[Again, my apologies for the late posting of this news blast, as I'm covering all the bases on my own today... - Best, James]TODAY: The United States sells even more arms during a recession, Gorbachev's towering ego, more gas spats between the Kremlin and Kiev, Khodorkovsky talks about jail for life, the Pikalyovo virus spreads, Deripaska doesn't want Opel, and a EU human rights commissioner gets the state-approved tour of Chechnya.
Russia and Ukraine are at each other's throats again over natural gas, with the Kremlin accusing Kiev of attempting to alter the contracts. In a televised meeting with Gazprom's Alexei Millar, President Dmitry Medvedev said "As far as an idea of an advance payment for tariffs, then I would like to ask you a simple question -- is it stipulated in a contract?" After receiving a negative answer from Miller, Medvedev said: "Then don't pay! There's a need to act in accordance with the contract that has been signed. We've specially prepared it, it was born in the throes of pain, has been quite seriously developed and we are currently working in line with it."
On Sunday, the New York Times published a report on global arms sales for 2008. Russia was hanging in there in third place with a plucky $3.5 billion in sales, but down from $10.8 billion in 2007. Arms from the United States grew at a frightening pace to $37.8 billion, representing 68.4% of the sector.
"What's happening in our town is not capitalism," a Russian industrial worker told the Associated Press. "It's like we're in medieval times again." The the Yasnogorsk Machine-Building Factory has shut down 2/3rds of its machines, and whittled down its staff to a couple hundred people. The fate of Yanogorsk, a one-factory town, is a similar problem for some 500 one-industry towns across Russia.
Thomas Hammarberg, the human rights commissioner of the Council of Europe, is headed to visit Chechnya and Ingushetia today. Hammarberg's visit looks to be strictly institutional - he attended roundtable discussion in St. Petersburg with governmment-selected human rights reps, and will meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on September 10 in Moscow.
The Russia-Canada-Germany-GM squabble over the purchase of Opel took another turn this weekend after meeting resistance from the Americans, as Oleg Deripaska's company GAZ has announced that they are not interested in acquiring an equity stake. "We can help them set up assembly at our facility and offer our dealer network for marketing. There is no talk of buying a stake," Deripaska told Vedomosti.
Over the weekend, political prisoner Mikhail Khodorkovsky gave an interview to the German magazine Focus in which he stated that he expects he may spent the rest of his life in prison: "They are doing everything they can to keep me in jail until I die. (...) Russian courts won't be independent for a very long time."
Image credit: Russian President Dmitry Medvedev (L) speaks with Gazprom
CEO Alexei Miller during their meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow on
September 7, 2009. President Dmitry Medvedev accused Ukraine of seeking
changes to a contract for the transit of Russian gas across its
territory, the latest row over energy between the two fueding states.
Medvedev told the head of state-run Russian gas giant Gazprom that
Russia would not accept any move from the Ukrainian authorities to
demand advance payment for the transit of Russian gas to European
consumers via its soil. (Getty Images)
