Russian-American Business magazine

The agency funds various forms of technical assistance, early investment analysis, training, orientation visits, and business workshops that support the development of a modern infrastructure and a fair and open trading environment. USTDA advances economic development.

It is not unusual today that people have the opportunity of ordering a bouquet of flowers for the anniversary of a business partner or friend through the Internet. There is no problem with that even if your associates and loved-ones reside halfway across the world.

Republican production and trade enterprise Orsha Linen Mill is a company of rich traditions and an interesting history. It is one of the biggest textile manufacturers in Europe, making a wide range of linen products. The company offers linen and semi-linen fabrics.

Tom Cole represents Oklahoma's 4th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. Cole, the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), is the fourth-ranking Republican leader in the House. He also serves on the Armed Services Committee.

Consul General of the Russian Federation in Houston, Texas Nikolai Sofinskiy believes that the partnership between the U.S. and Russia will be critical for the two countries’ economic development in the future and has high hopes for bilateral cooperation.

"We are going to discuss the positive achievements in Russian-American relations, which are not fewer than the number of questions on which we disagree. There is something to talk about in terms of the development of positive trends in the relationship."

Zlatoust Arms Company’s participation in the Shot show at the Las Vegas Convention Center in February was very successful. The Shot show is the largest shooting, hunting, and outdoor industry trade exhibit in the United States. The most exciting news for ZOK is that the company now has an official representative in the U.S.

“Look! There’s a real mammoth! And a cave bear! I didn’t expect to meet these fellows at a jewelry and gem show. Unbelievable! Can I take a picture with my new friends?” - a world-known mineralogist was happy like a child when the permission was granted.

Herndon, VA - U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez and Russian Federal Atomic Energy Agency (Rosatom) Director Sergey Kiriyenko signed a long-term suspension agreement governing trade in nuclear fuel. The agreement will encourage bilateral trade in Russian uranium products for peaceful purposes.

The Russian Federation Chamber of Commerce and Industry has been working in the U.S. for three years, assisting Russian and American companies looking to expand trade with each other. The Russian economy is experiencing an immense boom.

Tashkent - Russia’s LUKOIL officially started up output from a major gas field in Uzbekistan in a project expected to contribute one fifth of the Central Asian state’s gas output. Russia’s First Deputy Prime Minister Sergey Ivanov and top Uzbek and LUKOIL officials toured the Khauzak deposit.

Cosmonaut Pavel Popovich is a living legend. He has been named two times the Hero of the Soviet Union. Many Russians made him an idol 40 years ago at the start of the space era, when he made his first flight around the Earth. “Flying to outer space,” Pavel Popovich says, “is just like falling in love for the first time.

Managing director of the World Bank Group Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala just returned from St. Petersburg, Russia, where she attended the International Economic Forum on behalf of the bank’s president Robert Zoellick. The XII International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg has become the most significant venue for the economic dialogue between Russia and the world.

Extraterrestrial, a film of a Russian-Ukrainian company Star Media received one of the highest honors and a grand prix award at the 41st Worldfest Houston independent film festival. The festival’s director Hunter Todd said that the film received high jury assessment and generated great interest on the part of the audience.

Movie director Steven Spielberg received one of his first cinema awards at the Worldfest film festival in Houston, Texas. It happened in 1972. Members of the jury had never heard the young director’s name before and could judge him only on the merits of his work.

The U.S. goods trade deficit with Russia was USD 12.0 billion in 2007, a decrease of USD 3.1 billion from USD 15.1 billion in 2006. U.S. goods exports in 2007 were USD 7.4 billion, up 56.7 percent from the previous year. Corresponding U.S. imports from Russia were USD 19.4 billion, down 2.4 percent.

I think of myself more as a designer than a jeweler… I can say that if you plan just to be a jeweler, you need to study the trade. If you want to become a designer, then in addition to your sense of imagination you need to have an independent vision of the most common things.

Russian Collection is a unique line of exquisite jewelry fully inspirited by the values of the cultural heritage of Russia! Take the chance to appreciate the true examples of the most fashionable Russian-style luxury jewelry! All jewelry pieces included in the collection are hand-made from 18ct gold (yellow and white color).

Marina J Feldman is a strikingly attractive woman resembling Marilyn Monroe in many respects. Marina’s beauty is natural, whole, and inviting. Her other connection with the movie industry is that among her clients are Barbara Streisand, Elizabeth Taylor, Nicole Kidman, and many other cinema stars.

