[iwar] [fc:RUSSIA,.25.Oct.2001.(RFE/RL)]

From: Fred Cohen (fc@all.net)
Date: 2001-10-25 19:40:11
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SOVIET-ERA 'SUITCASE BOMBS' MAY BE IN TERRORIST HANDS 
"Kommersant-Daily" on 24 October reprinted a story in "The Times" reporting
that there is growing concern that dozens of portable nuclear munitions (the
so-called "suitcase bombs") from the Soviet arsenal in the 1970s may have
disappeared and found their way into the hands of international terrorist
groups. Former Russian Security Council head Aleksandr Lebed noted in 1997
that most of the more than 100 such "suitcase bombs" built had gone missing,
describing them as "ideal for blackmail and terror" (see "RFE/RL Newsline,"
23 September 1997). According to "Kommersant-Daily," agents of Osama bin
Laden have tried to acquire such portable nuclear weapons, which were
vulnerable to theft or disappearance because they were at the disposal of
the Soviet security services. In contrast, the Soviet conventional nuclear
arsenal was well guarded by the Soviet military. VY 


RUSSIAN 'SOURCES' SUGGEST BOMBING HALT DURING RAMADAN 
Sources in the security agencies told Interfax on 24 October that the U.S.
ought to consider halting the bombing of Afghanistan during the Muslim holy
month of Ramadan. Meanwhile, Mikhail Margelov, the deputy chairman of the
Federation Council's International Affairs Committee, said that after the
fall of the Taliban regime, there must be "the complete de-Talibanization"
of that country, the news service reported. PG 


ANTHRAX SCARE CONTINUES ACROSS RUSSIA 
There have been further reports of envelopes containing white powder that
recipients feared might contain anthrax from more places across Russia from
Sakhalin in the Far East to the Russian capital of Moscow, Russian agencies
reported on 24 October. None of the samples has tested positive for anthrax
so far, the agencies said, and some people who have sent white powder as a
joke have been arrested and charged. To try to calm the situation,
"Kommersant-Daily" carried a large article the same day on how people should
react to this scare. PG 


RUSHAILO SAYS FIGHT AGAINST ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION IS COMPONENT OF FIGHT
AGAINST TERRORISM 
Speaking to a session of the Russian Security Council on 24 October, council
Secretary Vladimir Rushailo said that the struggle against illegal migration
in Russia is a component part of the struggle against international
terrorism, Interfax reported. Meanwhile, the Duma appealed to President
Putin to increase attention to the problem of illegal migration, the news
service reported. PG 


BIN LADEN SAID TO HAVE FUNDED CHECHENS 
Citing the Spanish newspaper "El Mundo," "Trud" on 24 October reported that
Russian special services have said that terrorist leader bin Laden has
provided $10 million to Chechen militants. Meanwhile, an article in
"Nezavisimaya gazeta" the same day said bin Laden sent money to Russian
Muslims in the early 1990s. At that time, the paper said, bin Laden was
viewed as "a hero" for his assistance to the anti-Soviet resistance in
Afghanistan, but "in Russia they knew who bin Laden was already in 1991."
Chechen President Aslan Maskhadov has repeatedly denied any connections with
bin Laden (see "RFE/RL Caucasus Report," Vol. 4, No. 35, 22 October 2001).
Other "informed sources" told ITAR-TASS that Chechen militant leader Khattab
plans to send some Chechen militants to Afghanistan. PG 


BRZEZINSKI DOUBTS RUSSIA WILL HAVE 'A FREE HAND' IN CHECHNYA 
In an interview published in "Nezavisimaya gazeta" on 24 October, former
U.S. National Security Adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski said that he very much
doubts that Moscow will get "the free hand" it seeks in Chechnya despite the
Russian government's support for the international antiterrorist effort. He
predicted that NATO will enlarge, but that this is not directed against
Russia. He said that he "excludes" a return to the Cold War because that
would not be in the interests of either Russia or the United States. PG 


RUSSIA MAY RESUME PUTTING GUARDS ON FLIGHTS 
Gennadii Gubanov, the chief of the Moscow administration of internal affairs
for air and water transport, told Interfax-Moscow on 24 October that Russia
may resume putting guards on flights just as the Soviet authorities did from
1971 to 1980. PG 


