SOURCE: The St. Petersburg Times
DATE: Issue #1000 (68), Friday, September 3, 2004
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TITLE: Standoff Drags On At School
PUBLISHER: Combined Reports
TEXT: A tense standoff continued Thursday night around a school in Beslan, North Ossetia that was seized Wednesday by an armed group, some with bombs strapped to their bodies.
The attackers, who hold 300 to 400 students, teachers and parents hostage, have vowed to kill 50 children for any one of their comrades killed. They held intermittent talks with negotiators during the day, but no breakthrough had been achieved.
The hostage-takers say that "for every destroyed fighter, they will kill 50 children, and for every injured fighter, 20,'' Itar-Tass quoted Interior Ministry chief Kazbek Dzantiyev as saying.
The hostage-takers refused to accept food, water and medicine for the hostages. Interfax reported that a total of 26 women and their young children were released on Thursday afternoon thanks to the intervention of Ruslan Aushev, a former president of Ingushetia.
Intermittent gunfire and explosions near the scene were also reported. Television showed frantic parents keeping a vigil at the school that is surrounded by hundreds of heavily armed troops.
The Northern Ossetia FSB said Thursday they would not storm the school. Former St. Petersburg governor Vladimir Yakovlev, who is the presidential envoy to the Southern region, is in charge of operations at the scene.
President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that the government is concentrating on saving hostages' lives, Interfax reported.
"Our main task in this difficult situation is to save the lives and health of those who are held hostage," he said. "Our actions, all our efforts will be directed at freeing the hostages and devoted exclusively to that."
Putin said the crisis was terrible.
"It's terrible because there are children among the hostages and because this could wreck the balance of interreligious and interethnic relations in the [North Caucasus] region," he was reported saying at a meeting with Jordanian King Abdullah II in Moscow.
"We will do all we can to see that events do not follow that course."
The Ossetians are Christian while Chechens and Ingush are Muslim and there is bad blood between the Ossetians and Ingush.
Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the attackers demand the release of Chechen rebels and militants from Ingushetia, who were detained after the raid on Ingushetia, and for Moscow to pull troops out of Chechnya.
Putin returned to Moscow from the resort of Sochi on the Black Sea on Wednesday and on Thursday he canceled a planned visit to Turkey because of the crisis.
"We shall fight against them, throw them in prisons and destroy them," Interfax quoted him saying on his return.
A series of terrorist attacks over the last fortnight have humiliated the Kremlin and suggest that Moscow's policy on Chechnya has failed to curb terrorism.
President George W. Bush called Putin and "condemned the taking of hostages and the other terrorist attacks in Russia."
The rebels said they would only talk to regional leaders Northern Ossetian president Alexander Dzasokhov, Ingushetian president Murat Zyazikov, Putin's adviser on Chechnya Aslanbek Aslakhanov, or prominent pediatrician Lev Roshal, who helped to negotiate the release of children during a siege in a Moscow theater in 2002.
Roshal held talks with the rebels until 3 a.m. on Thursday. They refused offers for safe passage to Chechnya or Ingushetia. It remained unclear who the attackers are. There are believed to be up to 40 of them.
North Ossetian Interior Minister Kazbek Dzantiyev said there were Ossetians and Russians in the group as well as Ingush and Chechens.
Chechen separatist leaders have denied any links, but The New York Times linked them to militant warlord Shamil Basayev.
The crisis began after a ceremony marking the first day of the school year. Most of the children taken hostage are under 14 years old. Shortly after 9 a.m., the attackers drove up in a covered truck. Gunfire broke out, and at least three teachers and two police were wounded.
The reported number of people killed at that stage varied.
NTV reported that one of the hostages is a 12-year-old from St. Petersburg who had been unable to get back to the city at the end of August and had decided to go to the Beslan school with her cousin on Wednesday.
After an emergency session called for by Russia, the UN Security Council condemned "the heinous terrorist act" and demanded the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.
Human rights group Memorial condemned the hostage taking as unjustifiable, but urged the government to avoid taking action that could result in a tragedy similar to that which crowned the 2002 Moscow theater siege, when gas pumped into the Dubrovka theater to knock out the captors killed 129 hostages, Interfax reported.
Parents of the seized children videotaped an appeal to Putin, urging him to fulfill the terrorists' demands, said Fatima Khabolova, a spokeswoman for the regional parliament.
Families of victims of the Dubrovka crisis have written to Putin asking that the tragedy that they suffered is not repeated, web site grani.ru reported.
(AP, Reuters, SPT)
TITLE: Country In Grip Of Terror
PUBLISHER: Combined Reports
TEXT: Terror gripped Russia on Thursday as citizens asked themselves when the wave of attacks suffered over the last fortnight would end.
They woke up to an unresolved hostage crisis in a school in North Ossetia that started only a day after a suicide bomber blew herself up outside a Moscow metro station. That happened a week after two airliners were blown up mid-air, a blast occurred at a Moscow bus stop and a raid on Grozny was carried out by Chechen rebel forces on Aug. 21.
The attacks contradict the government's message that everything is under control in the rebel republic and that the election on Sunday of Kremlin favorite Alu Alkhanov as president was part of moving the republic toward peace. Alkhanov, who replaces his assassinated predecessor Akhmad Kadyrov, was officially declared Chechen president on Thursday.
Even before news of the hostage crisis broke, Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov said early Wednesday morning that international terror networks have declared war on Russia.
"In fact, a war has been declared on Russia, a war where there is no front line and the enemy cannot be seen," Ivanov said.
Although no single and verified source has taken responsibility for the attacks, Chechens have been linked to almost all of them.
Separatist leader and former Chechen president Aslan Maskhadov said in June that the rebels would change their tactics and begin launching big attacks outside the troubled republic. Soon after, dozens were killed in a raid on law enforcement institutions in Ingushetia and many guns were stolen.
The Federal Security Service or FSB said the female suicide bomber who carried out Tuesday's attack on Moscow's Rizhskaya metro station used a 2-kilogram hexogen-based explosive - the same substance investigators say was used in the plane bombings.
Several people said they saw the bomber set off the explosive device at 8:17 p.m. and police were questioning those people late Tuesday, Interior Ministry spokesman Valery Gribakin told reporters at the scene.
The witnesses told police that the woman was heading toward the metro station when she saw that police officers were checking IDs at the entrance. Having spotted the patrolmen, she turned back and the bomb went off, Gribakin said.
The militant Islamic group Islambouli Brigades claimed responsibility for the Rizhskaya bombing, which killed 10 people and injured more than 50. The same group has said it was behind the attacks on the two airliners on Aug. 24, which killed 90 people.
The brigades have a similar name to another group - the Islambouli Brigades of al-Qaida - which has said it was behind an attempt to assassinate Pakistan's prime minister-designate in July. There is no known evidence linking the two groups.
Law enforcement agencies on Wednesday distributed photographs of five Chechen women and a girl. Four of the women are believed to have traveled to Moscow in August to carry out suicide attacks.
The FSB appealed on its web site for anyone with information relating to the explosion to contact the agency.
Pictures of the two women suspected of the airliner bombings - Amanat Nagayeva and Satsita Dzhebirkhanova- were among the photographs distributed by police Wednesday.
Passports for Nagayeva and Dzhebirkhanova were found at the crash sites in the Tula and Rostov regions, but their remains have not been identified.
However, radio station Ekho Moskvy reported Thursday that Nagayeva is alive and well in Rostov-on-Don and that an impostor had used her passport.
However, official reports denied this.
Russian airlines appeared to be taking the threat of further bomb attacks seriously Wednesday, with the crew of a KrasAir Airlines flight from the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm-el-Sheikh to Moscow refusing to take off after two Chechen women boarded, Ekho Moskvy reported.
Passengers and crew said the women were behaving suspiciously by going to the bathroom immediately after boarding. The women were forced off the plane.
Hollywood movie star Matt Damon swiftly canceled his trip to Moscow this week for the premiere of his film "The Bourne Supremacy," Ekho Moskvy reported. Human rights ombudsman Vladimir Lukin pleaded with Russians on Wednesday to remain calm in the face of the terrorist attacks.
"I ask my countrymen, all citizens of Russia, to remain steadfast and confident in our own strengths and not give in to panic, and unite with the efforts of society, power structures and law enforcement organs in the fight with terrorism, that plague of the new century," he said.
Air Force commander Vladimir Mikhailov said Wednesday that the authorities knew from the very beginning that the two airliners that went down on Aug. 24 had exploded in midair.
Mikhailov also said that he personally did not believe passengers brought the explosives, but that they were carried on board by airport insiders.
"The suicide bombers just activated the explosives," he said.
(AP, SPT)
TITLE: Election Commission May Shift North
PUBLISHER: Staff Writer
TEXT: The Central Election Commission has been earmarked as one of the parts of the federal government that will move to St. Petersburg, local news agencies reported Tuesday quoting anonymous sources in the presidential administration.
The move would assist the commission to be more independent of the politicians based in Moscow, the reports said.
"Those behind this initiative are representatives of the judicial wing of high-ranking Moscow-based citizens of St. Petersburg," news agency Rosbalt reported Monday. "One of the motives is to distance the CEC from federal structures and make it more independent."
The report could be referring to Cabinet chief of staff Dmitry Kozak or President Vladimir Putin's chief of staff, Dmitry Medvedev, or even Putin himself. All are graduates of St. Petersburg University's law faculty.
Putin said Wednesday he is against making St. Petersburg the capital, but added that leaving all federal institutions in Moscow is also less than desirable, Interfax reported.
"Shifting everything [to St. Petersburg] would be very expensive and is out of the question," Putin said "[But] overcentralization is also not good."
The reports said the CEC would move into the House with Lions located on the corner of St. Isaac's Square and Admiralteisky Prospekt.
The House with Lions, which once belonged to bibliographer Colonel Alexei Lobanov-Rostovsky, is famous thanks to Alexander Pushkin's poem "The Bronze Horseman," in which the main character survives a huge flood by clinging to one of the stone lions beside the doorway at the entrance.
