20.08 Russian Press at a Glance, Tuesday, August 20, 2013
POLITICS
Russias former influential Deputy Prime Minister Vladislav Surkov, who is considered to be one of the architects of the Kremlin-centric power vertical political system and "sovereign democracy," will return to the Kremlin in a new capacity as the presidential aide on innovative development.
(Izvestia, Moskovsky Komsomolets)
Alexey Navalny, the opposition candidate for the post of Moscow mayor, has threatened acting mayor Sergei Sobyanin with a lawsuit, claiming that Sobyanin has not submitted a written approval by Russian President Vladimir Putin allowing him to take part in the mayoral race. Sobyanins election headquarters and the Moscow Election Committee have dismissed the claim, but refused to make the document public. Navalny is Sobyanin's closest challenger, with 19.9 percent of Muscovites planning to vote for him.
(Kommersant)
Russia's President Vladimir Putin will not attend the MAKS 2013 air show in Moscow when it opens next week, for the first time since 1999. The ailing sector is not a priority for the national leadership, experts says.
(Vedomosti)
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Russia's Customs Service said Monday it will start relaxing the recently tightened controls on goods from Ukraine, which threatened to start a trade war between the two nations.
(Moskovsky Komsomolets)
Russia's economy showed small signs of improvement in July, according to official statistics, as declining inflation, which fell to an annual 6.5 percent in July from 6.9 percent the previous month, buoyed consumer spending.
(Vedomosti, The Moscow Times)
The world's leading aluminum company, RusAl, reported a $438 million net loss and announced new large-scale capacity cuts on Monday as producers are struggling with a glut of metal and plummeting prices.
(Kommersant, The Moscow Times)
Russian banks may become virtual supermarkets selling real estate, cars and electronics confiscated from credit debtors. Relevant draft legislation allowing the banks to auction debtors property has been prepared by the Finance Ministry.
(Rossiiskaya Gazeta)
The price of Russias Sukhoi Superjet 100 mid-range passenger aircraft may have to go up, as the United Engine Building Corporation, the manufacturer of SaM-146 turbofans for the plane is planning to hike prices for the engine to compensate for losses linked to an unequal share of profits received in its partnership with Frances Safran company.
(Kommersant)
Moody's Investors Service has downgraded the rating of Russias leading coking coal producer Raspadskaya to B2 and lowered its outlook to negative.
(Vedomosti)
The French authorities have expressed concern over massive purchases of domestic vineyards by Russian and Chinese private investors. Local finance police suspect the purchases to be part of money-laundering schemes.
(Vedomosti)
DEFENSE
The Russian Defense Ministry and the MiG aircraft corporation have agreed the purchase of 16 MiG-29SMT fighter jets by 2016. The agreement is part of the governments effort to keep the struggling combat aircraft maker afloat following the announced delay of the contract on the purchase of 37 MiG-35 fighters until after 2016.
(Kommersant)
SOCIETY
Pussy Riot member Yekaterina Samutsevich is planning to file a 2-mln ruble ($60,000) lawsuit against her former lawyer Violetta Volkova in compensation for moral damage. Samutsevich, whose two-year prison sentence was suspended in October last year, has previously filed a complaint against Vokova with the Moscow region Bar Association, asking it to penalize the lawyer for providing substandard service.
(Izvestia)
Russian tourists are continuing to travel to Egypt on vacation, despite the threat from the political turmoil there.
(Moskovsky Komsomolets)
SPORT
Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova has announced she is going to temporarily change her surname to Sugarpova - a brand of confectionary - just days after she sacked her new coach Jimmy Connors after just one game, and shortly before the start of the US Open.
(Moskovsky Komsomolets)
