Kommersant
1. Natalya Korchenkova and Maria-Luiza Tirmaste article headlined "In Accordance With Wide Range of Inquiries" looks at a bill on broad powers of the Russian business ombudsman; pp 1-2 (969 words).
2. Dmitry Butrin article headlined "They Do Not Discuss Pensions Enough" says that President Vladimir Putin has instructed the authors of the new pension reform to reconsider the issue; pp 1, 8 (635 words).
3. Oleg Rubnikovich article headlined "Budget Goes to Offshore Companies" says the Investigative Committee will bring official charges against businessman Vladislav Telepanov, who is suspected of involvement in an illegal scheme to steal 3.8 billion rubles (around $120 million) from the Moscow region budget; pp 1, 5 (720 words).
4. Roman Rozhkov article headlined "Baring Vostok Makes Direct Investment" comments on changes in the investment policy of Baring Vostok Capital Partners in Russia; pp 1, 13 (667 words).
5. Irina Nagornykh article headlined "Dmitry Medvedev to Carry Out Reception for Citizens" says that Prime Minister and United Russia leader Dmitry Medvedev is to meet the electorate at the ruling party's public reception offices; p 2 (646 words).
6. Viktor Khamrayev report "Science of Reconciliation and Concord" looks at head of the Russian presidential administration Sergei Ivanov's speech at the World Russian People's Council in Moscow; p 2 (700 words).
7. Natalya Bashlykova article headlined "Kaliningrad Opposition Can Hardly Be Heard" says the Patriots of Russia party has accused United Russia of using administrative resources in the Kaliningrad mayoral election as opposition mayoral candidates do not have equal access to the local media; p 3 (620 words).
8. Maxim Ivanov article headlined "Fight for 'Motherland'" says that simplification of registration procedures for political parties has resulted in conflicts over well-known political brands such as the Motherland party, as a patriotic movement with the similar name was set up; p 3 (529 words).
9. Maxim Ivanov article headlined "Ksenia Sobchak Becomes Most Well-Known Opposition Activist" says a recent public opinion poll conducted by the VTsIOM (All-Russia Public Opinion Research Center) has named TV host Ksenia Sobchak as the most recognized opposition activist. Respondents, however, do not support her actions; p 3 (451 words).
10. Konstantin Andrianov article headlined "Smolny of Closed Type" analyzes the policy of new St. Petersburg governor Georgy Poltavchenko compared to his predecessor Valentina Matviyenko; p 4 (2,353 words).
11. Alexander Chernykh article headlined "'Innocence of Muslims' Cut Off .Ru " says that Moscow's Tverskoi Court has ruled that film "Innocence of Muslims" is extremist. Distribution of the film in the Russian section of the Internet will be banned; p 6 (576 words).
12. Maria Plyusnina article headlined "Investigators Find Trace of Money That Disappeared From Ura.ru" gives an update on the legal problems of the Ura.ru information website whose management is suspected by the Yekaterinburg law enforcement agencies of illegal dealings with the company's accounts; p 6 (413 words).
13. Grigory Tumanov and Alexander Chernykh article headlined "Pussy Riot Defense Loses One Face" says that one of the convicted Pussy Riot members has rejected the services of her lawyer, who was allegedly engaged in "self PR." The hearing of the Pussy Riot case has been postponed until Oct. 10; p 6 (566 words).
14. Maxim Yusin article headlined "Bashar Assad Linked to Revolution in Libya" says Damascus reportedly assisted the Western secret services in killing the Libyan leader in exchange for tolerance of Bashar Assad's regime; p 7 (414 words).
15. Sergei Strokan and Yelena Chernenko article headlined "Vladimir Putin Fails to Reach Pakistan" says that Putin's visit to Pakistan has been cancelled as Moscow decided not to spoil relations with India. Moreover, Pakistan does not want to give Gazprom a contract to build a section of the pipeline going from Iran to India; p 7 (845 words).
16. Olga Allenova article headlined "Georgian Dream Comes True" comments on early results of the parliamentary election in Georgia; p 7 (744 words).
17. Maria Yefimova report "Russia Takes Hard Session" looks at the PACE session that opened in Strasbourg in Oct. 1; p 7 (200 words).
Nezavisimaya Gazeta
1. Igor Naumov article headlined "Dmitry Rogozin Gets Down to Private Owners in Defense Sector" says Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin's tough rhetoric about calling the heads of defense enterprises to account over their role in illegal privatization schemes in the 1990s will have no consequences as Rogozin has no power to prosecute them; pp 1, 4 (877 words).
2. Alexandra Samarina article headlined "Pussy Riot on Verge of Nervous Breakdown" says that the hearing of the Pussy Riot case has been adjourned until Oct. 10 as one of the girls rejected the services of her lawyer. Some observers note that the punk group members are being put under pressure by the authorities trying to make them plead guilty in order to be pardoned; pp1, 3 (779 words).