The building, with a total area of 12,000 square meters has been occupied by the State Project Institute No. 1 since 1948 and is under renovation. According to local media, in the mid 1990s the institute was converted into a joint-stock company that recently relocated the institute and handed the House with Lions to the presidential property department.
The department, which among other things is responsible for the property used in regions to execute federal functions, was quick to deny the plan to hand over the building to the CEC.
"The media in St. Petersburg regularly talks about this and other different things [moving to St. Petersburg]," Viktor Khrekov, the department's spokesman, said Tuesday in a telephone interview from Moscow.
"The presidential property department has no information that the CEC will move to the House with Lions," he added. A source at the CEC also denied any plans to shift north.
"This is all rumors and this is a very unsatisfactory thing to comment on rumors," the man, who asked not to be named, said Tuesday in a telephone interview from Moscow. "We have not heard anything about it."
The city election commission also said it does not expect any high-ranking neighbors in the near future.
"We don't expect any of our colleagues from Moscow to move to St. Isaac's Square," said a representative of the city commission who asked not to be named. Mikhail Amosov, head of the Yabloko faction at the Legislative Assembly, said he spoke to a CEC member recently and had heard nothing about any shift from him.
"It is quite hard to believe," Amosov said Tuesday in a telephone interview.
"Nevertheless, I think if the courts or election commission or something else moved here it would do the city good," he added. "That's because many things in the world are being done as a result of image making. If people see or hear something about ... [St Petersburg], that would be good."
In June, the Kremlin almost immediately contradicted Governor Valentina Matviyenko when she said that it had been decided that some federal bodies would move to St. Petersburg, but she was not at liberty to reveal which ones.
The presidential property department has this year convinced City Hall to hand over a range of buildings, including the same Senate and Synod buildings and a couple of resorts in the St. Petersburg suburbs, and it has plans to take over at least seven other palaces in the city, Nezavisimaya Gazeta reported in March.
TITLE: Attacks Foil Airship Flight
PUBLISHER: The St. Petersburg Times
TEXT: A plan to fly the Zeppelin NT airship across Russia has been dropped because of last week's terrorist attacks on two Russian airliners that killed 90 people.
The dirigible has been in Helsinki for nearly two months awaiting approval from Russian authorities to fly over the country to Japan.
"Each airport in Russia is on heightened alert, and it is very probable that flight restrictions on foreign aircraft ... will be imposed for security," NYK Group, one of the airship's owners, said in a statement.
The airship's pilot, Fritz Guenther, said permission to fly across Russia had finally been granted when the two planes crashed. Officials from the Nippon Airship Corporation, in which NYK Group owns a 59 percent stake, met and decided to send the ship back to Germany.
If the flight had been further delayed, the weather over Siberia would be unfavorable, the statement said.
"The airship will return to ... [Friedrichshafen, Germany] and then it will be transported by sea to Japan," the statement said.
The company earlier said delays were costing it about $5,400 daily, suggesting the wait in Helsinki cost more than $200,000.
TITLE: Media Boss Denies Calls
PUBLISHER: The St. Petersburg Times
TEXT: Alla Manilova, head of City Hall's media committee, has denied making calls to ensure that newspaper Konsyerzh would not be able to extend its rental contract.
Olesya Galkina, head of Konsyerzh publishing house, said Monday that Manilova had tried to get the newspaper thrown out of its premises after it organized a petition against in-fill construction in St. Petersburg and sent it to President Vladimir Putin.
Andrei Vorobyov, a deputy head of the media committee, said Tuesday that Galkina's statement on Manilova was unfounded and a provocation and that the committee would take legal action.
"Alla Yuriyevna has not telephoned anyone in relation to Konsyerzh's rental and simply couldn't do that," he said.
Residential committees existed in Soviet times, but now all city-owned property is rented out by the city property committee, or KUGI. Galkina's statement that residential committees were asked to intervene against Konsyerzh's lease therefore made no sense, he said.
No conscientious tenant who keeps up with their rental payments can be thrown out, Vorobyov said.
Galkina made no comment about Vorobyov's statements Wednesday.
TITLE: 1,000th issue of The St. Petersburg Times
TEXT: For the 1,000th issue of The St. Petersburg Times, reporters asked a selected group of readers what they think about the newspaper.
2
Natalya Kudryavtseva,
executive director,
St. Petersburg Business Association
for North-Western Russia (SPIBA)
"AIBA, IEBC Announce Merger" was the title of a piece of news published in The St. Petersburg Times' edition on November 28, 1995, which announced the decision of two "most prominent business associations ... to form the St. Petersburg International Business Association (SPIBA)" that "would be more representative of the expatriate business community in St. Petersburg".
Since then The St. Petersburg Times has been a reliable partner for SPIBA, its members and, I would say, for the regional business community as a whole, covering issues that concern them and alerting government bodies.
For me personally, this newspaper is an extremely useful tool, helping me to better understand the expatriate business community I work with and to learn more about people I know and to get acquainted with new people. Finally, the newspaper staff is a group of very good people I enjoy working with or simply socializing with.
Boris Yushenkov,
general director,
Colliers St. Petersburg
Your publication is one of the leading ones in St. Petersburg. First of all it attracts us with its independent position on economical, political and social fields of life.
Maximally operative, detailed and objective information and a wide spectrum of topics are the distinguishing features of your newspaper. Your publication is an example of a happy neighborhood of business, culture and sport themes.
Please, keep publishing your high standard reports.
Sebastian FitzLyon,
Australian Honorary Consul
in St. Petersburg and general director
of S. Zinovieff & Co
Chartered Surveyors
The tradition of the paper is its independence, now back in fashion, as it were.
Unlike the docile general public who are used to being served up the same old line, The St. Petersburg Times' mixed local and foreign journalistic staff don't take much for granted and show things in their true colors.
No wonder it has such a strong following among Russians and not just among expats. Also, toadying to commercial interests has not been one of its characteristics. It's a good read, and I don't think I've missed an issue of The St. Petersburg Times or its predecessor The St. Petersburg Press since moving here in 1992.
Twice a week, my mid-morning exercise consists of ambling to the Grand Hotel Europe Hotel, chatting with Kolya at the door and getting the paper. I save them up to read over the weekend with one or two Komsomolskaya Pravdas and any foreign papers I can lay my hands on. However, what's happening in Petersburg is of greatest interest.
Boris Vishnevsky,
member of Yabloko faction
at the Legislative Assembly
I'd say your paper is a rare media outlet that writes about what is really going on things that are sometimes unpleasant for officials to hear. However, the representatives of the so-called power ministries are not educated well enough and most of them don't speak English. For this reason they don't get upset about such articles.
I speak English, so I read your paper and I like it. As for the education level of the authorities, I don't think it will change any time soon. At best they have experienced a Communist Party school that did not require them to learn foreign languages. The level of their education is written on their faces, so I don't think you face any serious threat to your paper. I hope you survive a long time.
Rachel Shackleton,
director of local training
company Concept. Resident
in St. Petersburg since 1992
Over the last decade I've seen the expatriate com-munity in St. Petersburg change a lot. These days, there are fewer foreigners than there used to be, and there are more places to go, so people are living more individualistic lives now.
The foreign community may not be as close as it used to be, but through these changes The Petersburg Times has remained the most important English-language source of local news. The paper does a good job of profiling current issues that are relevant to foreigners living here, like muggings on the street, visa requirements and tourism issues. The industry profiles are also very good - in fact, that's something I'd like to see more of.
I also like the restaurant reviews, but would like to see reviews being done by the readers, rather than by one person. This would mean that you would get a more personal view that is based on that individual's preferences, ideas, approach to food and the dining experience, which could also be rather amusing.
Christian Courbois,
director of Westpost
A thousand issues in St. Petersburg! The St. Petersburg Times has become an institution in the city. Very few organizations have survived and flourished for so long; most just kind of come and go. Those that keep going must be good. The Times has proven itself.
Aliu Tunkara
nightclub mogul and President
of the African Unity organization
in St. Petersburg
I have to be positive about the St Petersburg Times, which uses English, the language my mostly foreign clientele uses. As a businessman and defender of the African ethnic minority group, the St. Petersburg Times is not just a source of information for me, but a reference and a tool for my daily undertakings, including business and human rights activities. Personally, I would use excerpts from the St Petersburg Times to present papers in international conferences on racial minority rights.
Unlike the Russian press, it is a paper that calls things by their real names. My people would turn to the paper rather than to the police for their complaints against racist assaults usually branded as mere hooliganism by the police.
I was, however, a little saddened in June that the paper did not give wider coverage to the murder of Professor Nikolai Girenko, a man whose personality we Afro-Russians would love to compare with that of America's Martin Luther King.
Ruslan Linkov,
head of the St. Petersburg branch
of the Democratic Russia party
There is one truly independent publication in St. Petersburg and, unfortunately, it is in English.
The St. Petersburg Times is an example of how to successfully combine the professionalism of journalists, economic management and the interests of readers. This is a publication that is created to act, first of all, as free press. The main thing The St. Petersburg Times does is fulfill its obligations to its readers to provide true, deeply analyzed information.
Lizette Breukink,
The Netherlands
I am always delighted to find the latest issue, with all the cultural, local and international news. I appreciate your independent and professional journalistic spirit. And besides all the nice news you bring about this fantastic city, please keep on fighting the bureaucratic and corrupt aspects of Russia. Thank you very much for keeping me informed and inspired.
Ralf Eppeneder,
Director of Goethe-Institut
St. Petersburg
The St. Petersburg Times was our first contact with the city where we have lived now for several months. When I was notified in Melbourne last year that my new posting as director of the Goethe-
Institut would be St. Petersburg, I searched the web for political, economic and cultural information about the city. And since then I have become a constant reader of your online edition.
Now here in Russia and unfortunatelly still not fluent in its language, the St. Petersburg Times is one of my most important sources of information.
I appreciate your open and independent reports, especially the broad range of opinions.
