Notebook

Ten Years
in the Making

Russia declared

Market Economy

 

The US announced in early June it will grant Russia the status of “a market economy,” a move which President Vladimir Putin hopes will lead to full membership in the World Trade Organization. 

The designation means Russia will now receive the same treatment as other major US trading partners in trade disputes. In a statement, Commerce Secretary Don Evans said the new designation “reflects the tremendous changes that Russia has made over the last decade.”

US President George Bush relayed the US decision to Putin in a phone call on June 6, shortly after visiting Russia in late May. A similar designation was made by the European Union just weeks prior. 

“Putin welcomed this step toward Russia, which is really a country with a market economy, noting that it will give a strong impulse to the development of bilateral economic ties,” Russia’s press service said on the occasion. Commenting on the news on the prime time TV program RTR, Economic Development and Trade Minister German Gref said Russia had lost $1.5 billion in annual export sales in recent years because of America’s resistance to recognizing Russia as a market economy. “For Russian producers it means better access to the US market. For the Russian population it means creation of new jobs. For the Russian economy it means new opportunities and new possibilities for the GDP,” Gref said. Russia’s metallurgy industry, nuclear fuel producers, fertilizer and titanium producers have suffered most and are best poised to benefit from the US decision, Gref added. 

 

They will be found

And counted

 

Russia’s October national census—its first since 1989—will also count all foreigners who have been living in the country for more than one year, said Vladimir Sokolin, chairman of the State Statistics Committee (Goskomstat).

“We expect to discover some 2-2.5 million foreigners or persons with dual citizenship during the upcoming census,” Sokolin said.  Goskomstat also said the census will allow specialists to make an exact demographic forecast for the next 20 years. The population fell by 864,000 (0.6%) last year, decreasing to 144 million persons by January 1, 2002. There were just 1,254,000 births in 2001 (3.4% more than in 2000) and 2,217,000 deaths (up 3.7%).

 

Checkup Time

Broad effort to lift 

pediatric health sought

 

In an ambitious effort to find out why Russian children’s health is declining, the Ministry of Health has launched a medical check-up of all Russia’s 33.5 million children. In Soviet times, about half of all newborn children were considered “healthy.” Today, that number is 30%. Deputy Health Minister Olga Sharapova said that the average 18-year-old now has allergies and two or three chronic illnesses, most in the intestines and nervous systems. Every third conscript is pronounced unfit for military service for health reasons. The nationwide checkup will last through mid-December and will include ultrasound, biochemical and immune system testing. The results will be used to help the Cabinet reform the nation’s cash-strapped pediatric health system. Russia’s infant mortality rate reached a peak of 20 deaths per 1,000 births in 1993, then dropped to 14.7 per 1,000 births last year (vs. 7 per 1,000 in the US). “The main cause for the decline in children’s health is the extremely high number of sick women,” Sharapova said. “A sick mother can’t deliver a healthy child.”

Sharapova also attributed the decline to increasing teen promiscuity. “Children are beginning sexual life as early as 14 or 12 years of age, and the increased number of sexually-transmitted diseases is affecting reproduction,” Sharapova said, adding that the loss of Soviet social controls and the spread of explicit TV programs and publications has triggered a “sexual revolution” in Russia.

 

Bribes Tallied

The cost of being Russian

 

Russian businesses pay $36 billion a year in bribes and unofficial charges—equal to half of all government spending in 2002, or 12% of the country’s GDP, according to a two-year study conducted by the Indem think tank and funded by the World Bank. Indem President Georgy Satarov, a former adviser to President Boris Yeltsin, said the figures could be even higher, “as they [the surveyors] were using the minimum levels. Cash or expensive presents are given in exchange for everything from a better treatment at a hospital to a business license or a favorable court ruling.” Some 82% of Russian companies and individual business people admit to giving bribes, while many private individuals engage in “casual corruption”—payments and bribes for free services such as education and health care. 

Indem interviewed 2,000 individuals, 700 companies and 23 experts, a group that included former ministers, state officials, retired law-enforcement personnel and “people who are often referred to as oligarchs.” The largest share of bribes, 34.6%, is collected by “service providers,” such as fire and sanitary inspectors. The average bribe amounts to $2,532 and, on average, a business has to pay off each service agency twice a year.

Licensing authorities come a close second at 34.2%, with an average bribe of $4,686. Fiscal officials like tax inspectors made up 22% of the total, with an average bribe of $3,830. 

