Kommersant
1. Alexei Dospekhov article headlined "4 With Plus" says the Russian Olympic team has shown better results in London than in Beijing four years ago and gave fans hope for good performance at the Olympic Games in Brazil in 2016; pp 1, 12 (1,405 words).
2. Ivan Buranov article headlined "Car Owners to Be Relieved From Burden of Registration" says the traffic police are simplifying the procedures for selling and buying vehicles. A person will buy a car with a license plate which will make it easier to get it registered in the police; pp 1, 3 (797 words).
3. Vladimir Dzaguto and Natalya Skorlygina article headlined "Rosneftegaz Carries Out Merger Beyond Its Means" says Rosneftegaz is planning to take control over the RusGidro and InterRAO energy grids but has to explain to the government where it will find 600 billion rubles (around $18.5 billion) for the deals; pp 1, 9 (788 words).
4. Ksenia Dementyeva and Maria Yakovleva article headlined "Russky Standart Disorients Deposits" says that thanks to its aggressive deposit policy the Russky Standart (Russian Standard) bank has become one of the 10 Russian banks with the largest deposits portfolio and has raised the overall interest rate level on the market; pp 1, 7 (755 words).
5. Viktor Khamrayev article headlined "President Gets Interested in Ultimate Fighting" comments on President Putin watching the ultimate fighting championship in Sochi; p 2 (476 words).
6. Ryazan-based Natalya Bashlykova article headlined "United Russia Members in Ryazan Revolt Against Governor" says a number of senior members of United Russia in Ryazan have expressed support to the gubernatorial candidate nominated by the Patriots of Russia party, Igor Morozov; p 2 (900 words).
7. Anton Zaritsky and Alexander Igorev "'Hand of Riga' Reaches Moscow" says the office of the Regnum news agency in Moscow has been searched at the request of the Latvian secret services; p 3 (419 words).
8. Darya Nikolayeva ad Oleg Sapozhkov article headlined "Chiefs Brought Back to Budget Framework" says heads of government institutions will be obliged to declare their income in Russia as an anti-corruption measure; p 3 (787 words).
9. Pyotr Sokovich article headlined "Man Charged With Attempt on Vladimir Putin's Life Hiding in Court" says Chechen national Adam Asmayev charged with attempts to kill Chechen head Ramzan Kadyrov and plans to murder Russian President Vladimir Putin has appealed against the extradition from Ukraine to Russia where he is facing capital punishment; p 5 (635 words).
10. Sergei Strokan article headlined "Republicans Elect Budget Vice President" says Republicans have nominated Wisconsin congressman and head of the budget committee Paul Ryan for the post of vice president; p 6 (613 words).
11. Alexander Gabuyev article headlined "U.S.A. Tried to Fight Africa Back From Chinese" reviews the results of U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's African tour, which aimed to reduce Chinese influence over the continent; p 6 (638 words).
12. Maria Yefimova article headlined "King Gets Involved in Tank War" says Jordan has got involved in the Syrian conflict as the two countries' servicemen have started a tank fight after a group of Syrian refugees tried to cross the Syria-Jordan border; p 6 (376 words).
Nezavisimaya Gazeta
1. Sergei Kulikov article headlined "Sochi's Nonrepayable Expenses" says Russian businesses doubt that their investment in Sochi's Olympic facilities will be paid back. The Olympic burden may prove to be too heavy for Russian companies affected by the crisis; pp 1 — 2 (679 words).
2. Alexandra Samarina article headlined "Dmitry Medvedev Gets Disappointed in Web" comments on a recent statement by Prime Minister Medvedev criticizing a "group of people" distorting events by their comments in the Internet. Experts believe Medvedev's speech to be a reaction to a controversial film on his role in the Russian-Georgian war of 2008; pp 1, 3 (755 words).
3. Alexei Gorbachev article headlined "Bolotnaya [Ploshchad Rally] Investigation Slips Down at Turn" says around 2,500 people are going to take part in an opposition rally against the prosecution of participants in May 6 protests; pp 1, 3 (729 words).
4. Igor Naumov and Mikhail Sergeyev article headlined "Alcohol Spirals Out of Control" says counterfeit products account for almost half of the Russian alcohol market. Both consumers and the budget suffer from the trend; pp 1, 4 (799 words).
5. Anton Khodosevich article headlined "Europe Does Not Know How to 'Treat' Lukashenko" says the EU has postponed the issue of new sanctions against Belarus until autumn; pp 1, 6 (796 words).
6. Vladimir Skosyrev article headlined "Japan Recalls South Korean Ambassador" says the territorial argument between Japan, South Korea and China is escalating. The scandal over small islands risks growing into a war, the author notes; pp 1 — 2 (611 words).
7. Editorial headlined "Service for State Security" comments on the Russian Orthodox Church's attitude toward the Soviet repression, which does not prevent the church from cooperation with the FSB at present; p 2 (498 words).
8. Vladimir Mukhin article headlined "Elite Terror of North Caucasus" says the Russian authorities cannot cope with militants' attacks in the North Caucasus. The worst situation is observed in Dagestan and Chechnya; p 2 (606 words).
9. Olga Shulga article headlined "Presidential Envoys Become State Council Members" says the Russian presidential envoys have become members of the State Council as President Putin wants to tighten control over governors; p 3 (444 words).