PUTIN STRESSES IMPORTANCE OF MILITARY-TECHNICAL ACCORDS FOR ANTITERRORIST
EFFORT 
President Vladimir Putin told a 24 October meeting of the commission for
cooperation with foreign countries that the terrorist acts of 11 September
have increased the importance of Russia's military-technical cooperation
agreements with other countries, Interfax reported. He said Russia must
maintain high levels of quality and reliability because others depend on
Russian weapons. Also on 24 October, Putin discussed the situation in
Afghanistan by telephone with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Interfax
reported. PG 


PUTIN, KASYANOV FOCUS ON BANKING SECTOR 
The cabinet on 24 October discussed a plan for the development of the
Foreign Economic Bank and reviewed the current activities of the Foreign
Trade Bank, Interfax reported. Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov then
discussed these issues with President Putin, the news service said.
Meanwhile, the Moscow Arbitrage Court the same day declared MOST-Bank,
formerly the flagship of Vladimir Gusinsky's empire, bankrupt, Russian
agencies reported. Also on 24 October, prosecutors charged Aleksandr
Alekseev, the deputy head of the Moscow city branch of the Russian Central
Bank, with failing to demonstrate due diligence when processing a large
loan, Russian and Western agencies reported. The same day, Putin chaired a
session on questions of Russia's military-technical cooperation with foreign
countries, Interfax reported. PG 


KUDRIN SAYS BIG BUSINESSES OPPOSE WTO PLANS 
In an interview carried by Interfax on 24 October, Deputy Prime Minister and
Finance Minister Aleksei Kudrin said "a new situation" has arisen in Russian
politics. Earlier, he said, "liberals in the government were opposed by
communists, but now big businesses, which always helped us [in the past]
have begun to restrict our actions in the spheres of their interests,"
including taking the steps necessary for Russia to join the World Trade
Organization. He said that these businesses are in effect sabotaging
Russia's efforts to join the WTO. PG 


CORRUPTION SAID TO THREATEN RUSSIAN NATIONAL SECURITY 
Prosecutor General Vladimir Ustinov said this week that bribes and other
forms of corruption now threaten Russian security at least as much as
terrorism does, "Trud" reported on 24 October. He added that corrupt links
between business and the state bureaucracy represent a "fifth column" that
could undermine the state from within. Another aspect of this problem,
Ustinov said, is the embezzlement of state funds: he noted that his office
has charged 14 parliamentarians at the federal and regional level, 302
bankers, and 21 state officials with misappropriation of funds. VY 


PUTIN URGED TO DEVELOP PROGRAM FOR RUSSIAN NORTH 
Speakers at a hearing conducted by several committees of the Federation
Council on 24 October urged President Putin to develop a strategy for
improving conditions in the Russian North, Interfax reported. Aleksandr
Nazarov, the former governor of Chukotka who heads the Northern Affairs
Committee of the upper house of parliament, said Moscow failed to take into
consideration the special needs of the North during the move to a market
economy and that the region has suffered as a result. The North's suffering,
he added, will affect the entire country because the North is where many of
Russia's most important natural resources are to be found. The same day, a
Congress of the Indigenous Peoples of the North called on Putin to devote
more resources to ensure the survival of these numerically small
nationalities, Interfax reported. PG 


GREF SAYS BRIDGE TO SAKHALIN A QUESTION OF WHEN, NOT IF 
Economic Development and Trade Minister German Gref said on 24 October that
construction of a bridge from the Russian mainland to Sakhalin Island is a
question of when, not if, Interfax reported. He said he is "not sure" that
the time to begin this project has yet come, but that he is sure that such a
time will come eventually. He said the plan has significant support in the
government where, he said, "everyone understands the strategic necessity"
and economic utility of the program. PG 


OLIGARCHS PLACE THEIR REPRESENTATIVES IN FEDERATION COUNCIL 
According to an article in "Novaya gazeta" on 22 October, Russia's leading
businessmen, known as the oligarchs, have worked to place their own people
in the upper house of parliament in order to be in a position to push or
block legislation affecting their businesses. The article suggested that the
oligarchs find it easier to do so in the Federation Council, whose members
are selected by regional elites, than in the Duma, whose members are elected
by the population. PG 