Without the removal of excessive administrative barriers, without changing the tax policy, small and medium businesses would not only lack the potential for becoming the driving force of innovation, but also could not simply survive

Ulyanovsk region is a region with tremendous economic growth potential. The products produced by area companies are well-known and recognized world-wide. The AN-124 Ruslan Cargo aircraft and UAZ SUV vehicles have long become the symbols of Russian reliability and quality.

The region’s advantageous geographical position and well-developed transport infrastructure allow for the movement of freight in any direction by any mode of transportation.

The region is rich in natural resources, such as oil, quartz, cement raw materials, diatomite, and unique mineral water.

The region’s government and the governor personally exert every effort to ensure maximum comfort and ease, as well as successful business opportunities for foreign companies that will come to the region.

ECONOMY

Ulyanovsk region is part of the Volga River subdistrict of the Volga economic region. A well-developed transportation system and a favorable economic situation have an impact on regional economic development. The region is noted for production of aircrafts, cars, machine tools, automatic circuit reclosers, press-forging machines, electric crane motors, water sprinklers, and other machines. Other developed sectors include the flour-milling, meat, butter-making, starch and molasses, distilling, building material, and woodworking industries.

Small businesses involved in processing semifinished products and secondary raw materials from large industrial enterprises play an important role in supplying goods to the market. More than 1 000 small private companies form the basis of the region's small industry sector.

The oil industry is expanding at full speed. Increasing oil production and setting up oil refining facilities employing environmentally-clean technologies are the industry's priority lines of development.

The NAFTA-Ulyanovsk joint venture is carrying out two important investment projects, namely the "Development of eight oil fields in Ulyanovsk region" and the "Construction of the Ulyanovsk Oil Refinery (Ulyanovsky NPZ) with an annual output of 500 000 tons."

The region has a developed financial system consisting of banks and other financial institutions. Leading rating agencies rank Ulyanovsk region among the 20 Russian regions with the most favorable investment conditions.

The city of Ulyanovsk is the region's main industrial center, where large engineering plants and the light industries producing fabrics, knitted goods, and shoes are located. The second-largest industrial center is Melekes, which has a flax mill, a mechanical plant, a knitting mill, wood-finishing plants, and flour mills.

RESOURCES

Ulyanovsk region has an abundance of land, water, forest, and mineral resources. Sixty percent of the region's 3.7 million hectares of available land are designated as agricultural lands. About 80% of this land is tilled. The predominant soils are black earth (chernozems), which is very well suited for growing grain, feed, and industrial crops. Therefore, both crop cultivation and livestock farming (oriented towards meat and milk production) are well-developed here.

Forests cover 28% (946 200 hectares) of Ulyanovsk region. Deciduous forests, both hardwood and softwood, predominate (117 500 and 393 900 hectares, respectively); coniferous forests cover another 343 000 hectares. The main deciduous species is oak, which covers 16% of the forested area. Most of the forests are noncommercial. Companies in the forest, woodworking, and paper industries operate on both local and imported raw materials.

Ulyanovsk region extends on both sides of the great Volga River. There is no shortage of water resources. However, even though 22 subsurface freshwater reservoirs with probable reserves of 608 500 cubic meters per day have been explored, some districts are experiencing a shortage of drinking water. Therefore, construction of group water intakes is planned for the northern part of the region and the area along the Volga. The best known mineral water sources are the Undory, the Beloe Lake (Beloe Ozero), the Bely Yar, and the Banket. The Undory and the Banket pools are the most promising.

The region's beautiful historic sites, mineral waters, and natural beaches offer good prospects for the development of tourism and health resorts. The development of water resources, along with tourism and recreation, are envisioned in the region's Socioeconomic Development Strategy, which has the support of the regional administration.

Eighty-two oil fields have been discovered in Ulyanovsk region, 24 of which are in operation. Experts have estimated total oil reserves at more than 35 million tons. Oil production is increasing year by year.

Ulyanovsk region also has substantial reserves of other raw materials used in industry, such as various kinds of sands, cement materials, clays, and peat. One of the largest quartz sand deposits in the C.I.S., the Tashlinskoe deposit, is located in the region. High-quality glassmaking sand from the deposit is delivered to glass factories in various Russian regions. The Pukyanovskoe deposit is a well-known source of foundry sand. Raw cement materials are produced at the Kremenskoe deposit. The region is fully supplied with cement- and glassmaking materials, heat insulation products, filtered powder, chalk, construction lime, reinforced concrete products, lime-sand brick, and natural sorbents, and even supplies other regions with these resources. Ulyanovsk region has enough mineral resources to meet regional demands, and in the case of certain minerals, federal demands; however, marketing research is necessary in order to develop effective import-export relations in the region.