I learned a lot about Russia from your background articles, often written by guest authors.
It is my strong opinion that newspapers like The St. Petersburg Times play an important role in the development of an open, democratic and civilized society.
Please continue your valuable work.
Henk Elenga,
cultural developer from the Netherlands living and working St. Petersburg
You are my resource for international information, and as I don't have access to a satellite dish reception, you are my screen for local and international news. The best things in life are free. And therefore I thank you all.
Consulate General of Finland
The St. Petersburg Times provides an informative, detailed and analytical description of the main events in both
St. Petersburg and Russia. Congratulations.
Michael Goerdt,
general manager of the Astoria Hotel
The St. Petersburg Times is an invaluable source of information, news, views and entertainment to the English-speaking community in St. Petersburg. We are waiting for it to be a daily.
TITLE: EU Foots Bill for New Tourism Initiative
PUBLISHER: Staff Writer
TEXT: A joint project to develop tourism in the Northwest region of Russia was launched this week by the Northwestern branch of the Russian Union for the Tourism Industry (RATA) in partnership with the EU. The $2.6 million project, which is fully funded by the EU, will run for two and a half years.
Key goals of the project are to boost eco, cultural and water tourism by supporting small and medium-sized businesses and to improve coordination between the different players involved in tourism infrastructure.
"As part of the project, we are creating an Internet portal and a center for the promotion of the tourist potential of the region," said Sergei Korneyev, RATA's vice-president. "The center will be responsible for promotional campaigns of the Northwestern region as a unified destination, both within Russia and abroad."
A new advertising campaign will also be developed for the entire Northwestern region and for specific destinations within it. And, a series of training programs - in areas like marketing, advertising and infrastructure development - will be made available to tourism-industry players.
"Every Russian specialist involved in the project will be working in tandem with a foreign expert," Korneyev said. "We requested this so that our Russian staff could gain first-hand experience from successful {foreign} managers."
Three respected foreign companies: the Danish Carl Bro Intelligent Solutions, German Pohl Consulting and Russian-British Branan are engaged in the project.
The entire Northwestern region attracts a little over 3 million visitors a year, and St. Petersburg is responsible for the lion's share of those visitors. This figure is low considering that a 2003 poll conducted by the World Tourism Organization showed that at least 30 million people a year are interested in visiting the region.
Industry professionals blame the region's weak tourism infrastructure, low-quality services and inefficient legislation - particularly in areas like tax and investment law - as major obstacles in the development of the tourism industry.
The lack of targeted and consistent marketing strategies may also be a factor holding back tourism-industry development.
"Even in St. Petersburg, most marketing managers in museums and theaters can't explain what is special about their museum," said Tatyana Pchelyanskaya, head of PR and marketing at the Museum of the History of St. Petersburg. "Unless they understand what is unique about their cultural product, they won't be able to raise any funds to support it or invest in it."
Governor Valentina Matvienko has been critical of the performance of the tourism industry in the Northwest region. "The region's tourism potential is far from being fully realized," she said at a recent conference organized by RATA. "It's not that the region doesn't have the resources, but that the resources are very poorly managed."
At the moment, the project is in its inception phase and staff are preparing an evaluation report about the current state of the tourism industry. The research is scheduled to be complete by early October.
TITLE: Yukos Fails To Pay Debt By Deadline
PUBLISHER: Combined Reports
TEXT: MOSCOW - A Moscow court has acceded to a request from the public prosecutor's office to lay claim to $2.6 billion on bank accounts belonging to oil group Yukos, the company said.
"The arrest paralyses the productive capacity of Yukos," according to a company statement issued Thursday, adding that it prevented the company from settling accounts and from paying salaries to its employees.
A Yukos spokesperson said that the latest court ruling effectively froze all of the company's bank accounts, including those of affiliate companies, whereas an earlier freeze order only applied to Yukos' parent company accounts.
"The arrest led to a complete blocking of the accounts of subsidiary companies and deprived them of the possibility of carrying out any transactions, including payments of salaries, tax payments and payments related to current operations," the statement said.
It added that the court decision would bring regional operations to a grinding halt and could lead to social unrest among people who depended on the company for their livelihood.
A deadline for Yukos to pay the authorities the $3.4 billion in back taxes for the 2000 financial year passed earlier this week and the oil giant is now one step closer to losing its most valuable assets, as authorities pursue additional tax claims and investment bank Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein prices Yuganskneftegaz for sale.
The valuation of Yuganskneftegaz, which accounts for about 60 percent of Yukos' total production, is eagerly awaited by a market nervous that the government will sell the asset to a loyal company for a fraction of its fair value.
"The valuation is important, as the assets will probably not be seized from Yukos until it is done," said Sergei Suverov, head of equity research at Bank Zenit. "The authorities will bring additional tax demands against Yuganskneftegaz and Yukos."
Neither the Justice Ministry nor Dresdner, which was hired by the government last month, would comment.
If the valuation of Yuganskneftegaz takes until the end of September, the government will avoid spoiling the mood for what is expected to be the single biggest privatization auction in Russian history - the Sept. 29 tender for 7.6 percent of Lukoil, Yukos' arch rival.
Leading U.S. investment bank Goldman Sachs has said Yuganskneftegaz is worth about $20 billion, but analysts say tax claims and threatened legal action against potential buyers could cut the valuation of the subsidiary.
With the sale of the Lukoil stake looming, officials may want to delay spooking the market with a low valuation of Yuganskneftegaz. Kirill Tomashchuk, acting head of the Federal Property Fund, said the sale could be delayed if Lukoil shares tumble.
"The auction could be canceled if Lukoil shares were suddenly to drop considerably below the market price," Tomashchuk told reporters last week. "That could happen as a result of a macroeconomic or political factor. And I think by now the Yukos affair can be called a political factor."
The Kremlin has widely been viewed as taking a more hands-on role in the oil sector, evidenced most recently by the July appointment of a top Putin aid, Igor Sechin, to the chairmanship of state-owned Rosneft.
Menatep, the holding company that controls Yukos, has warned that if the oil giant's assets are sold off cheaply, the buyers may face legal action.
(Reuters, SPT)
TITLE: Traders Say Metal Shipments Delayed by City Dockers' Strike
PUBLISHER: Combined Reports
TEXT: LONDON - Metal shipments from St. Petersburg are being delayed because of industrial action, metal traders and shipping agents said Wednesday, though stevedoring companies denied any slowdown.
"There is some kind of go-slow going on in St. Petersburg. I think it's mostly affecting aluminum shipments," one European physical aluminum trader said.
"Delays seem to be about a month. A lot of metal is being stocked up around there," he said.
Freight shipments began bypassing St. Petersburg for ports in neighboring Baltic states in July, when dockers demanded that the port's new owner, steel major Novolipetsk, increase their salaries.
Novolipetsk, which also bought the port's First, Second and Fourth Stevedoring companies, refused. The standoff has resulted in more than 100 companies, including ship owners and shipping agents, each losing thousands of dollars a day.
"The port is not willing to compromise with the dockers, and we are experiencing huge losses due to broken terms of delivery. But we can understand the port - the dockers' wages are already higher than average and cannot be raised," a shipping agent told Delovoi Peterburg.
A British trader said Wednesday that a parcel of nickel he had booked through St. Petersburg for arrival mid-August had been delayed by at least two weeks.
"First and Second Stevedoring Companies load and discharge ships in the sea port and at the moment perform their job according to the official daily rates - very slowly," a shipping agency source in St. Petersburg said.
However, the stevedore companies denied there had been delays in metals exports.
"We load planned cargos of aluminum, there have been no delays nor lower volumes," said the executive director of the First Stevedore Company at the port, Vladimir Krasheninnikov.
"We have loaded all [aluminum and nickel] we planned for July and August and we expect to load all the metal in accordance with the plan in September," said Stanislav Zhemchuzhin, deputy director of the port's Second Stevedoring Company.
(Reuters, SPT)
TITLE: City Hall Will Move Up To 200 Factories
PUBLISHER: Staff Writer
TEXT: City Hall is planning to sell industrial sites in the city center to local construction developers, said Vladimir Blank, head of the committee for economic and industrial development, at a briefing on Wednesday. The city government is looking at the possibility of relocating about 200 industrial premises, Blank said, but the program is only in the early stages, and there are only a couple of plants that are ready to move in the near future.
"Negotations are taking place about removing industries from relatively small plots between Ulitsa Shkapina, the Obvodny canal and Ulitsa Rozenshtaina," said Tatyana Fyodorova, spokesperson for City Hall's committee for economic and industrial development, in a telephone interview Thursday
"Discussions about the area around the Obvodny canal have been ongoing for some time, because it's an area that is attractive to build business centers in," Fyodorova said. "There have also been discussions about the development of the Vyborgskaya-embankment area," she added.
"But these plans are for the distant future. There's so much equipment in these factories, that it isn't going to be easy to relocate them just like that."
City Hall is planning to organize talks to develop the plan to manage the relocation in October, Fyodorova said.
Five-hundred hectares of industrial land will be removed from the city center, according to a plan of strategic development of St. Petersburg. In exchange, the industries will get up to 1000 hectares of land in the areas close to the Ring Road which is being built to encircle the city.
Alexander Ivannikov, deputy head of the committee of economic and industrial development, said that City Hall would announce a list of about 40 industrial plants that will be relocated, although he did not say when.
"It wouldn't be right to announce the industries before it has been confirmed with the managers of these plants," Ivannikov said.
City Hall is planning to spend up to 200 million rubles ($6.8 million) in 2005 to develop this program, Ivannikov said.
A successful example of the relocation program, which the city authorities would like to see replicated, is the First Furniture Factory. This month, the factory is scheduled to complete its relocation from Petrogradskaya Naberezhnaya 24 and Prospekt Mira 34 to an industrial zone in the northwestern part of the city, close to Primorskoe Shosse.
"Working conditions [in the new premises] are much better," said a representative of the factory's marketing department, in a telephone interview Thursday. "Our employees have noticed that the new working areas are more spacious, better lit and more comfortable than the ones at the old premises," she said.