3. Ivan Rodin article headlined "Advice of the Moment to Ruling Party and Opposition" comments on a report on municipal elections by the Russian Center for Political Situation. Experts note the growing role of the municipal polls and predict that United Russia will keep them under control; pp 1, 3 (826 words).
4. Sergei Kulikov article headlined "Subsistence Level Does Not Fit in With Official Inflation" says the minimum food basket in Russia is getting more expensive 50 percent faster than official inflation; pp 1, 4 (670 words).
5. Yury Roks article headlined "Georgia Gets New Parliament" looks at the early results of the Georgian parliamentary elections; pp 1, 7 (912 words).
6. Nikolai Surkov article headlined "Washington's Recklessness Could Kill U.S. Ambassador" reports on the probe into the killing of the U.S. ambassador to Libya during his visit to Benghazi; pp 1-2 (489 words).
7. Editorial headlined "Health Ministry Threatens to Bury Private Medical Services" expresses skepticism over the promise by the health minister to make all medical services including dental ones free of charge; p 2 (535 words).
8. Andrei Buzin article headlined "How Not to Suffocate in Democracy's Arms" says the authorities are worried by the activity of independent observers in elections of all levels making vote rigging more difficult; p 3 (710 words).
9. Mikhail Sergeyev report "Who Is Interested in State Promotion of Facebook in Russia" looks at the visit of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to Russia; p 4 (700 words).
10. Dmitry Orlov article headlined "100 Leading Politicians in September 2012" says that Putin remains the most powerful politician in Russia; p 5 (2,165 words).
11. Vladimir Skosyrev article headlined "Afghans Shoot at Coalition" says that more human casualties among NATO coalition troops in Afghanistan have made U.S. plans to withdraw its troops from the country hard to implement without affecting the security situation; p 7 (500 words).
12. Roza Tsvetkova interview with Vyacheslav Seliverstov, former head of the Federal Penitentiary Service research institute, who speaks about the repressive nature of the Russian penitentiary system; pp 9-10 (1,100 words).
Vedomosti
1. Maxim Tovkaylo et al. report headlined "Poor Central Bank" says that all money earned from selling the Central Bank's stake in Russia's savings bank Sberbank, will be sent to the federal budget; pp 1, 3 (570 words).
2. Margarita Lyutova et al. report headlined "Registration on Sofa" says that a plan to register all deals with housing and other property on the Internet has been drafted by the Strategic Initiatives Agency and is to be approved by the Russian government; pp 1, 3 (609 words).
3. Yekaterina Sobol article headlined "Aircraft With Copper Money" says the Urals metals and mining company UGMK manufacturing copper is ready to build new aircraft for regional flights in Russia by 2015. The aircraft are to be built in the Czech Republic; pp 1, 8 (640 words).
4. Editorial headlined "Road to Madness" slams the pension reform developed by the Russian authorities; pp 1, 4 (550 words).
5. Natalya Kostenko article headlined "Jubilee Procession" looks at the event scheduled in Moscow to celebrate Putin's 60th birthday; p 2 (423 words).
6. Polina Khimshiashvili report "To Take Moscow Under Supervision" looks at problems in relations between Russia and PACE; p 2 (400 words).
7. Another editorial headlined "Cultural Diversity" comments on the recent incident with a shooting at a Dagestani wedding in Moscow; p 4 (332 words).
8. Anastasia Golitsina interview with Arkady Volozh, general director of the Yandex search engine, speaking on development of Internet technologies in Russia; p 6 (2,907 words).
9. Valery Kodachigov report "Yandex Opens Window to Internet" says that the Yandex search engine has officially announced it has produced its own browser; p 15 (500 words).
Rossiiskaya Gazeta
1. Irina Ivoylova article headlined "Migrant for Education" says the share of children of migrants will amount to 30 percent in Russian schools in 8-10 years; pp 1, 14 (1,189 words).
2. Yelena Kukol article headlined "No More Than 11%" says the Russian Central Bank has imposed restrictions on bank interest rates for deposits making it harder for people to find profitable deposits; pp 1, 5 (617 words).
3. Yekaterina Zabrodina report "'Dream' Comes True" looks at the parliamentary elections in Georgia; p 1 (500 words).
4. Yury Gavrilov interview with the head of the supervision directorate of the Chief Military Prosecutor's Office, Alexander Nikitin, speaking on the beginning of the autumn call-up campaign; p 2 (431 words).
5. Leonid Radzikhovsky article headlined "Georgian and Russian Dreams" analyzes the influence of the Georgian parliamentary elections on relations between Moscow and Tbilisi; p 3 (833 words).
6. Tatyana Vladykina report "Pending Repentance" says that Russian society is still split over the Pussy Riot case; p 7 (600 words).