Surprisingly, the notoriously corrupt road police only ranked third among bribe-takers who victimized individuals  (after education and health care), taking home an estimated $368.4 million a year from drivers. With roughly 100,000 persons employed by the traffic police, that equals approximately $3000 per employee per month. Meanwhile, the official salary of a traffic police officer is R2,000 ($64) a month.

 

 

The Coming
Russian IT Boom

 

By the year 2005, Russia’s information technology (IT) industry, currently estimated at $3.2 billion a year, will double and the number of Internet users will grow eightfold, said Communications Minister Leonid Reiman at a press-conference devoted to E-Russia, the government’s ambitious, eight-year, $2.4 billion project to boost the sector. The Communications Ministry has advanced a number of initiatives meant to meet the ambitious targets, including special tax breaks for IT companies, new laws to protect intellectual property, increase exports, improve IT education and wean the government off paper. Reiman said the government was on track to meet its own goal of reducing the amount of paper it uses: by 2005 electronic documents generated by governmental bodies will outnumber paper documents. Later this year the Federal Communication and Information Regulatory Agency (FAPSI) will complete the first stage of a new system to protect the intergovernmental exchange of e-documents. This new system includes a fiberoptic network within the government and presidential administration that can handle up to 622 megabytes a second (about 6 times the speed of typical office Ethernet systems). 

Moscow.com

The internet in every home

 

Russia’s leading Internet provider, MTU-Intel, and the Moscow City Telephone Network (MGTS), have teamed up to provide high-speed Internet access to every apartment in the capital. 

Last May, MTU-Intel began offering tochka.ru to the public after selling it to corporate subscribers. The service is based on MGT’s asymmetrical digital subscriber line, or ADSL, which currently covers 75% of Moscow. MGTS has plans to extend the network to the entire city. Tochka.ru, which does not require a dial-up connection, currently has 3,500 subscribers. “Even if we have 20,000 or 30,000 users, it’s a significant number, yet we are counting on hundreds of thousands of subscribers in Moscow,” MTU-Intel General Director Nikolai Repin said, announcing his company’s new service.

For now, the service is quite expensive by Western standards, including a $178 subscription fee, a $30 monthly fee and 18 cents for each megabyte downloaded. “Our main task now is to work out the service and the technology of delivering this service,” Repin said, adding that tariffs will fall. “By the end of the year, we will have taken some steps in this area.” Tochka.ru, however, is far from becoming a mass-market service, analysts said. Tochka.ru’s competitors range from major telecommunications companies to smaller firms working in different districts in Moscow. 

Sovintel, one of Moscow’s leading alternative operators, offers high-speed Internet access for $49 a month, including one gigabyte of free downloads, plus 3 cents for each additional megabyte. As dial-up internet access is so difficult, because of poor telephone lines, other analysts feel the ability to bypass dial-up is something some people may want to pay for.

 

Sorry Performance

Russia’s World Cup 

team sidelined

 

Russians were glued to their TV screens as Russia played its first matches in the World Cup of soccer in Japan and Korea in early June. In Moscow, huge TV screens were installed all over Moscow’s downtown, the biggest on Manezhnaya square, and all local bars were fully booked as customers rooted for their home team over mugs of beer. 

On the day of Russia’s first match against Tunisia, work came to  a virtual standstill in offices nationwide. Even Duma deputies had a hard time working—Duma speaker Gennady Seleznyov had to interrupt the session twice to break the news of Russia’s two goals against Tunisia. 

After a dull first half, Russia mauled Tunisia with two quick-fire goals from Spartak Moscow striker Yegor Titov and Valery Karpin, who plays for Spain’s Celta Club. 

But it was Spartak’s young prodigy—18-year old substitute Dmitry Sychyov—who stole the show in this, his debut world match (and, in which he proved to be the youngest Russian player ever to play in a world match). His introduction early in the second half injected much-needed speed into Russia’s attack. Sychyov claimed an assist on the first goal and was tripped up for the penalty which led to the second goal.

Unfortunately, on June 9, after Russia was defeated by Japan, crowds in front of the huge screen on Manezhnaya square rioted, leaving one dead and hundreds injured, in addition to huge damage to storefronts and cars.

On June 14, Russia was defeated by Belgium 3:2, taking the Russian team out of the World Cup competition. Russia has not advanced to the second round of a world soccer event since 1986.