"It's a great idea to relocate factories from the city into suburban areas," said Alexander Makarov, head of ROSSTRO financial group, according to the group's press-service. "This initiative will make St. Petersburg a cleaner and more comfortable place to live."
TITLE: Kuvayev Wins Back His Copyright
PUBLISHER: Staff Writer
TEXT: Though Russia is well known for intellectual-property piracy, "it is necessary to keep fighting for copyright," said Oleg Kuvayev, the creator of the cult cartoon character Masyanya, at a news conference Wednesday.
Kuvayev regained full rights to the St. Petersburg-born Masyanya after Savyolovsky Intermunicipal Court made a decision to void the contract between the creator and the Moscow-based limited liability company Masyanya.
The contract initially allowed the Moscow company to sell off the rights to a third company -Alvins - leaving Kuvayev out of the deal.
The court's decision, posted July 26, made it illegal to use the Masyanya image without Kuvayev's permission. By the end of 2003, Masyanya's trademark was worth $1.5 million, while Alvins made over $900,000 on official deals, according to Internet web sites of Masyanya fans.
"It is impossible to estimate our monetary damages," said Kuvayev, who will not be pursuing monetary compensation claims. "I am more inclined to ask for moral-damage compensation every time I see the horrendous images that are presented as Masyanya," he said.
Images of Masyanya have appeared in print, radio and television versions all over Russia and the CIS. The music channel Muz TV even ran a program which featured the character without Kuvayev's permission.
Kuvayev and Mult.ru projects producer Gali Shveykovskaya hope to stop the counterfeits now that they have the court's backing.
"We have sent warnings to numerous Masyanya pirates and we will continue to go after those using Masyanya without permission," Shveykovskaya said. "There are many Masyanya fans who are eager to maintain Masyanya's integrity," she said.
It is partially the fans that enable Kuvayev to keep track of the counterfeits. "A copyright owner, be it a single person or a small company, simply would not be able to handle a large number of counterfeit cases," said Yulia Lavrova, a senior attorney at Pepeliaev, Goltsblat & Partners, in an e-mail Thursday.
There has been some progress in copyright protection since Soviet times, but there is much to be improved, especially in enforcement matters, Lavrova said.
"In Russia, unlike other developed countries, the majority of cases against copyright infringement are initiated by copyright owners ... not as a result of proper control by enforcement agencies," Lavrova said.
"The other enforcement problem is the economic situation in Russia itself. Companies can be founded and can crumble as easily as houses of cards, and it is difficult to identify and stop the real manufacturers of counterfeit products without the cooperation of law enforcement agencies."
Though copyright cases are gaining legal recognition, it is up to the trademark owners to take the initiative of protecting their brand.
In another case, children's author Eduard Uspensky - who vigorously defended his ownership rights to the Cheburashka character, which he registered as a trademark in 1997 - sent a complaint to the Russian Olympic Committee this August for breaking an agreement for the non-commercial use of Cheburashka as a mascot for the Olympics.
"Unfortunately a contract does not mean much here," Kuvayev said, "you have to establish personal contacts before you decide whether or not you can do business with a company."
TITLE: IN BRIEF
TEXT: Pulkovo Merged
ST. PETERSBURG(SPT) - President Vladimir Putin has signed an order joining the airline Pulkovo to the Moscow-based carrier Rossiya.
The order, dated Aug. 24, relocated the head office of the St. Petersburg-based company to Moscow, leaving Smolny out of the estimated 50 million rubles that the company paid to the budget annually, business daily Delovoi Peterburg reported.
Pulkovo is 100 percent owned by the state, and the share package of the newly formed company with Rossija will also rest with the federal government.
VW Ready to Roll
MOSCOW (SPT) - Volkswagen, Europe's biggest carmaker, may start assembling Touran vans in Russia within 18 months, Interfax reported Wednesday, citing the company's press service.
Volkswagen announced in December, 2002, that it was negotiating with the Moscow regional government about building a factory and the possibility of obtaining a reduction on import duties on auto parts.
TITLE: Thousands of Stories From an Independent View
TEXT: A thousand issues about the life of St. Petersburg is a cause for celebration. Who could have guessed in May 1993, when The St. Petersburg Times first came out as a weekly called The St. Petersburg Press, what it would be like in 2004 or even that it would last that long?
In 1993, St. Petersburg was still getting onto its feet after being knocked back by the transition from the planned economy of the Soviet Union. Few services or goods were available and citizens had little in their wallets to pay for them or desires in their heads to strive for them.
Not many businesses were advertising and advertising is what the paper, which has always been a giveaway, depends on to pay its way.
It was a time of uncertainty and instability, but it was also a time when anything was possible. The city was the country's center of liberal and progressive thought - values The St. Petersburg Times shares. The hopes for how Russia might develop were, perhaps naive, but irrepressibly positive.
The four people who founded the paper had enough journalistic and management know-how to start a newspaper from scratch and enough entrepreneurial spirit to take on the risk.
But, unlike many Russian newspapers that relied on sponsorship money, they put together a few hundred dollars - just enough for the first few issues. If the venture had not paid for itself, it would have had to close.
But it soared. Sometimes it was due only to the nearly round-the-clock work of two of the founders - Lloyd Donaldson, the first editor, and Grigory Kunis, who started as distribution manager and became sales and marketing director after Jim Vierengel left just a few months after the launch. After some time, Dmitry Smirnov sold his stake, and Donaldson and Kunis were the only driving force behind The Press.
Right from the start, The St. Petersburg Times chose to follow international journalistic standards, a policy it has maintained. There are no advertisements disguised as news, the reporting strives to be of facts rather than giving opinions and the sources of information are identified.
The paper offered readers a diet of politics, business and culture, a formula that it follows to this day.
After the first few years the owners realized that to develop the paper needed investment that they did not have. The business was sold to Derk Sauer's Moscow-based Independent Media in 1996. Independent Media had the know-how and resources that the paper's founders didn't and a commitment that has kept The St. Petersburg Times going right through the hardest economic test, the 1998 financial crisis, and beyond.
The paper was redesigned and starting coming out in the same format as The Moscow Times, from which it took much of its national news. It went from being a weekly to a bi-weekly. Already well established in the city, The St. Petersburg Times became a source of information for other local media and on occasions has broken news that local competitors, who have a natural advantage, had not reported, missed or dared not report.
While the newspaper's target readership has always been western expats, with an emphasis on the business community. Written in English, The St. Petersburg Times attracts a far wider audience than merely native English speakers. The largest single group of readers are Russians and they, as well as French, German and Dutch readers, respond to our stories, as do many of the Third World students studying in the northern capital.
Some of our readers have read almost every issue. Others are tourists who pick up a copy from their hotel or at Pulkovo and glance over it just once before moving on.
Quite a few readers have never been to the city, but have interests and often family reasons for following the news and read us on the Internet. This makes the city and its virtual readers part of the global village.
Most of our readers are Russians. They read for all kinds of reasons. Some use the newspaper as a way of improving their English.
English is the international language. Russian, although it was the lingua franca of the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc, is simply not as well known.
So it is no surprise that in a quest for information about some aspect of life in St. Petersburg on the leading web site Google something almost always turns up from The St. Petersburg Times.
It's not unusual for people to write to us in response to a report published in the paper many years ago by a reporter who has gone on to something else and for which all contacts have been lost.
The paper has changed with the times and kept its readers ahead of developments. If at first the expat community was young and dynamic, it has become somewhat more established, with many people settling in the city and marriages between Russians and expats quite common.
The instability of the early 1990s has given way to a stable business environment and greater predictability, especially since the city's native son, President Vladimir Putin, was elected president in 2000. High oil prices have kick-started what the authorities call booming economic growth.
Sadly, these years have been blemished by a growing wave of terrorism in Russia and abroad.
The paper has, however, stuck to its journalistic standards and its values and reported the ongoing conflict in Chechnya from both sides.
It has allowed independent comment that has not only reflected the official point of view, but also called for an end to the war that has cost the lives of many citizens of Russian, both Chechen and Russia.
One can say with some disappointment that the expectations of a society with flourishing free markets, law and order and one that promotes talent are yet to be realized. We still await transparent management of the city.
Of particular concern is that the city's architectural heritage has continued to crumble before our eyes with little sign that there will be any rescue soon.
Will the plan to save dilapidated buildings by selling them succeed? We will investigate this along with a myriad of other stories.
We promise to keep giving our readers the news for many more issues yet.
Robin Munro is the editor of The St. Petersburg Times.
TITLE: Reliable Paper Persists Thanks to Professional Standards
TEXT: A thousand copies ago, a new newspaper, then called The St. Petersburg Press, adopted the city of St. Petersburg. A new newspaper at that time, more than 10 years ago, was not news; but The St. Petersburg Press was, because for the first time a Russian newspaper in a foreign language was started by a friendly foreigner, a young, aspiring, but experienced editor named Lloyd Donaldson.
He might have been just a brave soul who did not realize what obstacles his project would have to overcome, but from the very beginning he set high professional standards both in editorial policy and in the business aspects of running a newspaper.
While the editors of other privately owned newspapers were intoxicated with the newfound freedom of expression and knew little about the media business, Lloyd Donaldson wanted to work in a competitive media environment, and so he educated not only his colleagues but his competitors as well.
He shared his expertise with editors, journalists and media business managers, teaching them how to separate advertising and news, media ethics, newsroom management and other important skills, thereby changing old-fashioned journalistic methods and introducing new management techniques. But even then the newspaper was so popular with its readers that it was hard to compete with.
Russia is a country where high professional standards do not necessarily lead to financial success, particularly if a paper caters to its readers and not to the authorities. The St. Petersburg Times' liberal values were and often still are in conflict with the policies of the city government.
There were many situations in which The St. Petersburg Times provided reliable, objective, unbiased information on local elections, corruption in the mayor's office and even corruption in the media, which, of course, irritated the authorities and media bosses.