7. Natalya Kozlova report "End of Film" says that a Moscow court has banned controversial American film "Innocence of Muslims"; p 7 (200 words).
8. Alexander Gasyuk article headlined "Taliban Succeed by Means of Skills" says the number of human casualties among U.S. troops in Afghanistan has exceeded 2,000 people. The author predicts more victims as the Taliban are not changing their tactics; p 8 (419 words).
Izvestia
1. Svetlana Sukhova article headlined "PACE Does Not Know Why Naryshkin Cancelled Visit" says the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) is surprised by the decision of Russian State Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin not to visit the assembly session in Strasbourg; pp 1, 5 (646 words).
2. Margarita Kazantseva interview headlined "Drugs Yield Mafia Over 20Bln Rubles a Year" with Federal Drug Control Service head Viktor Ivanov speaking on high-profile drug-related cases and the fight against drug trafficking in Russia; pp 1, 3 (2,010 words).
3. Yekaterina Nuriakhmetova article headlined "FSB Special-Purpose Units Test Arms for City Fighting" reports on the upgraded version of the Kalashnikov assault rifle, the Pecheneg machine gun, being tested by the Federal Security Service's (FSB) special-purpose units; p 2 (560 words).
4. Svetlana Subbotina interview with Alexei Zhuravlev, chairman of the Motherland party, speaking on the plans and ambitions of the party; p 2 (1,532 words).
5. Boris Mezhuyev report "Elite Protest That Breaks" looks at opposition activist Ksenia Sobchak and at difficulties encountered by the opposition movement in Russia; p 7 (800 words).
6. Alexander Pavlov report "Promotion Campaign" looks at the visit of Mark Zuckerberg to Russia; p 7 (700 words).
Moskovsky Komsomolets
1. Tatyana Zamakhina article headlined "Festival of Amateur Pension" says the planned pension reform does not resolve the problems of the Russian Pension Fund; moreover, it strips people of their pension savings; pp 1, 5 (699 words).
2. Lina Panchenko interview headlined "Minister in Emergency Situation" with Emergencies Minister Vladimir Puchkov speaking on tasks facing the ministry and on the work of Russian rescuers; pp 1, 4 (2,972 words).
3. Darya Fedotova report "Virgin Mary, Banish Lawyers!" says that one of the convicted Pussy Riot members has rejected the services of her lawyers; pp 1-2 (600 words).
4. Marina Perevozkina article entitled "Last Helicopter to the West" looks at the Georgian parliamentary elections; p 2 (800 words).
RBK Daily
1. Vitaly Petlevoi et al. report headlined "They Have All Moves Written Down" says the Moscow city authorities and traffic police want to set up a database of all vehicles in the city showing their previous owners and accidents they were involved in. The move is aimed at making second-hand vehicles cheaper; p 1 (500 words).
2. Tatyana Kosobokova article headlined "Filter Being Changed in Kremlin" says the Russian presidential administration may review the system of selecting gubernatorial candidates. The so-called municipal filter may be reduced; pp 1-2 (700 words).
3. Yulia Yakovleva article headlined "Flight of Independence" says residents of the Moscow region town of Domodedovo, displeased with the noise from a new toll road and absence of discounts for local residents there, have applied to the EU asking to recognize their town as an independent Russian Democratic Republic; p 2 (600 words).
Noviye Izvestia
1. Svetlana Basharova article headlined "Wasted Strength" says the Defense Ministry has not succeeded in creating a new image of the Russian armed forces despite long-term reforms; pp 1, 5 (1,500 words).
2. Arfi Gevorkyan interview with A Just Russia State Duma Deputy Oksana Dmitriyeva focuses on the strategy of the development of the Russian pension reform as far as 2030; pp 1, 3 (500 words).
3. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon article headlines "Time Is Working Against Us, But Together We Shall Be Able to Stand the Present-Day Tests" on the challenges the world community is facing at present; pp 1-2 (700 words).
Komsomolskaya Pravda
1. Andrei Moiseyenko article headlined "Inflated Pussy" gives details of Pussy Riot appeal hearing on Oct. 1; p 3 (500 words).
2. Alexander Grishin gives his opinion of the unexpected request of Yekaterina Samutsevich, a member of Pussy Riot, to change lawyers; p 3 (300 words).
3. Alexander Grishin article headlined "2nd-Hand Brothers-in-Arms" looks at the worldwide reaction to the banning of the film "Innocence of Muslims," the Pussy Riot case, appointment of Masha Gessen as editor-in-chief of Radio Liberty and other high-profile events recently; p 9 (1,300 words)
Trud
1. Vitaly Golovachev article headlines "What Russians Die of" looks at the disturbing statistics on mortality and death rate in Russia voiced at a recent Health Ministry meeting; pp 1, 3 (1,000 words)
Oct. 2, 2012/BBC Monitoring/©BBC?
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