 

1892

july 7

The artist Pavel Korin, called “the painter of a waning Rus,” was born on this day 110 years ago. Korin’s main themes were Russia and Christianity. He was also famous for his portraits of leading lights of Russian culture such as writer Alexei Tolstoy, actor Vasily Kachalov and artist Mikhail Nesterov (see page 34). At the peak of the Battle of Stalingrad in 1943, Korin created his patriotic triptych “Alexander Nevsky,” which was hung near the entrance to Novgorod, serving as an inspiration to the Soviet troops who marched by on their way to the front. Korin (who died in 1967) will be the feature of a retrospective article in the Nov/Dec 2002 issue of Russian Life, whose centerpiece will be an article commemorating the 60th anniversary of the victory at Stalingrad.

1922

july 7

Ivan Lapikov, a truly narodny (people’s) actor was born on this day. Lapikov’s traits and style embodied the Russian character. His successful debut on the stage of the Stalingrad Drama Theater was followed by work at the Actor’s Studio in Moscow. Lapikov then began starring in films. He won wide acclaim for his lead in the film Chairman, by Alexei Saltykov. Lapikov brought to life simple people, portraying their best traits, underscoring their spiritual wealth and their inner strength. Of his many films, those of special value include Andrei Rublyov (1966), The Brothers Karamazov (1968), A Minute of Silence (1973), Father Sergius (1978), Little Tragedies (1979) and the ever-popular TV series Vechny Zov (“Eternal Call”) which earned Lapikov a State Prize.

1942

july 17

On this day 60 years ago the Battle of Stalingrad began. It would end nearly 7 months later, on February 2, 1943, and go down as one of the greatest events in world history. It is hard to overestimate the impact of this battle on the course of World War II; it truly was the turning point on the Eastern Front, after which Hitler’s fate was all but sealed. An article on the battle will appear in our Nov/Dec 2002 issue.

1912

july 24

This would have been the 90th birthday of Nikolai Gritsenko (1912-1979), an actor who excelled in many genres, from tragedy to subtle humor and grotesque comedy. Gritsenko spent his theatrical life on the stage of Moscow’s Vakhtangov Theater. There he played dozens of the top roles adored by Russian theater-goers, including Tartalia in Gozzi’s “Tourandot Princess,” and Mamaev in Ostrovsky’s “Even the Wisest Man Can Err.” His aristocratic appearance inspired film directors to cast him in “negative roles”— which in Soviet times were White Army officers or kulaks. But even in these presumably repugnant roles, somehow Gritsenko charmed cinema-goers with his unique talent. Examples include his no-nonsense German general in the TV series Seventeen Moments of Spring, Karenin in Anna Karenina and Roshchin in the trilogy Sisters, Year 1918. Gloomy Morning, based on a novel by Alexei Tolstoy.

1942

july 24

One of the most talented actors ever to graduate from the MKhAT theater school, Irina Miroshnichenko, turns 60 today. Upon graduation from the school in 1965, Miroshnichenko joined the MKHAT troupe and worked there until 1991. She starred in many local hits, namely as Nina Zarechnaya in Anton Chekhov’s “The Seagull”. Miroshnichenko’s successful cinema career has paralleled her stage career, starting with her debut film, Here I am Strolling Moscow (1963), directed by Georgy Daneliya. Russians especially love her films They Knew Them by Their Faces (1966), Uncle Vanya (1970), The Secret of Madame Wong (1985), and Cranberry in Sugar (1995).

1937

july 31

Edita Pyekha, a Polish-born Russian singer who spent her childhood in France, was born today. Pyekha’s beautiful, light soprano, tinged with a slight accent, earned her the adulation of many Soviet fans. She began performing with her own group in 1976 and continues to perform today, both on stage and in high-profile TV concerts, treating the audience to her new songs and beloved hits like “Huge Sky for Two,” “Hope,” and “A Formidable Neighbor Settled in Our House.”

