telesystems, on Friday was appointed director-general of Moscow City Telephone Networks. Brief. (6)

The World's leading chewing gum producer Wrigley intends to invest more than $25 million in expanding capacity of its plant in St. Petersburg. This was announced by Igor Savelyev, the executive director of the company's office in Russia. Brief. (6)

Sibneft intends to liquidate the fund supporting the company's subsidiaries. The Sibneft shareholders' extraordinary meeting scheduled for Sept. 15 will consider this and other significant issues. Brief. (6)

Sibneft intends to add to its empire one more marketing organization, the Rubikon oil trader. The appropriate document will be endorsed at the Sept. 15 extraordinary meeting. Brief. (6)

Nezavisimaya Gazeta
www.ng.ru

INDEM Fund head Georgy Satarov made a significant political statement Wednesday, saying that, according to his data, corruption has hit the upper echelons of power, and that today even the posts of deputy prime ministers and federal ministers can be bought. (1,3,Rossiiskaya Gazeta (Satarov interview), 7, Sovetskaya Rossiya,1)

The stock market has practically stopped reacting to new attacks on Yukos and its leaders. As an example the story gives negative information about an inquiry of State Duma deputy Yudin, who is displeased with an old Yukos deal with Rospan. That information has not negatively affected market indices. (1,3)

On Friday the Election Commission in Chechnya stopped accepting applications from candidates running for the presidency of the republic. Their number has reached 15, and State Duma deputy from Chechnya Aslambek Aslakhanov has become the latest to put his name forward. In an interview he talks about his decision, saying what he will do instead of collecting voters' signatures. (1,2, Zhizn, No. 177, p. 2)

Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko at a special session in his residence Wednesday revealed the essence of his program to brainwash the population with the aim of making it vote for the incumbent power at the next elections. A story examines the brainwashing process that is in full swing in Belarus today. Three political analysts share their views. (1,4)

The story examines the major parameters of the draft budget for 2004 as endorsed by the government Thursday. The budget revenues are based on high oil prices. (3, Rossiiskaya Gazeta, 5)

Presidential aide on Cossack affairs Colonel-General Gennady Troshev, who was the federal troop commander in the first and second Chechen wars, has written his second book titled "The Chechen Recurrence." Summing up his experience of the two Chechen campaigns, he arrives at the conclusion that the Armed Forces need radical reform with the aim of restoring its high prestige. The newspaper offers excerpts from the new book. (5)

The Moscow District Federal Arbitration Court last week ruled that the well-known Russian producer of television program ratings TNS Gallup Media and the monitoring TNS Gallup Ad Fact company do not have the right to use the word "Gallup" in their names. The U.S. Gallup Organization, known for its sociological studies filed the suit. A story examines the conflict between the international giant and the Russian companies that began 10 years ago. (6)

The international network WPP Group late last week announced the creation of the Group M holding company that will manage the MindShare and Media Edge groups and also the Maximise, Motivator and Media Insight brands. In an interview Vladimir Rass, director-general of the MindShare Russia agency, talks about major changes in the advertising market. (6)

Rossiiskaya Gazeta
www.rg.ru

Weather forecasters promise much rain next week, starting Aug. 18. A strong cold wind from the north is forecast with temperatures at night not exceeding 12 degrees and daytime temperatures reaching only 19 degrees. (3)

In an interview Nikita Mikhalkov, Chairman of the Filmmakers Union, shares his view on the situation regarding the recent seizure of Gleb Panfilov's film "The Romanovs: The Crown-Wearing Family" that, according to a ruling of the Moscow Arbitration Court, has been given to creditor Sberbank as a debt payment. (6)

A feature story highlights Rostov friends of President Putin in 1987 when they lived and worked in East Germany. (9)

The all-Russian song competition Kalina Krasnaya, whose participants will for the most part be convicts, will take place in Moscow in October. Its qualifying stage has been held already in all domestic prisons. This act is a social act rather than a commercial project, therefore, the invited will be only convicts' relatives and close friends. (11)

A story offers mistakes in language usage often made by television anchors and journalists. (21)

The text of a Labor Ministry decree on the specific features of the jobs of teachers, doctors, pharmacy employees and cultural workers is printed in full. A story comments on the document. (24)

The purchase of those things necessary for today's school pupils, especially for first-graders, costs a lot of money. A story examines this problem, reporting on how the Moscow Education Department and the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare regard it. (25, MK, 5)

Krasnaya Zvezda

Between Aug. 18-27 the Pacific Fleet will conduct large-scale navy exercises in the Japanese, Okhotsk and Bering seas under the general guidance of Navy Chief Commander Vladimir Kuroyedov. Supreme Commander Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov are expected to be present at the concluding stage of the exercises. In an interview Navy Chief Commander Vladimir Kuroyedov talks about the exercises, their aims, tasks and participants. (1,3)

The International MAKS-2003 Aviation Show will open in Zhukovsky (Moscow region) on Aug. 19. As many as 485 domestic organizations and enterprises and 137 foreign companies and firms from 34 countries will take part. In an interview Industry Minister of the Moscow region government Vladimir Kozyrev, talks about what will be on display at the show. (1,3)

Mahmut Gareyev, President of the Academy of Military Sciences, believes that the 411.6 billion ruble military budget for 2004 that has been endorsed by the government in effect dooms the Russian army to poverty and hopelessness. Brief. (1)

Komsomolskaya Pravda
www.kp.ru

The grain crop in the Saratov region this year is expected to set high records. Ukraine's Agro-Industrial Complex Minister Ivan Kirilenko this week visited the region for talks with governor Dmitry Ayatskov, who has promised grain to Ukraine, which plans to buy about 500,000 tons in this region.(4)

In an interview writer Viktor Suvorov, who is living in the West and who for many years has been studying World War II, rejects the allegation that he sent a 60-year-old photo of President Vladimir Putin's father standing among German officers to the Polish weekly magazine Angora. In an interview he talks denies his involvement in the affair. (5)

A story features a high-profile scandal around the Svobodnoye fishing company on Sakhalin Island, focusing on its origin and participants. (5)

At the border with Kazan on Friday inspectors of the GAI traffic police detained 14 stolen cars with Moscow numberplates. A story gives details. (7)

Krasnoyarsk biophysicist Pavel Poluyan has spent several years proving that unidentified flying objects do exist, but they have flown to us not from outer space but from the Pentagon. In an interview he tries to justify his idea. (14, 15

Moskovsky Komsomolets
www.mk.ru

On the occasion of City Day, Sept. 6 and 7, The Moscow city government will sponsor the First World Tea Festival during the whole first week of September. A story examines its program. (1)

The press secretary of the Moscow Mayor, Sergei Tsoi on Friday criticized Labor Minister Alexander Pochinok for his stand on foreign workers in Moscow. A story looks at the press secretary's stand. (2)

Outstanding sculptor Lev Kerbel, the creator of over 50 monuments and statues, has died at the age of 85. He passed away 3 weeks after unveiling his last monument, Marine Soul, in Severodvinsk. (2)

In an interview Alexander Livshits, former economic adviser to President Boris Yeltsin, reminisces about the 1998 default, focusing on those who stood behind it. (4)

A feature story describes how many young metro passengers manage to ride without any tickets. (7)

A feature story is devoted to fashion designer Alexander Igmand, who designed and made suits for Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev.