Notebook

Moskva Upgrade

According to the Moscow city administration, the hotel Moskva will soon be given a major facelift. Specifically, organizers plan to create a high-class hotel from the Soviet-era behemoth, complete with conference rooms, posh restaurants, a swimming pool, health facilities and a central courtyard covered by a transparent roof. Mayor Yuri Luzhkov has already allocated $4 mn from the city’s hard-currency fund for the project, which is expected to cost $250-300 mn.

Immigrant Rush

According to Vladimir Zorin, chairman of the Duma’s Committee on Nationality Affairs, migration to Russia from the CIS republics and the Baltics is once again on the rise, after a period of relative calm. For example, during the first nine months of 1997, over 133,000 people immigrated to Russia from Kazakhstan, versus 87,000 over the whole of 1996.

Honoring Pushkin

In connection with Alexander Pushkin’s 200th anniversary next year, over 100 historical locations connected with the poet’s life and work in Moscow will be reconstructed by 1999. The city authorities intend to create a “Pushkin path” that will start at the poet’s museum-apartment on the Arbat and end at the State Pushkin Museum on Prechistenka street.

“Cunning” Costs

The Russian government has said it will increase wages in the military from 65-100% in the coming year. But the means to the end may prove contentious. “We plan to increase wages,” President Boris Yeltsin said early this year, “... but we will do it with a little bit of cunning.” The government will “increase” wages by eliminating a package of premiums and benefits from the miserly compensation of Russian officers, thus saving about R27.4 bn a year. The benefits, which include partial compensation of vacation expenses and a yearly bonus, will be cut as early as this spring. [Meanwhile, Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin recently promised apartments for all servicemen by the year 2000 – Japan has loaned Russia $1.5 bn to build military housing.] 

Pulkovo Wins

The first Russian airport competition, held in honor of the 75th anniversary of Russian aviation, named St. Petersburg’s Pulkovo Airport the best in Russia. Specifically, there was high praise for Pulkovo’s roomy waiting area for business class passengers, good lighting, comfortable chairs and well-stocked bar. Moscow’s Vnukovo airport took second place in the contest, while Tyumen’s Kogalym airport placed third. Contest organizers said their main aim was to encourage Russia’s 845 airports to whip themselves into shape.

Surikov in Bronze

A bronze statue of artist Vasily Surikov {RL, Dec/Jan 1998} was unveiled February 9 in the vestibule of Surikov’s namesake Moscow Arts Institute. Then, at a ceremony attended by Mayor Luzhkov and Culture Minister Nataliya Dementyeva, a memorial stone was set on the site of a future monument to Vasily Surikov on Moscow’s Prechistenka street, opposite the Russian Academy of Artists, where an entire gallery of busts of outstanding Russian artists will join Surikov in the future. The Academy is planning a number of celebratory events for Surikov’s 150th anniversary this year. Academy President Zurab Tsereteli – known for his monumental works – said he wants to erect a gigantic statue of Surikov in the artist’s home city of Krasnoyarsk.

FSB Controls Border Guards

Now that Russia’s border guard service is officially under the control of the FSB (the successor to the notorious KGB), unsuspecting foreigners could be in for something more than the usual routine questions upon landing at Sheremetevo. Now, any green-uniformed border guard at passport control and luggage inspection could be an FSB agent. Thus, the FSB has free reign to question foreigners and even arrange clandestine meetings at the airport.

Plevna Monument Reopened

On March 1, a monument to the heroes of Plevna {RL, August 1997} was reopened in Moscow after eight months of repairs. A few days later, a ceremony attended by the Bulgarian ambassador was held at the site, to commemorate the 120th anniversary of the end of the Russian-Turkish war (1877-1888) and the freeing of Bulgaria from the Ottoman yoke. Some 43,000 Russian soldiers died defending Plevna in 1887.

Kalmyk Coup?

On February 16, Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, president of the Republic of Kalmykia,

dissolved that region’s government and subordinated all the ministries to himself. Ilyumzhinov called the move a means to slashing the budget and reducing the bureaucracy, but some political observers are not so sanguine and see it as a power play, pure and simple. The move, which stands on questionable legal ground, may get Ilyumzhinov a day in court – Russia’s Constitutional Court, that is. While the president already faces little opposition from the republic’s legislature, he riskily defied federal law in 1995 by running for president of the republic unopposed.

Equal Standing

Yakhye Dashti-Gafur, a Kurd, was held in a detention center near Moscow for two-and-a-half months without being charged or facing trial. In the first-ever appeal from a foreigner heard by Russia’s Constitutional Court, that court used Dashti-Gafur’s case to strike down a portion of a Soviet era law (On the Legal Status of Foreign Citizens), which allowed indefinite detainment while awaiting deportation or charges. The court ruled that, for foreigners (and persons without state citizenship) as for Russians, 48 hours is the maximum period of detention, unless a court order to the contrary is issued.