1942

august 17

A Soviet singing celebrity—Azerbaidzhani singer Muslim Magomaev, grandson of Abdul Magomaev, one of the founders of the Azerbaidzhani Opera Theater—turns 60 today. A graduate of the Azerbaidzhan Conservatory, Magomaev has been singing in Azerbaidzhan’s Theater of Opera and Ballet since 1977. In 1964-1965 he was an intern with the famous La Scala Theater in Milan. Gifted with a powerful operatic voice, Magomaev nevertheless shone mostly in stage concerts with his popular songs, such as “Svadba” (Wedding), or “Vdol po Piterskoy” (All the Way Down Peter Street). Throughout the 1970s and early 1980s, Magomaev was a required guest at any important Soviet holiday concert aired on TV. Magomaev also often performed on stage in tandem with his wife, opera singer Tamara Sinyavskaya. Magomaev quit the stage in the 1980s, while still very popular, for reasons that are still unknown.

1937

august 19

Playwright Alexander Vampilov (1937-1972) was born on this day. Despite a tragically short life (he drowned at age 35), he left behind many popular plays, still staged in Russian theaters, including “The Elder Son” (1968), which also became a famous film, “Last Summer in Chulimsk” (1971), and “Provincial Anecdotes” (1971). His most famous play “The Canucks’ Hunt” (1970), was the story of an undeserving Soviet man, Zilov, who is sick of his otherwise successful life. It was a hit in the late 1970s and early 1980s, when the role was performed by such stars as Andrei Mironov and Oleg Dal. In May 2002, an updated version of the play was staged by Alexander Marin at Oleg Tabakov’s MKhAT theater. Earlier this year, Tabakov’s other theater, composed of his former students—the famous Tabakerka by Chistye Prudy metro station—staged Vampilov’s “Provincial Anecdotes.”

1872

august 19

Ballerina Matilda Kseshinskaya (1872-1971), one of the brightest dancers of the Russian academic school of ballet was born on this day. Kseshinskaya’s “steel toe” was legendary, and her style was very relaxed and free. She executed the most complex ballet pas, winning fans with the nobility of her gesture and the passion of her temperament. One of her most loyal admirers (and allegedly her par amour too) was the last Russian tsar, Nicholas II. Kseshinskaya’s most brilliant roles included Odette in  “Swan Lake,” Aurora in “Sleeping Beauty,” Nikia in “Bayadere” and Esmeralda in the ballet of the same name. In 1907, Kseshinskaya quit the ballet and in 1920 emigrated to Paris, where she opened a ballet school in 1929.

 

1942

august 25

Actress Margarita Terekhova will be sixty years old today. Upon graduation from the Mossoviet Theater Studio, Terekhova worked at Mossoviet until 1983. A bright and tempermental actress with undeniable sex-appeal, Terekhova wins over fans with her brash and spontaneous style. Such is her Catherine the Great in the play “Tsar’s Hunt,” her Gertrude in “Hamlet,” her Cleopatra in “Caesar and Cleopatra.” Not surprisingly, it was Terekhova who was entrusted with playing the role of the perfidious Milady in the Soviet film The Three Musketeers, shot in 1979. One of the favorite actresses of film director Andrei Tarkovsky, Terekhova starred in one of his best films, The Mirror (1975). In 1985-1986, Terekhova set up her own theater, “Balaganchik.” In recognition of her talent and career, in 1996 Terekhova was awarded the title of People’s Artist of Russia.

 

1957

august 21

On this day 45 years ago the USSR launched the world’s first ballistic missile, making serious headway in the conquest of space. The famous Sputnik satellite, launched later the same year, needed a powerful rocket to propel it into space—it had to travel at a then amazing 8 km/second. The communique spread by the official news agency TASS said: ”The flight of the rocket was carried out at a high, previously unattained altitude. The results obtained show that there is now the opportunity to launch a rocket to any part of the globe.”

 

Singer Sergei Lemeshev (1902-1977), a phenomenal talent with great acting talents, was born one hundred years ago on July 10. Born into a peasant’s family in the village of Staroye Knyazevo, Tver guberniya, at age 12 he was sent by his father to the city, to apprentice himself to a shoemaker. Yet, he ended up serving in the Red Army, where he charmed his comrades-in-arms with his beautiful voice. He was recommended to the Moscow Conservatory, where his teachers made a professional singer out of this “samorodok” (“one born with exceptional natural talent”). His first and major role, which marked him for life, was the part of Lensky in Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s opera, Yevgeny Onegin. A follower of Konstantin Stanislavsky, Lemeshev worked on his role of Lensky for 40 years, performing it for the 500th time in 1965, on the stage of the Bolshoi. For four decades Lemeshev sang at the Bolshoi, developing a repertoire of more than 30 operatic roles. His silver tenor voice, whenever it was heard on the radio, was recognizeable to all: “It is Lemeshev singing. How fine. How soulful!”

