MOSCOW, August 7 (RIA Novosti) Russia's Artic success spurs on competition/ Russian naval presence in Mediterranean concerns Israel/ Deripaska buys a bit of General Motors/ Norilsk Nickel: amicable divorce turns into war/ Russians have grown used to a repressive government
Rossiiskaya Gazeta
Russia's Artic success spurs on competition
Countries around the Artic region are strengthening their outposts in the North Pole. The U.S. icebreaker Healy left Seattle August 6 on an Arctic research mission. The official objective of the expedition is studying the global warming process and its possible consequences for the Arctic.
However experts believe that Washington is actually aiming at expanding its presence in the region.
Increased international attention in the Polar region seems a prelude to a new world division. The global population is increasing; with its production capacities growing, more space will be required. Therefore, next decade the world will see the division of territories which have previously belonged to no one.
The Antarctic, and later the seabed, will follow the division of the Arctic. As soon as ice territories and the seabed are divided, possibly some growing and successful economies will try to divide territories which are inefficiently used, in their opinion, by other countries.
However, some Russian politicians disagree with this point of view. "I don't think leading countries have little space in the world. They are leading, because rather than marking time they are trying to look into the future. Therefore, it is the north, not the south, that is the main resource for the development of mankind.
All developed world economies are located in the north, which is easier to reach than the Antarctic. Any strategy-driven world power finds it crucial to consider distributing natural resources and legal aspects of their exploitation," said Konstantin Kosachev, head of the State Duma international affairs committee.
He said that in any case the dispute over the Arctic shelf will be resolved within the legal framework.
"The U.S. icebreaker's urgent mission to the north is a move that has no particular practical meaning, but is aimed at satisfying U.S. public opinion. The American leadership wants to avoid being accused of doing nothing, giving in to Russia, and lacking initiative," Kosachev said.
Kommersant
Russian naval presence in Mediterranean concerns Israel
Admiral Vladimir Masorin, Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, has said Moscow will keep a fleet in the Mediterranean on a permanent basis.
The news shocked Israel, which believes that the ports of Syria, where Russian warships are most likely to be deployed, will become major sites for electronic intelligence and air defense.
However, Russian experts think it is unlikely that these plans will be put into operation quickly, as the Russian Navy is short on funds or technical ability to return to the Mediterranean in the near future.
In the summer of 2006, Russia began a dredging project in Tartus, Syria, and the construction of a pier in another Syrian port, Latakia.
According to a source in the Russian Defense Ministry, in the next three years Moscow will form a group of warships for permanent deployment in the Mediterranean.
Israel fears that Russia will share information with its Muslim partners in the region, notably Syria and possibly Iran. Besides, Moscow will most likely deploy air defense systems to protect its bases in Syria, and possibly a substantial part of Syria's airspace from attack.
Russian experts consider Israeli fears ungrounded.
"The Soviet Navy had the capability to keep a permanent naval group in the Mediterranean," said Admiral Eduard Baltin, former commander of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. "Russia can now ensure a military-political presence there."
Financing is the main problem now, because the navy is the most expensive sector of the armed forces.
Konstantin Makiyenko, an expert with the Center for the Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, said: "We have very few warships in the Black Sea and a small balanced group in the Baltic Sea. The Northern Fleet - let alone the Pacific Fleet - is located too far away for deployment to the Mediterranean. Therefore, Russia could deploy only one or two warships in Syria, which amounts to a symbolic presence."
Vedomosti
Deripaska buys a bit of General Motors
Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska has added a minor stake in General Motors to his automotive assets. He does not intend to become the world's largest automaker, but wants to profit from the growth of GM's capitalization.
According to experts, it was a smart move, as GM posted profits for the first half of 2007, the first time in years.
Deripaska bought a 5% stake in GM late last year, according to one of his employees. Another source on the billionaire's team said he bought less than 5% on the stock exchange, and does not intend to increase his stake any more.
Oleg Deripaska is ranked second richest in the group of 100 wealthiest Russians and the 40th richest person in the world, according to the Russian edition of Forbes.
He usually buys controlling stakes in automotive companies. In 2000, his companies assumed control of the Gorky Automobile Works (GAZ), and later took over several bus and engine manufacturers, the Urals automaker (UralAZ), and producers of special vehicles.
Deripaska united all of these assets in the GAZ Group, which belongs to Russian Machines, a company entirely owned by Basic Element.
A year ago, GAZ began buying foreign assets. The first such acquisition was the LDV plant based in Birmingham, Britain, which produces the Maxus light commercial vehicles. Next GAZ bought from DaimlerChrysler a plant and licenses to produce automobiles on the Chrysler Sebring and Dodge Stratus platforms.