10. Yury Paniyev article headlined "Washington Threatening Assad With No-Fly Zone" says the search for a new international peace talks mediator for Syria is being delayed, while the U.S.A. is considering the possibility of imposing a no-fly zone on the country; p 6 (723 words).
Vedomosti
1. Natalya Biyanova article headlined "Deposits to Become More Expensive" says Russia's largest banks competing for depositors with Russky Standart bank are ready to increase deposit interest rates for individuals; p 1 (525 words).
2. Rinat Sagdiyev article headlined "Come On, Kirsan, Get It Sorted Out" reviews the lobbyist activity of former Kalmyk President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov; pp 1, 12 (2,927 words).
3. Bela Lyauv and Yelena Vinogradova article headlined "Infringers' Tender" says a tender for companies willing to make money on the evacuation of vehicles parked with the violation of traffic regulations will be held in Moscow; p 1 (438 words).
4. Editorial headlined "Less State" analyzes the work of the Russian agencies regulating business activity and says that they do not fulfill their main task — the protection of consumers' interests; pp 1, 4 (504 words).
5. Oleg Zintsov article headlined "Person of Week: Madonna" praised pop star Madonna for her speech in support of Pussy Riot group during her performance in Moscow; p 4 (312 words).
6. Natalya Kostenko and Maria Zheleznova article headlined "Surkov to Stand Up for Belief" says Deputy Prime Minister Vladislav Surkov is to become in charge of cooperation with religious confessions; p 4 (458 words).
7. Dmitry Kazmin and Oksana Gavshina article headlined "BP Tried Like at Home" gives details of the court case of TNK-BP minority shareholders against BP; pp 7 — 8 (889 words).
8. Another editorial headlined "Ritual Ban" says the ban on the purchase of housing abroad to be imposed on Russian officials is to be useless unless the Russian law-enforcement agencies start cooperating with their foreign colleagues in anti-corruption campaign; p 4 (288 words).
9. Ksenia Boletskaya article headlined "Kommersant FM Feels Too Tight in Moscow" says Kommersant FM radio station plans to start broadcasts in the cities where the paper is sold; p 10 (370 words).
Rossiiskaya Gazeta
1. Tatyana Smolyakova interview with deputy head of Rosstat, the State Statistics Service, Konstantin Laykam speaking on working hours and wages of Russians; pp 1, 3 (1,409 words).
2. Mikhail Falaleyev article headlined "In Charge of Order" reviews the recent appointment within the Russian Interior Ministry; p 4 (220 words).
3. Olga Dmitriyeva article headlined "To Become Fan of Whole Country" comments on the festive atmosphere of the Olympic Games and says the London Olympics has become an investment in British national pride; p 7 (1,212 words).
Izvestia
1. Olga Tropkina article headlined "'Code for Behavior on Social Networks' to Be Written for Officials" says a law on special behavior standards on social networks for Russian officials is to be passed by the State Duma; pp 1 — 2 (786 words).
2. Anastasia Novikova article headlined "Deputies May Return Death Penalty" says United Russia members are going to initiate a discussion on canceling the moratorium on death penalty in Russia; pp 1 — 2 (570 words).
3. Anastasia Kashevarova interview with Krasnodar region Governor Alexander Tkachyov speaking on the controversy caused by his recent statement urging Cossacks to oust North Caucasus nationals from the region; pp 1, 4 (1,211 words).
Moskovsky Komsomolets
1. Yulia Kalinina article headlined "Olympic Slipping Down" reviews the Russian athletes performance at the London Olympic Games; pp 1 — 2 (968 words).
2. Yelizaveta Alexanderova-Zorina article headlined "About Colonial Pride of Great Russians" slams Russians turning a blind eye to the current problems in the country as they prefer to enjoy better shops and foreign trips; p 3 (1,171 words).
3. Melor Sturua article headlined "Paul Ryan Always in a Hurry" looks at the U.S. Republican vice presidential candidate, Paul Ryan; p 3 (417 words).
RBK Daily
1. Valeria Khamrayeva et al. report headlined "Crisis Like Crisis" reviews recent public opinion polls showing that Russians are expecting the crisis to hit the country's economy hard in autumn; pp 1 — 2 (800 words).
2. Yulia Yakovleva article headlined "London Showing and Speaking" says United Russia is getting increasingly worried about the Russian opposition's plans to set up an Internet-based TV channel to be financed by businessman in exile Boris Berezovsky; p 2 (600 words).
Novaya Gazeta
1. Andrei Kolesnikov article headlined "Bunkerization of Authorities" says the bill prohibiting Russian officials to own property abroad is to help the authorities give the impression of anti-corruption fight; p 10 (481 words).
2. Andrei Sukhotin and Dina Khachatryan article headlined "Federation Council Turns Out to Be Secret Rendezvous of Foreign Agents" says Federation Council senators are to be affected by the law on foreign NGOs and the bill on the ban on foreign property; pp 1 — 2 (2,296 words).
3. Vladimir Mozgovoi article headlined "Fall on Hard Times" reviews the results of the London Olympics; p 22 (1,353 words).
August 13, 2012/BBC Monitoring/©BBC?
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