 

The “Nightingale from Bukovina,” Sofia Rotaru, was born on August 9, 1947, 55 years ago. More precisely, Rotaru comes from the village of Marshintsy in the Chernovitsky region of Ukraine. A graduate of the Chernovitsky Musical School, Rotaru became famous in the USSR in 1968: her lyrical interpretation of Russian, Ukrainian and Moldovan songs made her one of the best-loved female singers on the local pop stage. Her hits have become inalienable parts of Russian culture. These include the Ukrainian song “Chervona Rutu,” the Moldovan “Melancholy,” and the Russian songs “Lavanda,” “The Moon,” and “A Whole Country Together.”

 

Teaming up on fraud

US authorities have asked the Russian Federal Securities Commission to assist in an investigation of Gold-Ventures Club, a Russian-run investment company that has been accused of email fraud, Interfax reported. The US Securities and Exchange Commission said in a statement that Gold-Ventures, headed by Irkutsk resident Alexander Khamidulin, sent emails to US investors promising risk-free returns of 200% every 14 days. Gold-Venture made the same offer at its website. The investment terms offered by Gold-Ventures are patently fraudulent and violate US antifraud and securities regulation. 

 

Ford opens plant

On July 9, Ford Motor Company will open its new auto making plant in Vsevolozhsk (Leningrad region), a town 40 kilometers northeast of St. Petersburg. The $150 million project is the second largest US investment in the Leningrad oblast and will allow for production of 25,000 cars per year. The plant will produce the Ford Focus in three models: sedan, hatchback, and estate. The Ford models manufactured at the plant would have a number of modifications to adapt to the Russian climate, roads and other specifics. According to Henrik Henzen, head of the Ford Motor Company in the CIS, the plant at Vsevolozhsk employs 800 people. However, prices of the automobiles won’t be announced before July 9. 

 

Chicken recoups market

Fresh cargoes of US poultry were due to arrive to Russia in June, about a month after the lifting of an import ban that strained relations with Washington. Three ships carrying some 20,000 tons of poultry were expected in Russia, said Albert Davleyev, head of the US Poultry and Egg Export Council office in Moscow. By May 15 Russia’s Agriculture Ministry had already issued 20 permits to importers of US-produced poultry.

 

Honoring Sakharov

The Moscow city government announced on the 81st anniversary of Andrei Sakharov’s birth (May 21) that it would raise a monument to the 1975 Nobel Peace Prize winner. Sakharov, the creator of the Soviet hydrogen bomb, later became one of the leading Soviet dissidents, actively fighting against human rights abuses in the FSU, for which he was sent into internal exile and stripped of his many state honors. A key politician during the Gorbachevian era of perestroika, he actively contributed to Russia’s transition to democracy. He died at the age of 78, in December 1989.  Meanwhile, a group of Sakharov supporters in the US, including his stepdaughter, Tatyana Yankelevich, have launched a campaign to have him granted honorary US citizenship. 

 

Dancer of the Year

The US magazine Dance named the Bolshoi’s Nina Ananiashvili the Best Ballerina of the Year. Ananiashvili flew to New York to receive the magazine’s special award. Past Russian ballerinas to receive the prestigious award have included Galina Ulanova, Maya Plisetskaya and Natalia Makarova. One of the brightest dancers in the history of the Bolshoi,  Ananiashvili turns 40 in March 2003. 

 

Credit where due

According to the St. Petersburg Governor’s Press Service, the results of a 2001 credit-rating survey of Russian Federation subjects carried out by AK&M center placed St. Petersburg in second place after Moscow. The survey assessed the capability of each subject to meet debts incurred, taking into account the relationship between debt and budgetary income and other factors. Internally generated income for St. Petersburg amounted to $1.6 billion, accounting for 95.2% of total income. 

 

Rising Star

Yelena Bovina won her first career Womens’ Tennis Association title in May, the J & S Cup in Warsaw. She defeated Slovak Henrieta Nagyova in the finals 6-3, 6-1, coming home with the $25,000 grand prize. The 19-year-old Russian said that she played “the best week of her career” in Warsaw. Even better known Russian tennis stars, such as Anna Kurnikova and Yelena Dementieva, cannot claim a WTA title. Only two Russians—Yelena Likhovtseva (2 titles) and Anastasiya Myskina (1)—have scored victories in WTA tournaments. Meanwhile at the recent 2002 French Open held in May-June, Anna Kurnikova was again ousted in the first round of play.