Tikhonov at 70

Soviet actor Vyacheslav Tikhonov, who sent many women’s hearts a-throbbing in his younger days, turned 70 this February. Best known as the spy Shtirlits in the film by the same name (which many Russians can recount by heart), the actor also appeared in such films as War and Peace, An Optimistic Tragedy, Seventeen Moments of Spring and the Oscar-winning Burnt by the Sun. Tikhonov briefly fell out of favor during perestroika for reading Brezhnev’s memoirs on television, but is now as popular as ever.

Ivan Goes Better ...

Coca-Cola has launched an ambitious ad campaign in Russia entitled “Drink the Legend,” based on the Russian fairy tale The Firebird (Zhar Ptitsa). The company reportedly shelled out over $50 mn to make five, one-minute TV commercials. The commercials tell the story of the tsar’s son Ivan, who, accompanied by his friend the grey wolf, sets out on a quest to retrieve a golden apple stolen from his father. Along the way, Ivan faces great hardship and falls in love with Yelena the Beautiful. And of course, he keeps up his spirits by drinking Coke ... [No report yet whether the fairy tales of Baba Yaga and her house on chicken legs will be similarly exploited by PepsiCo, owner of Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurants.]

Death, Yes. Torture, No.

The Russian Duma voted 348-9 in February to ratify the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture. The Duma also ratified the European Convention on Human Rights. Yet deputies did not ratify a protocol banning capital punishment, despite the fact that no executions have been carried out in Russia since August 1996. It will need to take this step to satisfy the conditions of membership in the Council of Europe, which Russia joined in February 1996. Meanwhile, in February, the Duma ratified the 1957 international convention banning all forms of forced labor as punishment, a practice used to murderous conclusions in the Soviet period.

Americans to Buy Soviet Icon?

Moscow lawyer Anatoly Kucherena recently offered to buy Vera Mukhina’s famous sculpture The Worker and the Kolkhoznitsa (1932-35) on behalf of an unnamed American firm (reportedly connected to Hollywood). The sculpture, which presently is in very poor condition, was used as the symbol of Mosfilm, and is as famous in Russia as is the MGM lion in the US. Asked whether he would sell the sculpture to the Americans, Alexander Solovev, head of the Department of Monument Art under Moscow’s Directorate for State Control over the Protection and Use of Monuments (which has no money to restore the monument), quipped: “We’ll give it away cheap – it’s just stainless steel.” However, according to the directorate’s lawyers, the deal is impossible: Russian law states that all cultural monuments are under state control and cannot be “privatized.”

Kiev Turns 80

Kiev train station, which connects Moscow with Kiev, Odessa, Chisinau, Budapest, Bukharest, Sofia and Belgrade, opened 80 years ago this past February. The building – which was the largest station in Europe when it was built and still handles up to 35,000 passengers a day – was designed by well-known architect Ivan Rerberg. Although the Kiev station no longer services the most passengers in Europe (that honor belongs to Moscow’s Kazan station), many still consider it to be Russia’s most beautiful station. Its facade was restored in time for the city’s 850th anniversary. Further improvements will be completed in time for the World Youth Games this summer.

A Boost for the Tretyakov

In the US, a two-month fundraising campaign for the Tretyakov gallery spearheaded by United Technologies International (which donated $100,000) has wrapped up. And, at a ceremony attended by Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, gallery’s Director Valentin Rodionov was handed a check for $755,000. “We hope that many American companies that count on a long-term presence on the Russian market will join our efforts aimed at extending help to Russian cultural centers,” said a United Technologies representative during the ceremony. Last year, Rodionov announced that utilities could be cut off at any moment because the gallery lacked the money to pay its electric bill. 

US Investing Up

According to Eugene Lawson, president of the US-Russia Business Council, US investment in the Russian economy amounted to $4 bn in 1997, up from $1.3 bn in 1993, while overall US investments in Russia amount to $10 bn. Lawson said that Russia is coming to the end of a period of crisis and is on the brink of an expansion in commercial activity. Still, investment in Russia has room for growth. Direct investments currently make up $47 per capita in Russia, whereas in China, this figure is $130.

Fyodorov Back in Detroit

After some tense moments, Detroit Red Wings fans have something to shout about. Russian hockey forward Sergei Fyodorov {RL, Dec 1997/Jan 1988}, a silver medalist at the Nagano Olympics, is back in his red uniform after a five-month long contract dispute. The Wings matched a $38 mn, six-year contract offered by the Carolina Hurricanes (which was rejected by the National Hockey League for violating the league’s collective bargaining agreement). “I am very pleased to be coming back to the league,” Fyodorov told the Russian daily Sport-Express.

Agassi To Play Russians

Tennis legend Andre Agassi will play for the US in the first-round match of the 1998 Davis Cup against the Russian team. The match will take place in early April in the Atlanta suburb of Stone Mountain. Although Agassi is certainly a formidable opponent, Russia can take comfort in the fact that the former world top seed, who recently won a title in San Jose, is currently ranked only 49th in the world.