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The link provided below opens the program of the visit to Ulyanovsk, Russia.

Program of the trip >>

The small Oklahoma town of Hartshorne, some 15 miles away from the city of Macalister is still sometimes referred to as the Russian town. There, on top of a hill that the locals continue to call Russian stands the main historic sight of the area, an Orthodox Church of St. Cyril and Methodius.

The principal activity of the Favorit-2003 limited liability company based in the city of Cherkasy, Ukraine, is providing commercial property for rent. The company owns a series of commercial buildings located on more than 41 acres of property. There are more than 675 merchant locations.

"When I was dealing in Soviet affairs, we only had a few areas of engagement, mostly having to do with issues related to military confrontation, strategic nuclear forces limitation talks. Now our relationship is much more characteristic of a modern relationship between two great powers in terms of economic integration."

German Kabirski is a designer who prefers to work in an extraordinary style. He really enjoys making his wonderful designs, rendering ordinary shapes into marvelous stylistic models. Sometimes his creations are referred to as risky avant-garde. “I do not keep track of fashion,” Kabirski says.

Since 1999, Open World has brought more than 13 500 emerging leaders to the United States from Russia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Moldova, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. This autumn, Open World will welcome its first delegations from Turkmenistan.

In general, constructive trends in our bilateral economic cooperation sustain themselves. The volume of trade between Russia and America has increased, reaching the level of 7.5 billion dollars. By comparison, the figure for the first quarter of 2007 was only 5.2 billion dollars. The upward trend is quite remarkable.

Diplomacy and the Church can cooperate most actively when their motivation is the same and they have a common spiritual-cultural paradigm. If we widen this motivation, we can speak of the country’s spiritual freedom and the integrity of its spiritual space.

The company was started 10 years ago with one person ordering visas for its first clients from his home office. Today, Go To Russia is a respectable company with offices in Atlanta, San-Francisco, Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Kiev.

German Kabirski is one of the youngest, yet one of the most enigmatic Russian jewelry brands. People in the industry started talking about Kabirski for the first time at the turn of the millennium, in the year 2000, when the previously-unknown designer took first place at Moscow’s international jewelry show.

Deciding which clearing firm or Forex dealer to trade with is an extremely important decision. The vast majority of FX dealers or Futures Commission Merchants (FCM) will profit on their client’s losing trades. This practice is called market making.

Fluffy snow and biting frost were what the 21-year-old beauty from Siberia missed the most as she fought for the Miss World title in the hot South African sun in Johannesburg. Ksenya passed all rounds of the competition with flying honors.

All this growth in the defense sector has become a reality thanks to a complex set of factors. First, the incoming money from Russia’s energy exports enabled the D&A industry to materialize several of its (very often Soviet-era) stagnated projects.

The rail system represents the lifelines for the RFE southern territories, and especially, Primorsky and Khabarovsky krais, Amurskaya oblast, Jewish autonomous okrug, Sakhalin island, and Southern Sakha (Yakutia). RFE railroads carry about 83% of the region’s freight.

I would hope that the coming of the new
President and the
new team will be marked by drawing a line
after a period of difficulties in our relations, especially
in recent times. Still, I have no particular expectations that this will happen without considerable efforts on both sides.

Do you know the most intriguing and hot Russian jewelry brands? German Kabirski. Remember this name. He also represents one of the youngest Russian jewelry brands. People in the industry started to talk about Kabirski for the first time in the year 2000.

Geological studies suggest that the country of Ukraine has close to 1 trillion cubic meters of natural gas reserves. Significant reserves of coal have also been discovered in the country. Because domestic production remains very limited, Ukraine continues to be heavily dependent on other countries for its energy needs.

Automobile sales in Ukraine that have increased substantially since 2002 are now rapidly falling as a consequence of the economic downturn in the country. Current estimates show that the upward trend in sales can resume again in 2011. Before the economic collapse, the Ukrainian car market was the seventh largest in Europe.

The country’s top cellular phone service carriers were finally given the necessary airwave frequencies to run 3G commercial operations in Moscow and the Moscow oblast. Currently, 3G reception is limited to indoor users.

The Minister of Agriculture of Russia Yelena Skrynnik noted that the government has completed its interventions in grain production for the 2008 harvest. The money paid by the government supported farmers, stabilized prices, and created a strong economic foundation for the sowing and harvesting operations, according to Ms. Skrynnik.