 

Very Friendly Match

In the St. Petersburg Cup of Soccer, a friendly match held May 27 (City Day) in St. Petersburg, local club Zenit beat Italy’s Serie A Giant Milan 4-3 in a penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw in normal time. In an indication of the mood of the evening, Milan’s penalty specialist, Ukrainian striker Andrei Shevchenko, took an unusual penalty with the last kick of the shootout, tapping the ball straight to Zenit goalie Vyacheslav Malafeyev, who duly made the save to give the home side the victory that the fans wanted. 

 

Safin Rises, Sinks

Marat Safin’s performance at the French Open in June left a bittersweet after taste. On the one hand, Marat reached his best result at the French Open ever, reaching the semi-finals after defeating the last remaining French player, Sebastien Grosjean, in just 1 hour 43 minutes: 6-3, 6-2, 6-2. Yet Safin later played a lackluster game against Spain’s Juan Carlos Ferrero, in which his serve and footwork both left much to be desired. Safin went down in three straight sets: 3-6, 2-6, 4-6. Marat Safin has won 10 ATP titles and was 2000 US Open champion. 

 

Bell to Ring Again

As part of an effort to restore the belfry of the Troitse-Sergiev Lavra, the monastery ordered a 27-ton bell to be cast by the Moscow car making plant Zil. In 1930, when atheist propaganda was raging throughout Russia, all 28 bells in the Lavra’s belfry were thrown from the tower and broken. In May, Zil showed a wooden mock-up of the bell, pictured here.

 

Bulat’s Return

On May 8, the city of Moscow unveiled a new monument to the bard of the Arbat, Bulat Okudzhava. The monument is by sculptor Georgy Frangulyan and architect Valentin Proshnyakov and stands near the Smolensky end of the old Arbat. Okudzhava lived on the Arbat for many years and called it his “fatherland”. 

 

“Either we pass the law and then an investor comes to 

the land, or we don’t pass it, and then a thief-in-law 

comes to it.”

Ivan Starikov, chairman of the Committee of the Russian Federation
on Agrarian Policies, about the need for a Law on Land. (Itogi weekly)

 

“Culture is always economically profitable, for it
gives society people who are capable of achieving 

economic success.”

Minister of Culture Mikhail Shvydkoy (Itogi) 

 

“For me, Sakharov embodies the idea that our society 

can be free, but that freedom is not just for those 

who have money.”

Yuri Samodurov, Director of the Sakharov Museum in Moscow,
on what would have been the physicist’s 81st birthday.

 

“Ä ÍÓÎË ÒÂϸ-ÚÓ Û·ÎËÍÓ‚ Ô·ÚËÚ¸—Ú‡Í ˜ÂÚ Ò ÚÓ·ÓÈ!” 

“But if we’re gonna have to pay seven rubles—to hell with you!”

From a 19th century poem by Nikolai Nekrasov when the price of a
third class ticket from Moscow to St. Petersburg was raised
from three to seven rubles. Cited recently in relation to the
upcoming metro fare hike in Moscow from five to seven rubles. (Izvestia) 

 

“In the past it was en vogue to speak of the “arm of Moscow” (ruka Moskvy). Now is the time to talk about the “legs
from St. Petersburg.” 

Kommersant quipping on the results of the Miss Universe 2002 contest (see below).

 

Beauty from the Neva

 

Oksana Fedorova, 24, was crowned Miss Universe 2002 at the end of May, becoming the first Russian ever to win the title. The dark-haired, green-eyed St. Petersburger is also the first Miss Universe who is a ranking police lieutenant, with six months of detective experience. She was the only European among the five finalists at the pageant in San Juan, Puerto Rico. 

Fedorova won $250,000 in cash as well as promotional contracts and a scholarship to the School for Film and Television in New York, where she gets a luxury riverside apartment for a year. Fedorova, a postgraduate student in civil law, already holds the title of Miss Russia 2001 and Miss St. Petersburg 1999. When she won the Miss Russia title, Russian TV showed her in a green police uniform standing beside a giant portrait of President Vladimir Putin in her office, but she insists she has no connection to the president. 