Critical articles by Brian Whitmore, Yevgenia Borisova, Anna Badkhen, Vladimir Kovalev and other columnists and reporters initiated disputes that did not go unnoticed by the government. Their reaction came in the form of close surveillance of the newspaper by tax inspectors and others who tried to prove that the newspaper's business was not transparent or legal.
These attempts failed, for reasons that are obvious.
The St. Petersburg Times has had a long tradition of drawing public attention to topical questions and setting agendas for citizens and both governmental and nongovernmental institutions.
It covers not only local events and newsmakers.
There is always ample information on Russian and international issues of major importance for its wide and diverse audience.
The newspaper is read by students and professors, business people and public servants, by non-Russian residents and the city's guests. Thanks to this their newspaper, citizens have a better understanding of problems important to their area and get involved in making their city a better place to live in.
Expanded city coverage helps newcomers to better understand the unique life style of St. Petersburg.
I have met many people living abroad who read The St. Petersburg Times as their main source of reliable information about the place they came to love and want to return to.
If they have visited St. Petersburg just once, they have become accustomed to reading the newspaper on a regular basis and often refer to its Internet version after they leave the city. Letters to the editor coming from all over the world are proof of this great interest.
Naturally and unfortunately, the audience is limited by the language barrier; but even this does not prevent people such as entrepreneurs, local authorities, anyone looking for job opportunities, etc. from finding mediators who provide them with a summation of the information they need.
It is impossible to imagine the city's media landscape without the The St.Petersburg Times.
Anna Sharogradskaya is director of St. Petersburg-based media development organization the Regional Press Institute.
TITLE: False idols
PUBLISHER: Staff Writer
TEXT: MOSCOW - "You're not ready for the big time," composer Kim Breitburg said to Oksana after her performance, casually leaning back in his judge's chair. "Your profession should be singing at casinos and parties." The 21-year old art student, who does indeed spend her free time performing at Moscow clubs and gambling spots, was among more than 7,000 hopefuls who turned up one August afternoon to audition for the second series of a television show called "Narodny Artist" (The People's Performer), to air on the Rossiya channel this September.
The equivalent of "American Idol" and "Pop Idol" in Britain, Russia's own talent show "Narodny Artist" has proved a big hit with local audiences, despite competing for attention with a similar project, "Fabrika Zvyozd" (Star Factory) on Channel One.
Auditions for the second series in Moscow alone attracted nearly twice as many people as applied for the first series, producer Sergei Kordo said. And the judging panel even ventured out to Belarus and Ukraine in its quest for pop talent. Auditions in Minsk drew 4,000 candidates, only 23 of whom went through to the next round.
Oksana, who studied at two schools of music and has performed in musicals and pop gigs for several years, hoped the show would provide her big break. "This contest is a real chance," she said, sitting among dozens of other star hopefuls practicing solo and in groups before going to face the judges.
Wearing jeans and a simple top, Oksana, who, unlike quite a few contestants, actually hit all the notes, said that for the "Fabrika Zvyozd" audition she wore acid-pink tights, a skimpy skirt and high-heeled boots to get noticed. Sadly, though, she only got through to the second round.
Already a veteran of TV talent contests, Oksana tried her luck at last year's "Narodny Artist," but received harsh criticism from judge Tigran Keosayan, a well-known director of music videos. This year he again told her that she projected "a negative impression," and she did not get through to the next round. Nevertheless, she admitted that she preferred the Rossiya channel show. "'Narodny Artist' is not interested in pink tights; they really listen to your voice. I am not sure I will get through but there is more honesty in this one," she said before going to face the judges.
Just like its overseas peers, "Narodny Artist" shortlists first about 100 and then 30 performers. In the next stage, singers are divided into three groups of 10, which perform in turn on weekly shows so that viewers can vote for their favorites. The winner named at the end of five months gets a five-year contract from a record company and goes on a national tour, as well as recording albums and making music videos. The only difference between the American and British versions and the Russian show is that the performers usually sing in Russian.
Even audition candidates were instructed not to sing in English. Instead, they were encouraged to sing Russian pop standards.
Alexei Goman, the 20-year-old winner of the first series of "Narodny Artist," said in a phone interview that the show was a shortcut to success. "I had been trying to get into pop, to become part of show business, and 'Narodny Artist' gave me an easier way," he said. Goman, who used to sing in a local rock band in his native Murmansk, said he would have kept on going to auditions and taking his records to local radio stations, even if he hadn't been successful on television. But the show propelled him into the league of artists who have producers to do this sort of groundwork.
"They show [you] on national television for five months and people start to recognize you," Goman said. "It opened a door for me. Now I will get more experience." The rival project "Fabrika Zvyozd" on Channel One - which has had four series, each lasting three months, in the past two years, and begins a fifth in September - provides roughly the same package for winners. A cross between a talent show and a "Big Brother"-style reality show, "Fabrika Zvyozd" makes 16 contestants live together for 12 weeks. Their daily routine is filmed 24 hours a day, with the highlights aired on Channel One and the music channel MUZ-TV. The weekly concerts kick off with a catchy tune accompanied by the lyrics, "It's cool, you are on TV! You are a star! Go on, surprise the audience!"
"It's accessible and democratic. Young people see their favorites on the screen, teenagers straight from the street who in three months become popular across the country," said Yury Aksyuta, director of musical programs on Channel One. Yet it is "not just the magic of television" that makes the singers popular, Aksyuta insisted. "The popularity of an artist is measured by the audience. If people come to concerts, they vote with their rubles," he said.
One of the rising stars from "Fabrika" is 17-year-old Yulia Savicheva, who won the second series and went on to represent Russia at this year's Eurovision song contest, finishing 11th out of 36 contestants. She is now recording her first solo album. In a recent interview she said that "the teachers help you correct your faults and develop your strengths. I totally grew up in those three months."
"Many think that is easy. You pace the stage, sing something, girls like you. It's easy money. I thought that, too, at the beginning," said the first "Narodny Artist" winner, Goman. Yet the reality is "hard work," he said. But one of the judges, Keosayan, took an opposing view. "Popularity which is gained through TV is like artificial insemination. I haven't seen a single talent yet today," he said during a break in the auditions.
On screen, though, the harshest comments come from judge Artur Gasparyan, a music critic at the newspaper Moskovsky Komsomolets. Among the gibes he threw at hapless contestants were, "You look like a wound-up doll," and, "When you start moving, I want to spit." In an interview, he admitted that the show's format calls for a "bad cop, good cop" atmosphere, but also defended his scathing style. "I think this is the best approach for those people who come here. We have so much shit in the pop world. Maybe it's because someone at some point did not tell them they should steer well clear of the stage and would be better off baking cakes."
Some of the contestants were impervious to such hints, however. "When I started singing, they [the judges] said that I missed six notes out of 10," said Yulia Guryeva, an 19-year-old human resources trainee who dreams of a career in show business. "It's OK. I will try again in a month at 'Fabrika,' but they already know me there and said that I should not come back."
"You have to push through, not just sit and wait. They kick you out, but you come back," 20-year-old Natasha Tokareva said, before bursting into Mariah Carey's 1993 hit "Hero" as the cameras rolled, filming the crowd waiting impatiently outside the Kosmos Hotel, where the Moscow auditions took place.
"For them [contestants], it's like the Cinderella story, the American dream, and we are looking for something fresh -- talented young people who do not perform according to the existing cliches," producer Kordo said. Yet he recognizes that this is easier said than done. "It's like a vicious circle. The main audience that buys CDs [of this type of performer] is 12- to 14-year old girls, and they live for the cliches."
"We would like bring in something fresh, but it would not be accepted because of the existing cliches, and a producer who knows the market has to look for a winning scenario," he said.
Yet the talent shows are popular "for one simple reason," rock music critic Artemy Troitsky said. "The overall level of Russian pop is so low that any boy or girl from the street will be no worse than ... even Filipp Kirkorov." In the West, where the pop music industry is better developed, winners of similar shows would never perform on one stage with the likes of Robbie Williams, Madonna or Sting, he said. "That would be laughable and absurd."
TITLE: chernov's choice
TEXT: Platforma, the much-talked-about art club founded by the team behind Moscow's legendary Project OGI in 1998, will be launched this weekend.
The invitation-only opening party is scheduled on Saturday, but the club will be open to the general public from Sunday, when it holds a literary evening with a number of Moscow poets. Early reports said the opening would be for all, so there might be hassle at the door. See article, page xi.
Auktsyon, a veteran local rock band, will perform a rare concert at PORT on Friday.
"It will be just a usual concert; we didn't play much during the summer," said the band's manager Sergei Vasilyev by phone this week. Though recent concerts at PORT have been criticized for poor acoustics, the band has tried to ensure a better sound for its gig.
"We agreed to play at PORT on the condition that they change the security guards and PA system," said Vasilyev. PORT has notoriously heavy-handed bouncers.
The doors are open from 6 p.m., but the concert will not start until 8 p.m. Tickets cost between 300 and 350 rubles.
Violinist Alexei Aigui, who commutes between Moscow and Paris, is coming to perform some unlikely Jimi Hendrix and Frank Zappa covers in collaboration with with Cologne, Germany-based pianist Dietmar Bonnen in a Goethe Institute-backed concert at the JFC Jazz Club on Saturday.
"Up From the Skies," the album of Hendrix covers that the duo released in 2002, was followed by "Black Water," the album of Zappa covers, in 2003.
"To play Hendrix in a rock manner is meaningless and rather stupid - because you can't play better then he did - which is why we played Hendrix as academic music, with piano, violin and voice, and in an absolutely different style," he said in an interview with The St. Petersburg Times last year.
"When {Aigui's own, avant-rock band] 4'33" did academic concerts, we played a couple of [Hendrix] numbers a couple of times but, in our interpretation, it simply sounds like early music."
4'33" will perform at Platforma on Sept. 10.
The local folk-punk all-girl band Iva Nova will celebrate its second anniversary with a concert at Moloko on Saturday.