DUMA KEEPS NUCLEAR WASTE OPPONENTS OFF COMMISSION 
The Duma on 24 October voted to name as its five members of the special
commission that will oversee the importation of nuclear wastes only deputies
who supported the measure in the parliament, Interfax reported. As a result,
representatives of the Union of Rightist Forces (SPS) and Yabloko were kept
off and protested their exclusion. Meanwhile, activists opposed to the
importation of such nuclear wastes staged a protest by lying down across the
tracks of the Trans-Siberian railway at many points along its path, the news
service reported. The Duma on 24 October voted 358 in favor to one against
on first reading for an amnesty that would release approximately 24,000
inmates from Russian prisons, Russian and Western agencies reported. The
amnesty would cover convicts who committed crimes while minors, women with
underage or disabled children, pregnant women, women over 50, and some
inmates with diseases. Those in these categories convicted of murder, rape,
terrorism, or other grave crimes would not qualify for the amnesty. PG 


NEW CENTRIST PARTY MAY BE CALLED 'UNITED RUSSIA' 
The new centrist party scheduled to be formed by Unity, Fatherland, and
All-Russia on 1 December may be called United Russia, Interfax reported on
24 October. That name was the most popular in a poll commissioned by the
three groups and conducted by the Independent Analytic Center. PG 


CENTRISTS READY TO COOPERATE WITH RIGHTISTS ON CANDIDATE LISTS FOR MOSCOW
CITY DUMA 
The Moscow city divisions of Fatherland and Unity announced on 24 October
that they are ready to form agreed lists with Yabloko and the SPS of
candidates for the Moscow city Duma elections scheduled for 15 November,
Interfax reported. PG 


YAVLINSKY PRESENTS ALTERNATE BUDGET TO PUTIN 
Yabloko leader Grigorii Yavlinsky on 23 October presented to President Putin
a four-volume alternate budget prepared by Yabloko experts, Interfax
reported. Among its provisions are additional money for military reform and
pensions. The Yabloko budget assumes that oil prices will average $18 a
barrel. PG 


PUTIN, SHARANSKY AGREE, DISAGREE 
President Putin met briefly with visiting Israeli Deputy Prime Minister
Natan Sharansky on 24 October, Russian and Western agencies reported. The
two found themselves in agreement about terrorism but in disagreement about
Israel's relationship with the Palestinians. Meanwhile, three Duma deputies
who recently visited Palestinian-controlled areas said in Moscow on 24
October that Israel has failed to fulfill its obligations to resolve the
crisis there, Interfax reported. Paul Burdukov of the Agro-Industrial group,
Nikolai Bezborodov of the Russian Regions group, and Viktor Cherepkov of the
People's Deputy group accused Israel of aggression against the Palestinians.
PG 


CIS SEEKS SINGLE LEGAL SPACE FOR CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS 
In order to allow firms in various member states to bid on construction
projects in other member countries, the 15th session of the
intergovernmental council for cooperation in construction activities of the
Commonwealth of Independent States agreed on 24 October to push for a common
set of legislation across the entire commonwealth, Interfax reported. PG 


RUSSIA MAY CLOSE OKHOTSK SEA TO FOREIGN FISHING 
Yevgenii Nazdratenko, the head of the State Fisheries Committee, told
Interfax on 24 October that Russia may close the Sea of Okhotsk to foreign
fishing because of falling catches there and elsewhere. He added that his
committee currently is engaged in "intensive discussions" with the countries
that might be affected. PG 


KULIKOV CALLS FOR INTERNATIONAL POPULAR FIGHT AGAINST CRIME, TERRORISM 
Duma deputy Anatolii Kulikov told a Moscow anticrime and antiterrorist forum
on 24 October that official agencies cannot cope with the rise of crime and
terrorism over the last decade and that the international community must
link groups of citizens in various countries to help overcome these
scourges, Russian agencies reported. PG 


MORE THAN 5 MILLION CRIMES IN RUSSIA PROJECTED FOR 2001 
First Deputy Interior Minster Vladimir Vasiliev said on 24 October that he
expects the number of crimes registered with the police to top 5 million for
2001, Interfax reported. He said that much of the increase reflects a new
willingness by citizens to report crimes, and he also said that ever more
people are applying to work in the militia. PG 