Fedorova, an only child raised by her mother, was born in Pskov and moved to St. Petersburg at the age of 18. “My grandparents lived in Leningrad and survived the blockade here. I think a genie cast his spell on me when I came here and I fell in love with this city,” Fedorova said last year. She said she chose a career in law enforcement because it gave her confidence and discipline and she said she eventually wants to become a lawyer and mother. “In Russia, a woman should not only be beautiful but also know how to stand up for herself,” she said. 

As a result of the ongoing dialogue between Russia and Germany on the problem of transfer of works of cultural value, seven paintings stolen from Russia during WWII were returned to Russia and presented at the Ministry of Culture. The paintings returned to Russia include a 19th century portrait of Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna (above). 

 

Taming of the Moose

An long-term experiment to domesticate the moose is underway at the State Moose Farm at the Sumarokovsky nature preserve, Arkhangelsk region. Over the last 40 years, local moose have become accustomed to living near humans, being fed by them and giving their milk. Moose milk is reputed to have unparalleled healing properties, and is in high demand in local sanatoria. Between 20 and 30 moose are born each year at the farm. Until age two, the moose are kept in herds in special camps, then they are released into the forest with a collar-transmitter around their necks. The moose have gotten used to living near humans and hardly ever roam farther than 25 kilometers from the farm. 

 

“Roman legions would erase such Carthaginians from the earth in a few minutes. But it took the Russian legion a whole hour to get ahead of this team which was attacking with three players and which had a whole crowd in its defense.” 

Izvestia, on Russia’s match against Tunisia (where Carthage once stood).

 

73% of Russia’s population lives on just 2% of the country’s territory, and creates about 80% of the country’s GDP. (Kommersant) ! Muscovites’ average annual per capita personal income rose from about $2,500 in 1999 to $6,000 in 2001. Muscovites spent 40.5% of their disposable income on food, 34.3% on non-food items and 14.5 % on services, according to Stiles and Riabokobylko. (Moscow Times) ! The outflow of money from Russia has slowed to less than $15 billion per year from more than $25 billion at the end of 2000. In fact, some $15-20 billion returned to Russia last year. (IMF and National Reserve Bank) ! Cumulative annual inflation in Russia is expected to amount to between 10-12 % in 2003. The Russian Central Bank estimates that inflation for 2002 will not exceed 14%. ! In January-April 2002, Russians spent 62.8% of their income on purchasing goods, and 16.4% on services; 5.8% was spent buying hard currency, 4.9% went into savings and 9.7% was spent on mandatory payments (Goskomstat). ! The Russian Federation’s gold and foreign exchange reserves amounted to $41.7 billion US dollars as of May 24, 2002, compared to $40.6 billion as of May 17, 2002 (Bank of Russia) ! State debt is expected to fall to 41% of GDP this year, vs. 49.1% in 2001. (Ministry of Finance). ! The number of regular Internet users in Russia grew 39% last year, to 4.3 million. The number of personal computers in the country rose 17.2% last year, from 6.4 per 100 persons to 7.5 (Russian Communications Ministry). ! Domestic car manufacturers currently produce 950,000 vehicles per year, while some 350,000 cars are imported ! 50% of the cars on Russia’s roads are over 10 years old, while another 22% are 5-10 years old. Some $6.5 billion is spent each year purchasing imported second-hand vehicles, with almost the same amount being spent on spare parts for them. ! Russia has received $10 billion in credits from the World Bank since the launch of a program of economic reforms in Russia in 1992 (Moscow Tribune) ! By April 1, total bank assets reached 35.3% of the estimated GDP for 2002 ($350 billion), while total capital reached 5% of estimated GDP, according to the Central Bank. The total credit portfolio came to 13.5%. ! Russia had 10.98 million cellular phone subscribers at the end of last May, according to data released by J’son & Partners consulting firm. ! Russia has 5,679 primary schools with fewer than 10 students, mostly in the rural areas, according to the Education Ministry. 200-300 of the small schools, have only one student. ! 2002 net profits of Russia’s leading airline company Aeroflot will be more than $20 million, twice what it was in 2001. ! The 2003 draft budget stipulates an average annual ruble exchange rate of R34/$1. (Prime TASS) ! Just 12% of Russians have a sufficient salary to purchase housing at the average local price, vs. 85% in western industrialized countries (Kommersant).