"We were away in summer, so we'll be also opening our new season," said drummer Katya Fyodorova. "We've prepared well and have many new songs," she added. The concert will also feature some of Iva Nova's musician friends.
"We'll make a break in the middle, and let them all play brief acoustic sets," said Fyodorova.
The trio of British authors which will be on tour in the city next week includes Irvine Welsh, a cult writer responsible for the novel, and hence the film, "Trainspotting." He also appeared in the film as a drug dealer named Mikey Forrester.
One of the film's dubious achievements was that it made Lou Reed's "Perfect Day" familiar to every teenager in Russia and when it became a radio hit.
"Trainspotting" will be screened in the presence of the author at a party in Red Club on Wednesday.
- By Sergey Chernov
TITLE: Over the rainbow to Emerald
PUBLISHER: Staff Writer
TEXT: Kamikaze marhsrutkas. Babushkas darting across the street ignoring traffic. More cars than Donald Trump has in his personal parking lot. The perils of Nevsky Prospekt at rush hour are enough to make anyone long for the simple pleasures of fine dining in an elegant atmosphere.
Make a left turn off Stary Nevsky, go along Suvorovsky Prospekt and head straight to the Grand Hotel Emerald's main restaurant. Here you will find sanctuary.
Adorned with the trimmings of a ballroom in non-descrit pastel shades, the Emeralds's large one-room restaurant features luxurious and ornate chandeliers, a small stage and an open ceiling, permitting a peak into the casino situated on the floor above.
On a recent Tuesday evening, the restaurant was completely empty at the start of the evening, except for several doting waiters. There's a laissez faire system of seating, and a group of four diners turned up an hour into the evening and decided to occupy the end of a banquet-size table. Just before them, an elderly gentleman appeared and dined alone.
The menus were brought immediately, and our orders were taken promptly. But not until after long-suffering decisions had been made: would it be bliny with caviar? Rack of lamb? Sturgeon? It could have been a marathon evening. When wine, appetizers and main courses were finally selected, the waiter, swathed in a captain's uniform, whisked the menus away. So far so good.
Minutes later (really, only minutes), he returned, now sporting white gloves, with the appetizers. Confusion ensued. There must be some sort of mistake. Why is he back so soon? Where are we? This had to be some sort of national record for the quickest service ever.
Heads cleared as he laid out the selections on the table. Elegantly presented, appropriately sized portions adorned the plates. Appetizers are meant to stimulate appetite, not whack it with a wrench so hard it's down for the count, and the Emerald gets the balance right.
The Classic Caesar Salad at 9 units ($9.45) or 279 rubles (1 unit or y.e. is equal to 31 rubles) was true to its name, with one caveat - it arrived garnished with chicken breast strips. The menu had made no mention of the meat, and vegetarians may want to verify that salad selections are meat-free before ordering. The salad was topped with thin slivers of hard cheese, a delight to the eyes and taste buds.
My companion had Black Caviar Served with Russian Bliny (9 units/279 rubles/$9.45 per 10-gram serving of caviar), an internationally known and adored Russian delicacy. Two thin crepes folded in triangles were served with a teaspoon of black caviar. My friend enjoyed the selection, yet regreted the choice of caviar. "To me, red caviar is more delicious and looks more impressive," he said.
The Kamchatka Crab Salad with Eggplant Mouse (10 units/310 rubles/ $10.50) honestly sounded more appetizing than it tasted and I was disappointed. However, this selection was my guest's favorite of the appetizers sampled and moved her to say that "it gives you the feeling of being in the middle of the sea, being in a boat, fishing."
Already cruising on brownie points earned by prompt service, the waiter cleared the table of empty plates and then actually asked when the main courses were desired. For a minute there was silence, followed by incomprehensible blabbering. It was like being in the Twilight Zone. Scanning the room for Alfred Hitchkock's silhouette, someone managed to croak out a time frame. Like clockwork, the main courses arrived at the designated time and there was still no sign of a portly elderly gentlemen or any birds. Miraculous things are happening at the Emerald.
The Rack of Lamb with Thyme Sauce served with vegetables (26 units/962 rubles/$32.60) was artistically arranged in a semi-circle, partially encasing a full-moon of polenta, topped with white bread and goat's cheese. The bread seemed like an excessive accessory to the dish and the cheese was both abundant and pungent - tasty even for those not fond of cheese. However, after several bites it became overwhelming and a chore to tolerate. That abandoned, the lamb itself was tender and well-prepared.
My companion enjoyed the Sturgeon Fillet with Bacon Served with Spicy Vegetable Ratatouille and Black Caviar Sauce (20 units/620 rubles/$21).
Suddenly, the waiter returned with what could only be described as a cross between an old-fashioned barber's razor blade and wind-shield wiper and began to swiftly and efficiently scrape the table for crumbs. It was enough to make one feel like a sloppy Neanderthal for forgetting to clean up the cave. Throughout the meal, the waiter stood at attention near the entrance, looking a bit like Clark Kent, ready to rip off his suit at any moment and spring into action wearing blue tights, a pair of Speedos and a cape. This guy was the super hero of all servers. However, some may find such hawkeyed viglilance a little nerve-wracking.
Tiramisu (9 units/279 rubles/ $9.45), meaning pick-me-up, is a delightful Italian desert when prepared correctly, and the tiramisu at the Emerald was really quite impressive. But most restaurants anywhere in the world would be hard pressed to match an Italian mom's homemade version. While mom's still tops the list, the Emerald's was an impressive effort. Only the slightest bit dry, this version is worthy of the discerning Italian palate.
TITLE: Peeking over the Chinese Wall
PUBLISHER: Special to The St. Petersburg Times
TEXT: Born in Northern China near the border with Russia and North Korea, Yan Zhongguo, the head chef at Peking, says working in his St. Petersburg kitchen isn't much different from being at home. A native of Jilin, Dongbei province, Yan was recruited by Peking in 2001 and moved to St. Petersburg shortly after.
Yan received his training at the Shangyue Pengren Culinary School in Jilin, following in the footsteps of an older cousin who was a cook in Shenzhen. "I didn't always think I'd become a cook." He laughs. "I was just a bad student, and I liked this profession."
After graduating from culinary school he gained experience in apprenticeships for a few years and then worked at several major Jilin hotels.
His given name, zhongguo, literally means "China," and talking to him gives the impression that he has imported not his name, but his lifestyle and his entire kitchen directly from his birthplace. Asked what his impressions of St. Petersburg are, he frowns. "When you're a cook you're in the kitchen all day, everyday, and everyone I work with there is also Chinese. It feels like home already. It's not that different from being in China."
A look into the kitchen proves his point; his five hand-picked sous-chefs are all Chinese, and most of the kitchen utensils - including the cutting boards - are also imported. There are some differences between what Yan cooks here and what he would cook in China, though. The St. Petersburg palate likes heavier sauces and steers clear of the spicy dishes, he said. "Russians don't really like things like ma (numbing spice) and la (spiciness)," he said, referring to the flavors that dominate Sichuan cuisine, which is notoriously mouth-numbing. "Russian also like more sauce on their dishes," he continued, noting that sweet and sour dishes like tangcu yu (sweet and sour fish) were a big hit, but that Russian customers prefer the sauce to be sweeter and more sour than it is in China.
TITLE: All booked up
PUBLISHER: Staff Writer
TEXT: Founded by the same people who are behind the capital's Project OGI, Platforma, a new, round-the clock club, is a Moscow cultural export, but, judging from its approach and program, it may drastically change the St. Petersburg club scene.
Platforma, which opens this weekend, is aimed at filling a similar niche as that of the legendary Moscow club, after its promoters noticed the need in St. Petersburg for a "certain intellectual/cultural place based on drinking and musical/literary entertainment," as Nikolai Okhotin, Platforma's art director and co-owner, puts it.
The idea of Platforma started to form when the once Moscow-based author and the club's co-founder Slava Kuritsyn moved St. Petersburg last year.
"He noticed that the current metaphysical state of St. Petersburg is largely similar to that of the Moscow of five or seven years ago, when a group of people with similar views, interests and tastes craved for a place where they can meet. But there was no such a place."
Opened in late 1998, Project OGI, a club comprising a stage, book store and bar, was oriented toward artists and intellectuals and featured rock, jazz and experimental concerts, literary readings, performances and film screenings. The club took its name from OGI Publishers, which became partners in the venture.
"OGI didn't have enough places to sell its books, so the idea was that 'We have a club and we can sell books there,'" said Okhotin.
"They were interested in selling books, and we were interested in their financial support. Then it turned out that the public that we were aiming at found it interesting."
However innovative in the beginning, the OGI concept, Okhotin said, lost some of its freshness in Moscow, where a number of similar clubs then emerged, including Bilingua, Klub Na Brestskoi, Apshu and Gogol.
"The public started to divide between these joints, and the concentrated atmosphere went away, so it became clear that the initial idea should be modified, or, more likely, you should start afresh," he said. Platforma, with a capacity of between 250 and 350 people, is owned by a group of arty people on he one hand and a local businessman, only identified by Okhotin as connected to publishing, on the other.
According to Okhotin, Platforma welcomes a mix of generations.
"I think that for people under 17 or 18 it would not be interesting (there are different places for them), but there is no upper age limit; until a person can't walk on his own I think it will be interesting for him here."
While the crowd at such local clubs as Tsinik and Datscha has a tendency to grow younger, Okhotin said this problem can be dealt with.
"We experienced this problem in Moscow and know what to do about it," said Okhotin.
"[Club owners] invent a good project in many respects but don't make any efforts to develop it. The project must live; it should not stay as it started but move and develop. "[The owners] find some peculiarity and stick with it, but the novelty soon wears off. The old public leaves and usually youths arrive because they hear it's a trendy place - even if it's not been trendy for six months."
"Face control," or a door policy, will be introduced at Platforma, but not in the sense that other club managers use it, according to Okhotin.
"It's not a dress or face code as such, but we plan to exercise some rather careful human sifting," he said.