REGISTERED UNEMPLOYED NOW FEWER THAN REGISTERED JOB OPENINGS 
"Nezavisimaya gazeta" on 24 October reported that for the first time in nine
years, the number of people officially registered as unemployed is smaller
than the number of officially registered job vacancies. But the paper noted
that the number of those officially unemployed is smaller than the actual
number of those looking for work. PG 


MOST AUDITED TAX RETURNS FOUND TO CONTAIN VIOLATIONS OF LAW 
The Federal Tax Police (FSNP) announced on 24 October that it audited 23,300
tax returns during the first nine months of 2001 and identified violations
of the law in 19,500 of them, Interfax reported. Of the 19,500 with
violations, 17,600 involved significant sums, tax police officials said. PG 


DELYAGIN SAYS RUSSIA SHOULD CONCLUDE ENERGY DEALS WITH EUROPE WHILE PRICES
ARE HIGH 
Mikhail Delyagin, the director of the Moscow Globalization Institute, was
quoted by "Rossiiskaya gazeta" on 23 October as having said that Moscow
should conclude energy agreements with European countries now while prices
are high. If the Russian side waits, Delyagin said, British, Norwegian, and
North African suppliers will enter the market, prices will decline, and
Russia will lose out. VY 


MOSCOW POLICE FEAR ANTIGLOBALIST DISORDER AT DAVOS MEETING 
Moscow city law enforcement agencies are concerned about the possibility
that antiglobalist organizations will stage massive demonstrations in the
Russian capital during an upcoming session there of the Davos World Economic
Forum, RIA-Novosti reported on 24 October. A spokesman for the Federal
Security Service (FSB) said the Russian authorities expect some
20,000-30,000 foreign demonstrators and that the FSB will together with the
Interior Ministry use any means necessary to maintain order. VY 


OECD SAYS RUSSIA STILL 'UNATTRACTIVE' FOR INVESTMENTS 
The regional research service of the Organization for Economic Cooperation
and Development (OECD) has released a study that concludes the investment
climate in Russia remains "unattractive" and "unfavorable," RBK reported on
24 October. Moreover, the OECD report says, Russia has fallen further behind
the countries of Eastern Europe as a place for investment despite its own
economic growth. VY 


RUSSIA SAID LEAST STABLE OF COUNTRIES RATED BY DAVOS GROUP 
An article in "Tribuna" on 24 October said that according to the assessments
of the Davos World Economic Forum, Russia is the "most unstable" of the 44
major countries rated by that group. The paper reported that conclusion in
the course of a discussion of the possibilities that Unified Energy Systems
head Anatolii Chubais may head a kind of rightist coup against the
government. Meanwhile, an article in "Vremya MN" the same day suggested that
left-wing parties are on the rise and also threaten the current political
order. PG 


GAZPROM CONFIRMS PLAN TO RESTRUCTURE ITS MEDIA HOLDINGS 
Gazprom head Aleksei Miller on 24 October confirmed his firm's plans to
restructure its holdings of media shares, Interfax-ANI reported. In an
interview published in "Itogi" the same day, Alfred Kokh, who has retired
from his past position as head of the directors' council of NTV and head of
Gazprom-Media, announced that he will take part in the formation of a
consortium that may purchase some of Gazprom's media holdings, Interfax
reported. Meanwhile, magnate Boris Berezovsky said he does not intend to
sell his holdings in TV-6 to LUKoil or anyone else, the news service
reported. PG 


RUSSIAN INVALIDS DEMAND BETTER SOCIAL PROGRAMS 
The Third Congress of the All-Russian Society of Invalids on 24 October
called for the government to devote more resources to help the more than 4
million people in Russia suffering from disabilities, Interfax reported. The
congress represents more than 2 million people. At the opening session, a
message of greeting from President Putin was read out to the delegates. PG 


FIRST RUSSIAN BOOK ON WALLENBERG RELEASED 
The first Russian volume on Raoul Wallenberg, the Swedish diplomat who saved
thousands of Jews from Nazi concentration camps during World War II, will be
formally presented on 25 October, Interfax reported on 24 October. The
book's author, Lev Bezymenskii, said he had faced a difficult task because
"there are simply no documents [available in Russia]: neither investigation
records, nor protocols of the interrogations" because the KGB kept them
classified and away from public view, a position, the Russian security
services have maintained. PG 


RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH ABROAD URGED TO UNITE WITH MOSCOW PATRIARCHATE 
The Orthodox Church of America on 24 October urged the Russian Orthodox
Church Abroad to unite with the Moscow Patriarchate as the Patriarchate has
requested, Interfax reported on 24 October. But even if theological and
ideological issues are resolved, the two churches remain divided on property
questions: In the emigre church, each congregation owns its property, while
in the patriarchal church, the Patriarchate itself is the owner. PG 


RUSSIAN HACKER SAYS HE FEELS SUPPORT OF RUSSIA 
In an interview published in "Argumenty i fakty" on 24 October, Dmitrii
Sklyarov, the Russian hacker who is in prison in the U.S. pending sentencing
for computer crimes, said Russian officials have been most helpful to him
and that he feels the support of all Russians as he seeks to have his
conviction overturned. PG 


WHEN ROAD SIGNS DON'T HELP 
Russian traffic police during the month of October are taking down road
signs that are either incorrect or do not help traffic to flow easily,
"Nezavisimaya gazeta" reported on 24 October. So far, police in Moscow alone
have removed some 360 signs, including many that officials said should have
been removed much earlier. PG 


PALEONTOLOGIST CHARGED WITH TRYING TO SELL MAMMOTH SKELETON TO U.S. 
Prosecutors in Novosibirsk have charged paleontologist Igor Grebnev with
illegally attempting to sell the skeleton of a mammoth to an American buyer,
Interfax-Eurasia reported on 24 October. If convicted, Grebnev faces five to
10 years in prison. PG 


CORRECTING A TSAR'S MISTAKE 
The railway between Moscow and St. Petersburg was to be shut down for 24
hours as of 24 October to allow workers to smooth out a 17-kilometer bend
universally known in Russia as "the tsar's finger," Reuters reported.
According to a story thought to be apocryphal, the bend was built after
Nicholas I drew a line around his finger when he was holding a ruler to draw
a straight line between the two capitals. The builders of the railway were
reportedly too frightened of possible punishment and so built the curve in
the line. PG 


SAKHA'S ELECTION BOARD THUMBS ITS NOSE AT MOSCOW 
The election commission for the Sakha Republic (Yakutia) decided on 24
October to register incumbent President Mikhail Nikolaev for 23 December
presidential elections, despite recent statements by Central Election
Commission (TsIK) Chairman Aleksandr Veshnyakov that Nikolaev does not have
the legal right to seek a third term in office (see "RFE/RL Russian
Federation Report," 11 October 2001). The 24th was the last day for
candidates to register for the race, and according to the 25 October
"Nezavisimaya gazeta," Nikolaev flew to Moscow on 23 October to meet with
President Putin before the deadline. However, the meeting kept getting
delayed. According to Interfax-Eurasia, 10 members of the republic's
election commission voted for registering Nikolaev, three were against, and
one abstained. Responding to the news of Nikolaev's registration, Veshnyakov
called the decision "not legal," and said the TsIK could cancel Nikolaev's
registration. JAC 


TATAR OFFICIAL DENIES TIES TO LIBYA... 
In a letter to the editor in chief of "Nezavisimaya gazeta" on 24 October,
the chairman of Tatarstan's legislature, Farit Mukhametshin, refuted a 29
September article by Mikhail Tulskii connecting him with the Libyan Taiba
Fund. Mukhametshin said he was "confounded by the report about his contacts
with the Libyan Taiba Fund," and requests that "Nezavisimaya gazeta" publish
his denial. He also said the assertion of Taiba financial aid to Yoldiz
Muslim School in Chally is false. That school was closed in 1999 after one
of its former students was implicated in an apartment bombing in Moscow (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," 23 and 24 September, and 11 October 1999). According to
RFE/RL's Kazan bureau, Tulskii has authored articles on the "Wahhabist"
branch of Islam published in the past by "Nezavisimaya Gazeta" and smi.ru,
accusing public officials in Tatarstan of cooperating with radical Islamic
groups and promoting Islamic fundamentalism. JAC 


