What the Papers Say, Sept. 11, 2012

Kommersant

1. Ksenia Dementyeva et al. report headlined "Sberbank to Grow by European Growth" says Russia's largest bank Sberbank, may offer 7.6 percent of its shares for privatization this week; pp 1, 8 (988 words).

2. Maxim Ivanov and Irina Nagornykh article headlined "Deputies to Undergo Audit" says opposition State Duma Deputy Gennady Gudkov is to be stripped of his deputy seat, but some United Russia members are facing similar problems as their business links will be checked as well; pp 1-2 (761 words).

3. Yevgeny Timoshinov article headlined "Maersk Enters Russian Ports" says APM Terminals, part of A.P. Moller-Maersk, is buying a stake in Global Ports, a Russian port holding; pp 1, 9 (773 words).

4. Yevgenia Pertseva and Pavel Belavin article headlined "Eldorado Finds Tekhnosila in Itself" says home appliances retail network Eldorado is buying nearly half the stores of its rival Tekhnosila; pp 1, 9 (608 words).

5. Viktor Khamrayev article headlined "Alexei Kudrin Needs Party" says former Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin believes Russia needs a political party to defend businesses and a market economy, but he is not hurrying to set one up; p 2 (793 words).

6. Iva Safronov article headlined "Briz Turned Into Opposite Direction" says Federal Space Agency head Vladimir Popovkin has said the agency is recalling all Briz-M upper stages following their failure to launch two satellites in August 2012; p 2 (638 words).

7. Maxim Ivanov and Sofya Samokhina article headlined "Vladimir Putin No Longer Too Impressive" says a recent public opinion poll has shown that Vladimir Putin lost one fourth of his supporters; p 2 (441 words).

8. Kirill Belyaninov article headlined "Barack Obama's Comrades-in-Arms Quit Second Term" says a number of key officials in the U.S. presidential administration are going to leave their posts even if Barack Obama is re-elected this fall; p 6 (518 words).

Nezavisimaya Gazeta

1. Alexandra Samarina article headlined "Personnel Typhoon to Come in October" says a large-scale reshuffle is expected in the Russian government and law-enforcement agencies soon. Prosecutor General Yury Chaika is expected to be replaced by Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak. First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov is expected to be promoted as well; pp 1, 3 (810 words).

2. Mikhail Sergeyev article headlined "Golden Moscow-St. Petersburg Road" says previously stated charges for using the Moscow-St. Petersburg toll road are expected to grow. The road is to be put into operation in 2014; pp 1, 4 (752 words).

3. Ivan Rodin article headlined "Deputy Gudkov's Black Friday" says a State Duma commission has ruled that Gennady Gudkov's business activity contradicts his deputy status; pp 1, 3 (602 words).

4. Igor Naumov article headlined "Labor Ministry Does Not Guarantee Well-to-Do Old Age" says experts are criticizing the pension reform plan proposed by the Labor Ministry, but no way out of the current pension system crisis is proposed; pp 1, 4 (852 words).

5. Tatyana Ivzhenko article headlined "Azarov Suggests That Business for 3 Should Be Arranged" says Ukraine has suggested that Moscow and the EU should revive the idea of setting up a gas transportation consortium; pp 1, 6 (862 words).

6. Vladimir Skosyrev article headlined "West Finds Moderate Taliban in Afghanistan" says U.S. contacts with the Taliban are expected to be resumed after the presidential election, as a report recently published in London says the movement consists of two groups, one of which adheres to radical ideas, while the other is ready for talks with the West; pp 1, 7 (565 words).

7. Editorial headlined "Alarming Figures 911" reviews the results of the 11 years of fighting with Al-Qaida and notes that although the leaders of the organization were destroyed, the extremist group remains powerful; p 2 (509 words).

8. Alexei Gorbachev article headlined "Opposition Gets Frozen" says people under investigation in connection with a May 6 opposition protest in Moscow are complaining about bad conditions, namely cold, in their detention center. Meanwhile, their lawyers are being summoned by the Investigative Committee for questioning; p 2 (705 words).

9. Andrei Melnikov article headlined "Blow for Blow" criticizes Patriarch Kirill over his recent interview with Rossia 1 television in which he called for fighting with non-conformism; p 3 (895 words).

10. Nikolai Surkov article headlined "Baghdad Accused of Oppressing Sunnis" says the former Iraqi vice president has said a verdict passed by the new Iraqi authorities against him is politically motivated and accused Baghdad of fuelling ethnic tensions; p 7 (497 words).

Vedomosti

1. Olga Plotonova article headlined "VEB Accepts Golden Cage" says that VEB (VneshEkonomBank), having agreed to convert a subordinated loan into Gazprombank's shares, continues to receive 6.5 percent of revenues a year; p 1 (682 words).

2. Dmitry Kazmin et al. report headlined "145Bln Rubles for Road" says the government may decide to raise fuel excise duties to have enough funds for road construction projects in 2013-2015; pp 1, 3 (580 words).

3. Lilia Biryukova and Anastasia Kornya article headlined "To Amend Justice" says business ombudsman Boris Titov is to inform the president about violations of the rights of former Sunrise co-owner Sergei Bobylev, who is serving a prison sentence for fraud; pp 1-2 (689 words).

4. Editorial headlined "Not Mandate but Label" says State Duma Deputy Gennady Gudkov is being punished by United Russia for his support of the non-parliamentary opposition; pp 1, 4 (542 words).

5. Polina Himiashvili and Anastasia Kornya article headlined "Pussy Riot List" says the European Parliament is to discuss the use of trials for political purposes in Russia. The Pussy Riot case will serve as an example, and a list of those involved in the case may be added to the Magnitsky list; p 2 (500 words).