Kafelnikov Up and Coming

Meanwhile, in London, Russia’s top tennis player, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, won his first tournament of the season on March 1. Ever since Kafelnikov missed the Australian Open due to an injury, he has been dogged by doubts about his physical condition. After his victory, however, Kafelnikov jumped to fourth place in international tennis ratings. “... In the end, I was able to get on top of my game, and, in the second set, I was already confident that victory would not escape me,” Kafelnikov said after the match. But Russia’s rising star will have to be extra tough this year to beat top-ranked Pete Sampras, who won his first title of 1998 recently in Philadelphia.

Spartak’s Dutch Treat

Moscow’s Spartak soccer team won an impressive 3:1 victory over former European champion Ajax (Holland) in Amsterdam, thanks to textbook passing and spectacular goals by Alexander Shirko and Valery Kechinov. This quarter-final match-up of the UEFA Cup was then, on March 17, followed by a rematch of the two teams on Spartak’s home turf. Spartak won that match 1-0. This makes Spartak the first Russian soccer team ever to make it into the semifinals of the UEFA cup.

Last year, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations and Trade’s State Trade Inspectorate rejected 50.6% of all imported vodka as substandard quality.

In 1995-6, 5,589 Russian students were studying in the US, a 15% increase from the previous year. This compares to a world-wide increase of only 0.3%, and only 4% from Europe as a whole.

Since 1996, 69 officials have been convicted of embezzling some 2.96 billion [old] rubles ($490,000) in federal funds.

The Russian government currently owes its military officers an average of $1,600 each.

In 1997, 2,000,000 foreign tourists visited Moscow – a record for the decade. By way of comparison, only about 500,000 tourists visited Russia’s capital in 1996.

Energy production accounts for 50% of all Russian export revenues and 40% of state revenues from taxes.

Russia’s draft 1998 federal budget foresees some 500 billion in expenditures. Meanwhile, some 800,000 Russian enterprises owe a total of 554.9 billion rubles in back taxes and fines to federal and regional budgets.

900,000 people who previously received benefits in the aftermath of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear meltdown had these benefits reduced or eliminated when a government directive in December changed the status of 3,271 towns and villages and 14 regions.

In 1997, production in the defense industry declined by 16.4%. The production of arms and military hardware declined by 31.2%. Yet spending on conversion programs were virtually nonexistent. Defense industry output has fallen by over 90% since 1992.

Drug-resistant tuberculosis is thought to plague some 20% of all Russian prison inmates. It is estimated that some 2.2 million Russians (1.4% of the population) also have the disease. Last year, over 22,000 persons died of tuberculosis in Russia. In response, the government has approved an anti-tuberculosis program that foresees spending some 17.5 billion rubles ($2.9 billion, or about $25 per Russian citizen) between 1998 and 2004.

Some 90,000 foreigners visited Amurskaya Oblast in 1997, the most of any Far East region. Just 30,000 foreigners visited Primorsky Krai, which posted the second highest numbers ... And only 2,000 visited Kamchatskaya Oblast. The majority of these visitors (upwards of 90%) are Chinese traders making forays in the Far East.

SOURCES: Kommersant Daily, RFE/RL Daily Report, Trud-7, Friends & Partners listserv, Rossiyskaya Gazeta, ITAR-TASS, BISNIS.

REVELATION OF THE DECADE

“Today we realize full well that you can’t put everyone in jail.” 

Interior Minister Anatoly Kulikov.

VODKA HISTORY, PART I

“If, before, a person could drink a liter and a half of vodka and he, well, somehow survived, then today, if he drinks production that’s faked, made from synthetic spirits, a mere fourth of this standard is completely sufficient.” 

Vladimir Malyshkov, 

head of the Moscow government’s 

Department of Consumer Markets and Services.

SO THAT’S MILITARY INTELLIGENCE

“The more stars a guy has, the smarter he is.” 

Ivan Rybkin, 

head of Russia’s Security Council, 

on intelligence in the armed forces.

VODKA HISTORY, PART II

“They ripped everyone off, spent half of it on booze, and yet, over five years, haven’t been able to correct the course.” 

Gennady Zyuganov, 

on the Russian government.

CAN WE HAVE A SECOND OPINION?

“It is ludicrous to prescribe bedrest to a country that needs active movement.” 

President Boris Yeltsin 

in his State of the Nation address 

to the Federal Assembly.

THE KIND OF HOCKEY WE NEED

“In past years, the NHL has regarded European hockey as a big farm club. But now the whole [Olympic] pedestal is taken up by Europeans – the Czech Republic, Russia, Finland.”

 Vladimir Yurzinov, 

Russia’s Olympic ice hockey coach, 

on the recent Games in Nagano.