...AS GOVERNMENT NEWSPAPER DENIES SIGNATURES WERE FALSIFIED 
Meanwhile, the previous day, "Rossiiskaya gazeta" refuted a recent report in
Tatarstan's "Vostochniy Ekspress" weekly asserting that a letter reportedly
signed by 56 prominent Tatar personalities opposed to adopting the Latin
script to depict Tatar language and published earlier by "Rossiiskaya
gazeta" "was false" (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 21 and 17 September 2001).
However, a number of Tatars living outside Tatarstan, including the former
chairman of the Tatarstan Writer's Union, writer Rinat Mokhamadiev, told
Tatar media they had not signed or were forced to sign the letter, according
to RFE/RL's Kazan bureau. Razil Valeev, a Tatar legislator in charge of
script reform, said on 12 October said "Rossiiskaya gazeta" had repeatedly
refused to publish the statements of those people or to produce the original
document. JAC 


ANOTHER REGIONAL BROADCASTER GOES OFF THE AIR... 
Pskovenergo has restricted electricity supplies to the oblast radio and
television broadcasting center in a number of raions in the oblast,
Interfax-Northwest reported on 24 October. Tatyana Churikova, the deputy
director of Energosbyt, an affiliate of Pskovenergo, said the reduction of
electricity supplies is due to the center's outstanding 3 million ruble
($102,000) debt, which has been allowed to accumulate over a period of 10
months. Programs of the ORT, RTR, and the Kultura channel as well as Radio
Mayak have been affected by the cuts. JAC 


...AS ANOTHER ONE COMES BACK... 
The same day, broadcasts of ORT, RTR, NTV, and Radio Mayak were resumed in
Primorskii Krai after going off the air on 18 October (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," 19 October 2001). According to ITAR-TASS, the krai's broadcasting
center was given more time to pay its debt to the local electricity supplier
Dalenergo. According to RFE/RL's Vladivostok correspondent, Dalenergo
officials acknowledged that their decision to restore power came following
pressure from Moscow, and that not one of the central TV stations, ORT, RTR,
or NTV, has paid their debts to the local broadcasting center. JAC 


...AND MAYOR CALLS ON OMON TROOPS TO PREVENT ELECTRICITY SHUT-OFF 
Meanwhile, in the city of Partizansk in Primore, the local mayor, Vitalii
Starinchenko, has declared a state of emergency and has ordered local
military troops to guard electricity substations in his town, NTV reported
on 24 October. Dalenergo claims that Starinchenko has not fulfilled any part
of any earlier agreement concluded to ameliorate the town's 50 million ruble
($1.69 million) debt from 2000, and electricity supplies will therefore be
suspended. According to RFE/RL's Vladivostok correspondent, Dalenergo has
warned that on 25 October, 14 Pacific Fleet substations -- but not objects
of "strategic importance"-- were to have their electricity supply cut. JAC 


RUSSIAN, CHECHEN REPRESENTATIVES MAY MEET FOR TALKS 'WITHIN 10 DAYS' 
The presidential representative to the Southern federal district, Viktor
Kazantsev, told journalists in Moscow on 24 October that following what he
termed "lengthy consultations," he has agreed to meet with Chechen President
Aslan Maskhadov's representative, Akhmed Zakaev. He said those talks could
take place within the next 10 days, and that they will focus on President
Putin's recent proposals that the Chechen fighters lay down their arms and
return to "a peaceful life" (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 26 September 2001).
Zakaev confirmed that he has been in contact with Kazantsev on Maskhadov's
instructions, but said the talks will address the return to Chechnya of
displaced persons, the suspension of hostilities, and economic issues,
according to Interfax. In an interview on 11 October with RFE/RL's Russian
Service, Maskhadov said the Chechens will not surrender their arms as a
precondition for beginning peace talks (see "RFE/RL Caucasus Report," Vol.
4, No. 35, 22 October 2001). In Moscow, presidential aide Sergei
Yastrzhembskii warned that the upcoming talks should not be seen as "the
beginning of a new dialogue," and that the Chechen side should "be guided by
an understanding of tough political realities," ITAR-TASS reported. LF 


25-10-01

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