LOCAL NEWS

VETERANS IN TALLINN DIVIDED

TALLINN - Sixty years after May 1945 when Baltic states soldiers fought on either the battling German or Soviet sides, it is as though they are still fighting in the trenches.

One side is calling for reconciliation. The other shows no sign of being ready to let the quarrel pass.

TALISMAN OR SKILLS KEPT LOCAL ACE FLYING

Ukrainian navy pilot Alexei Mazurenko was walking along the streets of besieged Leningrad when he saw an old woman begging.

The woman reminded the officer of his mother who was in German-occupied Ukraine.

NATIONAL NEWS

IN BRIEF

Monument to Tiddlers

ST. PETERSBURG (SPT) - A monument to kolushka fish, or tittlebat, opened in Kronshtadt on Sunday, after a joint decision by World War II veterans and authorities, Interfax reported.

Called "The Blockade Tittlebat," the memorial pays tribute to the small fish that saved hundreds of local people from starvation during the Siege of Leningrad.

LOCAL BUSINESS

YELLOW TAXI PARKS $12M IN CITY

A Moscow-based transportation company New Yellow Taxi has signed a deal with the St. Petersburg city government to introduce a European-standard taxi service in the city.

Governor Valentina Matviyenko said drivers hired by the company will speak English and some German, will be courteous and charge passengers only according to taxi meters.

MOBILE NUMBERS TO STAY SAME AFTER NETWORK SWITCH

By fall this year, mobile phone subscribers will be able to switch from one network to another without losing their number, the IT and Communications Ministry said Friday.

OBLAST WINS ECO-FUNDING

The Leningrad Oblast has won European Union funding worth 403,000 euros ($517,000) to help finance a five-year environmental protection program, the regional government said Friday.

The oblast got the funding ahead of several other regions from the union's "Life in the 3rd [world] countries" program, which allocates financing for natural reserves conservation programs.

IN BRIEF

Vodka Brand Revived

ST. PETERSBURG (SPT) - Liviz, one of the largest vodka manufacturers in the country, has revived the production of its Leningradskaya vodka brand, producing the first 60,000 bottles in time for the Victory Day celebrations, the company said last week.

IN BRIEF

Alcoa to Invest $37M

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Alcoa Inc. said Monday it would invest $37 million in its recently acquired Belaya Kalitva fabricating facility in Russia to improve heat-treated plate and sheet output for a variety of markets.

Alcoa, the world's largest aluminum producer, said it had now started the process to supply North American automotive companies with forged specialty wheels produced at the plant.

Alcoa said the investment is part of more than $80 million in capital and technology investments planned for the Belaya Kalitva and Samara facilities in Russia this year.

New Project for Gold

LONDON (Reuters) - London-listed gold firm Trans-Siberian Gold plc is looking at new projects to expand its portfolio in Russia, bolstered by backing from the world's second biggest gold miner to move it from exploration into production.

TALES OF THE 'FOREIGN KING' FROM RUSSIA'S WILD EAST

An office at the Marble Palace, investment dinners being held by ex-KGB chiefs, and champagne flowing freely - this is how Ton Goossens remembers doing business in Russia in the early '90s.

VETERANS' DISCOUNTS OFTEN MISS TARGET

MOSCOW - Russian businesses from airlines to clothing boutiques showed their gratitude to veterans by offering discounts to mark the end of World War II.

Often, however, the goodwill seemed to miss its intended beneficiaries.

When the Hugo Boss shop in Yekaterinburg offered a 10 percent discount on its luxury threads, local veterans fumed, calling the offer "deranged," local news service UralPolit.

THE COST OF PUTIN'S REPRESSION

Morality aside, President Vladimir Putin's gradual strangling of democracy in Russia provides a valuable case study in the relationship between freedom and competent governance.

Proposed Tax Changes May Hit in 2005

Tax laws in Russia never quite stay still. The Tax Code has been amended more than 70 times through new laws or wordings and this year the surgery is being performed on profits tax.

Several new profits tax regulations passed a second State Duma reading on April 22. Although the draft law is planned to come into force only from the start of 2006, some proposed amendments will have a retroactive effect already this year.

OPINION

FOR WHOM THE DRUM ROLLS

You hear the banging of drums everywhere: on the streets, where military bands are endlessly rehearsing, and on radio and television, as one uplifting war-related program follows another.

You get the impression that you'll hear a drum roll when you turn on the iron.

A SYSTEM DEDICATED TO PRESERVING POWER IS PRONE TO EXTERNAL THREATS

One of the reasons for Russia's troubles is that we have difficulty learning the lessons of our own history. We don't learn from mistakes, even when they are our own.

WORLD

Zenit Woes Probed By RFU Panel

A commission formed by the Russian Football Union to investigate FC Zenit St. Petersburg's complaint against referee Igor Yegorov meets Thursday.

The RFU formed the special panel after what Zenit says was biased officiating by Yegorov in a match against 2004 Premier League champion Lokomotiv Moskva.