What the Russian papers say

Subscribe

MOSCOW, December 2 (RIA Novosti)
NATO expansion still relevant, but Georgia, Ukraine have to wait / EU pushes into post-Soviet space / Russia to rechannel oil from Druzhba to BPS-2 pipeline / Chinese carmakers set to enter Russian market /

Kommersant

NATO expansion still relevant, but Georgia, Ukraine have to wait

Even Washington has stopped insisting on the admission of Ukraine and Georgia to NATO's Membership Action Plan (MAP), and the two former Soviet republics' governments have only themselves to blame. They have provided NATO with a perfect formal pretext to refuse them. However, the North Atlantic alliance's expansion is still on the table, according to Fyodor Lukyanov, editor-in-chief of the Moscow-based magazine, Russia in Global Affairs.
Ukraine missed its chance of forcing its way into the alliance at the Riga summit 18 months ago, not in Bucharest as one might assume. Moscow was not nearly as determined to prevent its accession to NATO at that point as it is now, and Western Europe had fewer reasons to heed Moscow's opinion anyway, the analyst said.
However, [Ukrainian President] Viktor Yushchenko was at loggerheads with a large part of the country's political elite then, and Western nations could only shrug in dismay at the off-the-wall antics of important politicians in Kiev.
Tbilisi tried to play the old "Russian threat" card, and it worked, but for some reason brought the opposite effect, Lukyanov explained. The West believed in the reality of such threat and became genuinely weary of dealing with tarnished Georgian democracy.
The new U.S. government will certainly be as committed to the NATO expansion plan as the outgoing one. The concept of its institutes' further expansion serving peace and stability is too deeply rooted in American political minds.
Europe is more cautious, but there is a lot of controversy there on this issue, which is probably part of a larger political issue. France is boosting its leadership in Europe with the help of intricate political moves involving its return to NATO's military organization. It is likely to engage in certain trade-offs which could change the country's policy.
NATO's main dilemma at the moment is not Eastern Europe. Afghanistan is threatening to grow into the world's main armed conflict. Tensions grew in Hindustan after the terrorist attacks in Mumbai, which is bound to affect the entire region. NATO's future depends on its ability to become an effective instrument in that region much more than on how soon it expands to the post-Soviet countries, Lukyanov concluded.

Nezavisimaya Gazeta

EU pushes into post-Soviet space

Tomorrow, the European Commission will publish a key strategic document on its Eastern policy. Should the EU's Eastern Partnership become a reality, it will kill off all Moscow's plans for a common economic space with former Soviet republics.
The document provides for tripling assistance to Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine: 1.5 billion euros through 2020.
Although nothing is said about prospects of six former Soviet republics joining the EU, the implementation of the plan even without that threatens to sour relations between Russia and the EU.
Germany and France, which have until recently tried to spearhead EU activities on the eastern sector, have focused mainly on cooperation with Russia. "Now we are entering a phase where Russia will be isolated and pressured," Alexander Rahr, director of the Russia and CIS affairs program at the German Council on Foreign Relations, told Nezavisimaya Gazeta. "The EU was truly shaken by the Russian-Georgian war, and blames the conflict not only on Saakashvili. It views Moscow's recognition of Abkhazia's and South Ossetia's independence as their annexation by Russia."
The analyst draws attention to the fact that the EU is going to include Belarus and Azerbaijan in the zone of its interests. That is to say, the European Union wants not so much to seek contacts with democratic nations as to contain Russia, Rahr said.
An EU free economic zone with six countries, as provided for by the Eastern Partnership program, puts paid to the Russian idea of a common economic space on post-Soviet territory. "They will try to wrest Belarus from the Union state with Russia," Rahr said.
This creates the danger of a new "curtain" between post-Soviet republics and Russia. "That is a very disquieting document for Russia, which shows that the EU is gravely concerned over Russia's 'neo-imperial' policy," the analyst believes.

RBC Daily, Vedomosti

Russia to rechannel oil from Druzhba to BPS-2 pipeline

The Russian government has finally resolved to build the BPS-2, an alternative oil link to the worn-out Druzhba pipeline, after a long debate.
The government's press office said Monday that Prime Minister Vladimir Putin had signed on November 26 an instruction to design and build a pipeline stretch from the town of Unecha in the Bryansk Region to the Baltic Sea port of Ust-Luga in the Leningrad Region. Russia's pipeline monopoly Transneft was named as the operator of the new route.
Analysts expect the monopoly to concentrate on building the BPS-2 rather than invest in Druzhba's overhaul in a tight borrowing market. This policy may drain Druzhba.
The new pipeline, 630 miles long and capable of shipping 1 million barrels per day, is expected to reduce Russian oil producers' dependence on transit across other countries. Investment in the project in 2007 through 2010 is roughly estimated at 95.14 billion rubles ($3.4 billion). The construction proper will begin in the first quarter of 2009, while the first leg (604,110 bpd) will be commissioned in the third quarter of 2012, according to the Energy Ministry's plan.
However, Solid brokerage analyst Denis Borisov still doubts the project's economic feasibility. With the global oil price projected at $50-$100 per barrel, Russia will produce 515-520 million metric tons (3.8 billion bbl) and refine 240-245 million metric tons. Exports will grow by 20-25 million metric tons be the time the BPS-2 is commissioned, but that amount will be entirely consumed by the Eastern Pipeline. To fill the new pipe, Russia will have to rechannel part of oil currently exported through other routes, including from Druzhba.
Alexander Shtok, head of the Due Diligence department at 2K Audit Business Consulting, also believes that the BPS-2 will be filled at Druzhba's expense. Since Druzhba also requires huge investment, Transneft will have to choose rather than invest in two major projects with essentially similar missions.
European refineries are interested in keeping the existing logistics, Borisov added.

Vedomosti

Chinese carmakers set to enter Russian market

Although the Russian government refuses to sign easy-term industrial assembly contracts with Chinese carmakers, they are expanding local production despite restrictive car-body import duties.
China's Great Wall Motor Corporation and its Russian distributor, Irito Group, have signed a contract for the delivery of car production equipment worth $25 million. A source close to the company said additional investment was needed to launch production.
The partners, due to build a production line in Gzhel near Moscow, said the automotive plant's first stage would annually manufacture 5,000 vehicles and would expand production in line with market demand.
A local Chinese-car dealer said the plant could annually turn out at least 50,000 vehicles, and that the first cars would be assembled already next summer.
Great Wall was forced to mothball its car assembly project in Gzhel this fall after the government started charging restrictive 5,000-euro-plus car-body import duties, Irito spokesman Andrei Matveyev told the paper.
Although Russian officials have never openly opposed Chinese economic expansion, they did not permit Chinese carmakers to import auto components under easy-term industrial assembly contracts.
Great Wall was also denied resident status in the Alabuga special economic zone in Tatarstan, an autonomous republic in Russia's Volga Federal District.
This spring, Chery Automobile, another major Chinese carmaker, stopped production at the Avtotor automotive plant in Kaliningrad, Russia's Baltic exclave.
High car-body import duties aim to relocate production to Russia and to prevent semi-legal imports, while the country of origin is irrelevant, an Industry and Trade Ministry spokesman told the paper.
In January-October 2008, 33,338 Chinese vehicles were sold in Russia, accounting for 1.9% of foreign car sales.


RIA Novosti is not responsible for the content of outside sources.

Newsfeed
0
To participate in the discussion
log in or register
loader
Chats
Заголовок открываемого материала