This year, Russian Machines agreed with Canada's Magna, the world's third largest producer of auto components, on the acquisition of a stake worth $1.54 billion. Now Deripaska will control Magna jointly with its chairman, Frank Stronach.
Yelena Sakhnova, an analyst with Deutsche UFG, said that although the billionaire has a soft spot for automobiles, GM is most likely a portfolio investment.
Yevgeny Bogdanov, an automotive expert with A. T. Kearney, said that a stake of 4%-5% is too small to give Deripaska's companies access to technologies or joint projects with GM. However, the Russian magnate could earn sufficient income on GM shares, he added. They are relatively cheap now, but the GM management is restructuring the company, which could lead to a sharp increase in its value.
Gazeta.ru
Norilsk Nickel: amicable divorce turns into war
The peaceful division of business assets between Mikhail Prokhorov and Vladimir Potanin, co-owners of Russian metals giant Norilsk Nickel, has turned into a war. Prokhorov is now insisting on calling an extraordinary shareholder meeting to reelect the recently formed board of directors.
The main question is who will profit from selling the world's largest nickel producer to the state. It is possible that Prokhorov has received government approval for that.
The current Norilsk Nickel board is relatively new, elected on June 28 when both Potanin and Prokhorov were absent. However, the two tycoons' affairs attract keen interest because they are now dividing their multi-billion business.
According to a preliminary agreement, Norilsk Nickel was supposed to go to Potanin, while Prokhorov was to get the company's energy assets. Earlier, the two partners, who each have a stake of 27.4%, said they would complete the division by the end of this year. Even if they had planned to complete it quickly, they are unlikely now to make it on time.
The company could now be facing major reorganization. Rumors of its upcoming "soft nationalization" have been circulating for a while on the market. One said the metals giant could be annexed by the diamond monopoly ALROSA. Such rumors are rarely commented on, but this move would be quite in line with the Russian government's policies pursued in the past few years - taking control over all the key sectors of the economy.
However, it would be politically unwise to simply take over such a business in the run-up to the elections, as its owners have always shown extreme loyalty to the powers that be. No one needs another Yukos case just now. Moreover, the government is ready to give a good price for their stakes - remembering Gazprom's buy out of Sibneft from Roman Abramovich. It means that the person who is able to mediate the voluntary handover of Norilsk Nickel will gain both a substantial amount and favor with the new government, as such deals usually take a long time.
Prokhorov's decision to tighten his grip on Norilsk Nickel might mean he has found some support in the government. But Potanin also has experience in dealing with top officials.
Following news of Prokhorov's actions, Norilsk Nickel stocks fell 1.485%, while the company's capitalization settled at $40.7 billion by the end of the trading.
Novye Izvestia
Russians have grown used to a repressive government
Reforms no longer make sense in Russia. At the beginning of Vladimir Putin's rule, many Russians hoped that he would reform the country and society, a prominent sociologist writes in the popular newspaper Novye Izvestia.
Lev Gudkov, director of the Levada pollster, writes that the global economic situation has changed, sending oil prices and Russians income up, yet the government has curtailed nearly all reforms. Russians no longer know what is associated with reforms, and hope that this situation will last some time without major upheavals.
Russians are sorry that Putin is leaving power, but do not expect his departure to provoke catastrophic or radical change. The overwhelming majority of people believe that his successors will carry on his policies, the sociologist writes.
In his opinion, Russia is turning away from the world. Unable to offer new political or national ideas, the government is using the old imperial super power stance and pursuing a policy from a position of strength in regard to its neighbors and other countries.
The people are satisfied with and are proud of that policy, Gudkov writes. The situation does not carry any immediate risks, but, in the longer term, Russia may join the group of peripheral stagnating countries, which are not developing and are incapable of modernization. Unless the government revises its policy, Russia risks becoming just another third-rate country.
The expert writes that Russians have adapted to change and the authorities (or rather, their arbitrariness), and have learned not to entertain any illusions about them. On the whole, this allows them to see the horizons of the socio-political space.
But the future is unclear and closed to perception, because Russians seem unable to rely on themselves and to build their own lives. According to Gudkov, they still rely on the authorities, which they think are becoming more predictable, a bit more moderate, and will not plunder and deceive them as mercilessly as in the past. This is creating a false feeling of tranquility and stability.
The expert concludes that Russians have become accustomed to a repressive government, which lives off the people. They have learned to be sly, to cheat the government, and to live at relative peace with it by demonstrating their loyalty, rather than being truly loyal.
RIA Novosti is not responsible for the content of outside sources.