"A person belonging to the public that interests us can arrive in a track-suit drunk and still be let in, while a very different person can come sober and well-dressed but won't get in."
The club's music program has been compiled to include diverse musical genres, with concerts by both Russian and foreign artists.
"We are not a rock club, a punk club or a jazz club; everything can mix here," said Okhotin.
"The only criterion is that it should be interesting for our audience. Roughly speaking, it's what relevant and interesting now. For instance, in Moscow's OGI we helped to introduce such bands as Leningrad or Psoi Korolenko, who only were starting out at the time. We immediately realized that they were relevant for our audience."
Okhotin said that there are not enough concerts by western bands in St. Petersburg, and Platforma is set to deal with it, bringing a western band approximately once a month. When visited last week, Platforma's interiors were under construction, but Okhotin said there would be no flashy lights or any other nightclub features in design. One room in the club will function as a bookstore.
"We profess the absence of any design," Okhotin said, discussing. "In reality, it means that there is a design but it's absolutely unobtrusive, it's non-design. When a person enters, he understands that he didn't come into a designer club. Unobtrusive, quiet settings, but with its own features and recognizable."
The prices at Platforma will be moderate, with a shot of vodka costing 30 rubles at the bar, while concert tickets will be between 50 and 300 rubles.
Contrary to early reports, the opening on Saturday will be an invitation-only party. Platforma starts functioning in full on Sunday, when a poetry evening is scheduled. For the event the club will bring in a number of Moscow poets, including Timur Kibirov, Lev Rubinshtein and Sergei Gandlevsky.
On Sept. 10 the club will host British authors Irvine Welsh, Dougie Brimson and Isabel Wolff for an informal meeting with readers at 12 p.m.
Platforma is located on 40 Ulitsa Nekrasova. M: Ploshchad Vosstaniya. Tel.: 110-6303.
TITLE: Helsinki happens
PUBLISHER: Staff Writer
TEXT: There are over 60 arts festivals in Finland, and the most internationally acclaimed of them is the Helsinki Festival, which closes on Sunday, Sept. 5.
The arts fiesta kicked off on Aug. 20 with a concert by St. Petersburg's Shostakovich Philharmonic, with maestro Yury Temirkanov conducting the orchestra in a program of Mussorgsky, Dvorak and Rachmaninov. The concert was the first event of the festival, which is held in the Finnish capital every year in late August-early September and showcases classical, jazz and popular music as well as dance, drama theater, film and visual arts from across the world.
The Helsinki Festival was first held in 1968, having grown from the respected "Sibelius Weeks," running annually from 1951 through 1965 and featuring classical megastars of the caliber of violinists Isaac Stern, Yehudi Menuhin and David Oistrah.
The event's programme is impressively diverse, juxtaposing classical music, culinary weeks, children's events and film series.
The jazz events mainly take place within the walls of the Suomenlinna sea fortress, while the classical concerts are held at the Finlandia Hall, the Alexander Theater, the Almi Hall of the Finnish National Opera,
the Sello Hall in Leppavaara, the Temppeliaukio Church and the Old Church. Among the participants this year were the Helsinki Baroque Orchestra, The Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, The Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Alan Gilbert and the Europen Union Youth Orchestra under the baton of Yan Pascal Tortelier. French chanson diva Patricia Kaas is giving a concert in the Finlandia Hall on Friday.
One of the most popular events of the festival is the "Night of the Arts," when all the genres represented at the arts jamboree take to the streets for an all-night-long celebration. Entrance is free to most of the performances. Many local restaurants host popular bands and arrange special festival menues.
The Helsinki Arts Museum is hosting an extensive retrospective exibition of the modernist artist and poet Ahti Lavonen, unveiling rarely displayed works from private collections. A direct quote from the artist could stand as the festival's motto: "I don't see any great borders between the arts; all I see is the need for expression and to express."
Russian participation this year has not been limited by the appearance of the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra. The renowned baritone Dmitry Hvorostovsky gave a solo recital on Saturday, Aug. 21, showcasing entirely Russian music, with arias by Tchaikovsky, Mussorgsky, Rubenstein, Borodin and Rimsky-Korsakov.
Furthermore, the festival's film division presents "A Tribute To Tarkovsky", an eleven-day long series, highlighting such cinematographic masterpieces as "Zerkalo" (1975), "Stalker" (1979), "Solaris" (1972), "Nostalgia" (1982) and unveiling the first ever screening in Finland of the uncensored version of "Andrei Rublev" (1966), as well as some of the director's early student works. Tarkovsky's sister Marina and his friend Alexander Gordon take part in a series of discussions as part of the program. The Tarkovsky screenings end the festival on Sunday, Sept. 5 with "Passions Over Andrei" (1966).
The festival cooperates with the World Wildlife Fund by selling a special Baltic Sea Ticket. The ticket costs an extra 2 euros which is donated to the WWF Baltic Sea Programme, aimed at improving environmental state of the sea - one of the most polluted in the world.
Links: www.helsinkifestival.fi
TITLE: Bush Asks Americans for a Second Term
PUBLISHER: The Associated Press
TEXT: NEW YORK - President George W. Bush's address to the Republican National Convention was to reach out to Americans to keep him on the job, recalling the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks "when one era ended and another began," and offering himself as a resolute wartime commander in chief with ambitious plans for a second term.
The four-day convention was coming to a close Thursday with a speech by Bush that will touch off a two-month dash to the finish line in a nation that seems as closely divided now as it was four years ago.
"Optimistic," "future-oriented" and "visionary," Bush's longtime adviser Karen Hughes said when asked for adjectives to describe the president's 40-minute-plus speech.
Bush, who arrived in this fortified convention city Wednesday night at the end of a three-day, six-state campaign dash, was to boast of his record and sketch the domestic agenda he would pursue if elected to a second term, a goal that eluded his father.
He would also talk - sometimes in personal terms, his advisers said - about how the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks changed him and the world order.
"Government must change with the changing world to make people's lives easier - to give people a chance to be able to realize the full promise of tomorrow," Bush told thousands of cheering supporters at a campaign rally Wednesday in Columbus, Ohio.
The speech also will offer an agenda that includes initiatives to simplify the tax code and help people buy homes, start businesses, hone job skills and set up tax-free retirement and health care accounts, aides said.
Ahead of Bush's acceptance
address, Vice President Dick Cheney and convention keynoter Senator Zell Miller, a Georgia Democrat, unleashed a scathing barrage of attacks on Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry.
"His back-and-forth reflects a habit of indecision and sends a message of confusion," Cheney told GOP delegates in a prime-time address Wednesday night. "Senator Kerry says he sees two Americas. It makes the whole thing mutual. America sees two John Kerrys."
Delegates roared their approval of Cheney's broadside against Kerry, some joining in the taunts by shouting "flip flopper, flip flopper" and waving flip-flop sandals in the air.
Kerry, vacationing on Nantucket island in Massachusetts, was asked whether he took some blows from the speeches.
"I don't think so," Kerry said.
Within minutes of his arrival in New York on Wednesday, Bush was embracing New York City firefighters.
"To see the courage and compassion and decency of our fellow Americans during an incredible time of stress has shaped my thinking about the future of this country," Bush said.
Much has changed since Bush stood at Ground Zero three days after the Sept. 11 terror attacks and told construction workers through a bullhorn: "I can hear you. ... And the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon."
That bullhorn speech helped lead to a surge of national unity before the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan that went after al-Qaida terrorist leader Osama bin Laden and his Taliban supporters.
But as Bush seeks re-election, he is confronted by a death toll of U.S. troops in Afghanistan and Iraq that is likely to reach 1,000 by Nov. 2; a failure to find bin Laden; investigations into pre-Sept. 11 and prewar intelligence lapses; and a struggling economy.
TITLE: France Nervy Over Scarves
PUBLISHER: The Associated Press
TEXT: PARIS -School doors opened for 12 million French children on Thursday, but there is far more at stake this year than back-to-school jitters.
An already contentious ban on Muslim head scarves and other religious signs faced its first test in France's public schools-under the cloud of Islamic radicals holding two French hostages in Iraq to press their demand that the law be scrapped.
"In the circumstances we are facing, I hope this return to school will take place under the sign of fraternity," Education Minister Francois Fillon said Wednesday.
The law was one of the most divisive issues for the French in recent times, and no one was sure if Muslim girls who cover their heads would defy it or compromise their beliefs to stay in school.
The law forbids all conspicuous religious signs or apparel in public schools, including Jewish skull caps and large Christian crosses. But it is aimed at Islamic head scarves and means to counter what many people fear is a rise in Muslim fundamentalism in schools.
Several Muslim organizations set up hot lines to counsel girls in a quandary over the law. Sofia Rahem said her association, GFaim2Savoir, lingo for "I'm Hungry for Knowledge," had received "an enormous number" of calls. "They are young girls in distress who don't know what to do with their future," said Rahem, a 23-year-old university student who wears a head scarf. "They fear the return to school knowing they won't be accepted with a scarf."
TITLE: HagueTribunal Appoints Lawyers for Milosevic
PUBLISHER: The Associated Press
TEXT: THE HAGUE, Netherlands - The UN war crimes tribunal on Thursday imposed two defense lawyers on Slobodan Milosevic in an effort to end repeated trial delays and because doctors have warned that representing himself threatens the former Yugoslav strongman's health.
The tribunal's judges named British attorneys Steven Kay and Gillian Higgins, until now court observers ensuring fair proceedings, as Milosevic's defense counsels.
They will take over the case from Sept. 7 when his first witnesses are due to be called.
The former Yugoslav president protested the decision to impose a lawyer on him and said he will appeal. Judges and prosecutors agreed Milosevic could still name a lawyer of his choice-his legal research is being handled by three assistants from Belgrade-and that he could remain actively involved in conducting his defense.
"It is plain from the medical reports that the accused is not fit enough to defend himself," said presiding Judge Patrick Robinson.