6. Another editorial headlined "Agent Politics" says that while Lithuania is making public the lists of people who used to cooperate with the KGB, Russia still respects those assisting secret services; p 4 (301 words).

7. Bela Lyauv interview with Moscow Deputy Mayor Andrei Sharonov, who speaks about Moscow development plans and ways of reducing traffic problems in the city; p 6 (3,292 words).

Rossiiskaya Gazeta

1. Tamara Shkel article headlined "Eagles and Crosses" says that as a new political season is opening in Russia, people will follow the proceedings in the State Duma in connection with Deputy Gennady Gudkov's argument with United Russia; pp 1-2 (548 words).

2. Yelena Shmeleva interview with Alexander Shokhin, president of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, speaking on planned amendments to the Labor Code; pp 1, 5 (1,024 words).

3. Leonid Radzikhovsky article headlined "Common Sense" sees no signs of radical changes in Russian politics despite existing protest sentiments and the authorities' hostile reaction to them; p 2 (778 words).

4. Pyotr Orlov article headlined "Business Beats Records" says that four businessmen have been charged with misusing money allotted for the Russian Olympic team in Vancouver in 2010; p 2 (500 words).

5. Vladislav Kulikov article headlined "Court to Reveal Secrets" says the plenary assembly of the Supreme Arbitration Court is drafting a ruling that would allow any person to be present during court hearings; p 9 (500 words).

6. Vladimir Bogdanov interview with State Duma deputy and United Russia member Sergei Zheleznyak, who proposes introducing administrative and criminal liability for any crimes committed online; p 9 (950 words).

7. Yelena Yakovleva article headlined "Autumn. What Will Happen to Us and to the Church?" analyzes an interview given by Patriarch Kirill in which he spoke about aggression toward the church currently dominating in Russian society; p 12 (1000 words).

Izvestia

1. Alexei Mikhailov article headlined "Defense Ministry Returns to Paper Army" says the Armed Forces have failed to get rid of under-manned units despite reforms; pp 1-2 (589 words).

2. Igor Agapov article headlined "Denis Sverdlov to Head Rossvyaz" says Deputy Communications Minister Denis Sverdlov is to be appointed head of the Federal Communications Agency; pp 1-2 (645 words).

3. Ivan Cheberko article headlined "Missile Makers Called to Financial Accountability" says Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has said that companies making booster rockets should bear financial responsibility for the failure to launch satellites; pp 1-2 (1,245 words).

4. Olga Tropkina article headlined "United Russia Members Prepare Audits Based on the Gennady Gudkov Scenario" says the State Duma has found proof of Gudkov's business activity, and a number of United Russia deputies will be checked for the same matter as well; p 2 (750 words).

5. Dmitry Runkevich article headlined "Prosecutor General's Office to Check 'Vkontakte' for Extremism Propaganda" says that United Russia Deputy Sergei Zheleznyak has requested that the Prosecutor General's Office probe the contents of Russia's largest social network, Vkontakte; p 3 (500 words).

6. Svetlana Subbotina interview with Oleg Shakhov, a candidate for mayor of the Mosocw region town of Khimki, in which he speaks about his political plans; p 5 (1,452 words).

7. Article by Irina Khakamada headlined "Political Autumn: Weather Forecast" tries to predict further developments in Russian political life; p 7 (487 words).

8. Dmitry Droblinsky article headlined "Crane Flight and Foreign Policy Realism" suggests that President Vladimir Putin's flight with endangered cranes impressed the U.S. audience, while Russian bloggers mocked the flight; p 7 (808 words).

Moskovsky Komsomolets

1. Yulia Kalinina article headlined "Steal Money Faster, Higher, Stronger " says the Investigative Committee has not found any misuse of public funds by officials of the Ministry of Sport and Tourism in preparing the Russian team for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics; pp 1-2 (932 words).

2. Marina Ozerova article headlined "Record From Sleeve" says neither State Duma Deputy Gennady Gudkov nor his lawyers have been given an opportunity to study a document provided by the Investigative Committee that allegedly proves his business activity; pp 1-2 (901 words).

3. Alexander Melman article headlined "Clone Attack" comments on new political programs broadcast by Russian TV channels that look like Soviet-era propaganda; pp 1, 3 (540 words).

Noviye Izvestia

1. Vera Moslakova and Yulia Savina article headlined "Duma's Heavy Thinking" reviews the "repressive" bills the State Duma is expected to pass this fall; pp 1-2 (1,421 words).

RBC Daily

1. Alexander Litoi article headlined "Leftists Do Not Want to Be Friends With Rightists" comments on a rift within the Russian non-parliamentary opposition ahead of elections to the opposition's coordination council; p 2 (550 words).

2. Ivan Petrov article headlined "Directorate for Own Security" says the Investigative Committee wants its own security directorate to be involved in seeking offenders among its ranks; p 2 (400 words).

3. Anton Verzhbitsky et al. report headlined "One Phone Call Is Enough" looks at the career and business plans of banker Alexander Lebedev; p 5 (1,400 words).

Moskovskiye Novosti

1. Irina Novikova article headlined "'Platform for Party' From Alexei Kudrin" says the Civic Initiatives Committee set up by former finance minister Alexei Kudrin is planning reforms and offering grants; pp 1, 5 (350 words).

2. Alexandra Beluza article headlined "Vertical of Swords" says that several Cossack chieftains have confirmed to the newspaper that an all-Russian Cossack army will be set up in November; pp 1, 5 (450 words).

Sept. 11, 2012/BBC Monitoring/©BBC

Related articles:

• What the Papers Say, Sept. 10, 2012
• What the Papers Say, Sept. 7, 2012
• What the Papers Say, Sept. 6, 2012