Milosevic, 63, who has used the 2 1/2-year trial as a platform for his political views, has refused to accept a lawyer who would replace him in examining witnesses.
"I want the appeals chamber to consider this decision of yours illegal, which violates international law , which violates every conceivable covenant on human rights," Milosevic told the judges.
"At a moment when I am supposed to exercise my right to defend, you decided to deprive me of that right. That's a scandal. You cannot deny me the right to defend myself," he said, seated alone at the defendant's table.
Robinson cut off Milosevic's microphone and said the judges had extensively considered their decision, which was final.
Allowing Milosevic to continue representing himself "there is a real danger that this trial might last an unreasonably long time," Robinson said.
The judges recognized the right of a defendant to represent himself, but cited his lengthy periods of illness saying that right "is not unfettered."
The ruling was applauded by observers.
"He will get a far better case by being represented professionally," said Judith Armatta of the Coalition for International Justice.
TITLE: U.S. Urges Sanctions Over Iran's Nuclear Program
PUBLISHER: The Associated Press
TEXT: WASHINGTON - Secretary of State Colin Powell said the United States wants UN sanctions imposed on Iran after the Bush administration concluded the country is on the verge of enriching enough uranium for four nuclear weapons.
The new alarms were raised after the UN International Atomic Energy Agency circulated a classified report among member governments about Iran's nuclear program.
Powell said the United States wants the UN Security Council to impose economic, political and/or diplomatic sanctions against Iran because of steps he believes Iran is taking toward developing nuclear weapons.
Speaking with reporters after a daylong trip to Panama, Powell said the administration will push hard for the IAEA to refer the Iran issue to the Security Council for action when the nuclear watchdog group holds a board meeting Sept. 13.
Acknowledging that many board members do not favor Security Council action against Iran at this time, Powell said he will consult with IAEA board members about Iran in the coming days.
"Unless there are assurances that the international community can count on, I think it's appropriate that it [the Iran case] be referred to the Security Council," Powell said.
Earlier Wednesday, Undersecretary of State John Bolton, the administration's point man on nuclear proliferation threats, said: "We view with great concern" revelations in the IAEA report that Iran is about to convert 37 tons of yellow cake uranium into uranium hexafluoride gas.
Bolton said that move combined with Iran's recent announcement that it intends to test its gas centrifuges "are further strong evidence of the compelling need to take Iran's nuclear program to the UN Security Council."
TITLE: IN BRIEF
TEXT: Anwar to Be Released
PUTRAJAYA, Malaysia (AP) - Malaysia's highest court overturned the sodomy conviction of former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim on Thursday and freed him from prison, exactly six years after his firing ignited the country's worst political crisis.
A panel of the Federal Court ruled 2-1 to reverse Anwar's conviction.
Anwar was once considered the heir apparent of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, but Mahathir fired him and touched off widespread political turmoil.
Judge Abdul Hamid Mohamad said that conviction was flawed because the chief prosecution witness, Azizan Abubakar, had repeatedly changed the dates on which he claimed Anwar had had homosexual sex with him. Azizan had been the driver for Anwar's wife.
Sikh Anniversary
AMRITSAR, India (Reuters) - Sikh religious leaders, surrounded by thousands of chanting devotees, carried their holy book to Amritsar's Golden Temple on Wednesday to mark 400 years since the scripture was first brought to the north Indian shrine.
The holy book, known as the Guru Granth Sahib, was first brought to the Golden Temple in 1604 by Guru Arjan Dev, the fifth guru of the Sikhs, who had spent years compiling it.
"This is not just a book. This is my living guru," said Kuldeep Singh, a teacher from Delhi. "This is the basis of my faith. This is what holds my people together," Singh said.
North Koreans Flee
BEIJING (AFP) - Twenty-nine North Korean refugees rushed into a Japanese school in Beijing on Wednesday in one of the biggest group attempts by North Koreans to seek asylum, a Japanese diplomat said.
"North Koreans got into the Japanese school ... this morning," said the diplomat, who requested anonymity.
Chinese guards did not arrest any of the 29 as they entered the school in central Beijing. "They're safe," he said, without providing any further information.
They were swiftly transferred to the Japanese embassy, Japan's Jiji Press said, citing government sources.
Israel Blames Syria
JERUSALEM (AP) - Israel holds Syria responsible for a double suicide bombing that killed 16 people because it allows the group that staged the attack to operate there, a senior Israeli official said Wednesday in a warning that implied possible retaliation.
The militant Islamic group Hamas claimed the attack Tuesday in the desert city of Beersheba, when two bombers from the West Bank city of Hebron blew themselves up seconds apart in two buses.
Raanan Gissin, a senior aide to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, pointed to neighboring Syria on Wednesday, saying Hamas leaders are permitted to work out of the Syrian capital, Damascus.
Kathmandu Curfew
KATHMANDU (Reuters) - Nepali authorities clamped an indefinite curfew in Kathmandu on Wednesday and warned violators would be shot after furious mobs attacked a mosque and went on the rampage to protest against the killing of 12 Nepalis in Iraq.
Protesters stormed inside the city's main mosque and lit a fire, but were driven out by police.
City authorities imposed a curfew from 2 p.m. "to maintain law and order, and to protect the loss of life and property."
TITLE: SKA Starts Season With Home Win
PUBLISHER: Special to The St. Petersburg Times
TEXT: Hockey fans erupted into jubilation when Yegor Mikhailov scored on a breakaway with 13 seconds left in regulation of the Russian Superleague season opener Wednesday night, lifting SKA St. Petersburg to a 2-1 win over Molot-Prikamye Perm at the Yubileiny Sports Palace.
"To be honest, I think a 1-1 tie would have been a fair result,"head coach Boris Mikhailov said, downplaying the victory. "We need to create more opportunities and capitalize on them."
The St. Petersburg club floundered in the first period after an SKA goal was disallowed by referee Alexander Cherenkov, but SKA came back to dominate their Siberian opponents, who were promoted back into the Superleague this season, outshooting them by 33 goals to 17. Although the St. Petersburg side dominated, play was scrappy and its attacking was disorganized.
SKA goaltender Andrei Mezin put in a solid performance, but at 48:51 Molot winger Nikolai Bardin tied the game with a wrist shot during a power-play. SKA defenseman Marat Davydov opened the scoring at 34:23 with a shot from inside the blue line - also capitalizing on a power-play opportunity.
SKA is going to need to take advantage of every opportunity it can if it is going to achieve its management's goal of making 8-team play-offs this season.
"It doesn't make sense for us to set any other goal for the team. To do otherwise would psychologically strip us of our competitive edge," team president Boris Vinokurov said.
SKA has narrowly avoided relegation from the Superleague during the last three seasons, finishing in 16th (before the league was reduced from 18 to 16 teams) 13th and 14th places in the 2001/02 and 2003/04 seasons respectively.
"Fourteen [out of 16] teams have made it their goal to make the playoffs. We didn't make it last year because there were some players who didn't perform at the level that was required of them. A lot has changed. We've created a new atmosphere for hungry wins. Moreover we have depth in the net with two solid goalkeepers, and defensively we're looking good," Mikhailov said.
In addition to new players the team has a new sponsor in Eurochem, a mineral chemical company with holdings in the Leningrad Oblast.
"Okay, we didn't get Roman Abramovich, but our new partners have taken it upon themselves to finance 60 percent of the team's budget," Vinokurov said.
"We want to see SKA in the top half of the standings," Eurochem's assistant general director Pavel Yakovlev said, making it clear that the company's continued support is dependent on SKA's performance this season.
It is still unclear, however, exactly what SKA's budget is this season. Both team management and their partners avoided direct questions regarding the team's budget at a post match press conference Wednesday.
Yakovlev said that he couldn't give exact figures until the end of the year. Vinokurov commented that the budget is not less than last year's budget of $6 million.
TITLE: Teen Star Rooney Adds Power to Man U Squad
PUBLISHER: The Associated Press
TEXT: LONDON - Wayne Rooney will team up with Ruud van Nistelrooy at Manchester United in one of the most potent strikeforces in European soccer.
The trouble is - when?
Van Nistelrooy hasn't kicked a ball all season after a hernia operation and Rooney is recovering from a broken bone in his foot.
Neither striker - who each scored four times at Euro 2004 - is expected to be in action for a month, and United is already seven points behind Arsenal and Chelsea in the Premier League title race with just four games gone.
Rooney signed for United on Tuesday in a deal which will amount to close on 30 million pounds ($54 million) when all the terms are fulfilled and all the bills have been paid.
At age 18, he is a rising star of the future and has joined one of the few clubs that can make him reach the top. One of the stars of Euro 2004, Rooney has masses of potential so long as he keeps his temper and doesn't fall into bad company.
"It was a tough decision to leave Everton, the club I've supported and played for all my life, but I'm excited to be joining a club as big as Manchester United," said Rooney, who has signed a six-year contract.
"I feel this can only improve my career, playing with top players in top competitions like the Champions League and I can't wait to meet up with the team."
"I am very excited, I think we have got the best young player this country has seen in the past 30 years," said United manager Alex Ferguson. "Everyone is delighted by this signing."
Rooney joins Van Nistelrooy, Alan Smith and Louis Saha in an impressive squad of strikers as Ferguson bids to launch a stronger title challenge than last season, when his men finished 15 points behind Arsenal in third place.
Having made his debut aged 16 and become the youngest scorer in the history of the English Premier League, Rooney eclipsed Michael Owen as England's youngest international and youngest scorer. On the down side, he became the youngest Premier League player to receive a red card.
His departure from Everton, the team he supported as a boy, has angered the local fans who thought he would stay there his entire career. But Rooney was determined to leave when Newcastle and Manchester United came in with offers and promised him European soccer.
United went on to outbid Newcastle and the Magpies' failure to recruit one of the best young talents in English soccer was one of the reasons they fired Bobby Robson on Monday.
If Rooney dovetails well with Van Nistelrooy, the partnership may realize something like 40 goals in the season. By the time they link up, however, they will have some catching up to do.