With demands for electricity in Russia declining as a result of the economic crisis, the power companies are requesting the government to stop state-supported industry expansion plans. Holding off on expansion now will be conducive to maintaining the viability of broad reforms in the economic sector as a whole.

RosAtom may build four units of a nuclear power station in Vietnam at a total cost of USD 15 billion. For purposes of securing the contract, Russia’s nuclear agency would need to provide financing for the project, covering part of the expenses with its own money.

The chairman of Norilsk Nickel Mr. Alexander Voloshin indicated that it would be advantageous for the largest nickel-mining company in the world to merge with other Russian steel and metal companies after the economic crisis passes.

Russian scientists are engaged in developing a new generation of soft displays. They developed a multi-layer organic electro luminescence structure that paves the way for making television screens, notebooks, mobile telephones, and other electronic equipment.

Russia’s decision to team up with its customs union partners does not changes its resolve to become a WTO member. Russia still wants to join WTO, but the sequence of steps toward the goal will not be the same again.

At least 80 percent of small businesses in Russia are engaged in trade. The government of the country has begun a campaign to increase and promote small-scale businesses oriented toward industrial production.

Following a long period of working with U.S. officials and market sector representatives, Russia finally entered into a commercial transaction to provide enriched uranium for use in nuclear reactors located in Missouri, California, and Texas.

The leading producer of aircrafts in Russia, Irkut Corporation reported that it redeemed credit linked notes (CLNs) worth USD 125 million and made the final coupon payment. The payments were made exactly on schedule. The company’s ability to return payments indicated that the situation within the Russian aviation industry is improving.

In late May 2009, Sibir Energy company, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange has agreed to accept a takeover bid from Gazprom Neft. According to the terms of the transaction, Sibir Energy is valued at USD 3 billion.

18 months following Kazakhstan’s signing of a three-party agreement for the construction of a Caspian gas pipeline, the government of the country went through with the ratification of the document. The law effectively embodying the country’s commitment to the project was signed by President of Nursultan Nazarbaev on April 13.

Kabirski’s name has became recognized for the first time in the year 2000, when the previously-unknown designer took the first place at Moscow’s international jewelry show. From that time on German Kabirski won many awards at different competitions and shows.

Government-owned OJSC Rosneft is the largest oil-producing company in Russia. Vertically integrated, Rosneft has both upstream and downstream presence in every region where oil extraction takes place. The company was formed as the result of the privatization of Russia’s oil industry in 1993.

I have learned about this nice and small hotel from my travel agents in New York in 2001 - it was on the list of possible choice for my stay in the Russian capital. In the past, I was always staying at one big hotel, but I am a person who loves to change something in my life and to try new options.

The Siberian pipeline construction project calls for building an additional segment of the Eastern Siberia to Pacific Ocean (ESPO) pipeline that would cross the Russian border into China from the town of Skovorodino in Amur region.

On May 18, 2009, a new direction in the nuclear-power-generation industry was launched at St. Petersburg, as Russian scientists and engineers began the construction of the very first on-water nuclear power plant in the world.

Rosneft has intentions to construct a plant specializing in petrochemical production close to the Pacific Ocean coast. The plant will allow Rosneft, the largest producer of oil in Russia, to boost its exports to Asia, according to the Governor of Primorye region Sergei Darkin.

According to the information provided by sources connected to the shareholders of Sibur Holding, the company has intentions to issue extra shares of stock totaling in value up to 10 bln. roubles. There exists a high likelihood that the new stock may be purchased entirely by Gazprombank, which currently owns almost 70 percent of Sibur.

The Russian Ministry of Energy made a proposal to the government to include only non-recovered oil into the state reserve. According to Ministry of Energy officials, forming a reserve from oil that has already been produced is not practicable due to the high cost associated with the construction and operation of reservoirs.

Russia’s Federal Anti-Monopoly Service has granted approval for establishing the largest private bank in the country. Yulia Bondareva, head of the FAS financial markets oversight department said that the agency has extensively analyzed the merger of MDM Bank and URSA, and there are no reasons to impose any restraints on the transaction.

The President of Russian Dmitry Medvedev stated the he will organize a special commission for economic modernization and technological development. The commission will include members of the presidential executive office in addition to business representatives, industry analysts, and scientists.

According to VTB reports, the decline in Russia’s gross domestic product began to slow down compared to the sharp drop in December of last year. VTB bases its assessment of the GDP on industry and service activity in the country.

A recent report by the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) notes that the impact of the global economic crisis on the emerging economies in Europe and Central Asia will be dramatic. On average the EBRD estimates that these emerging economies will contract by about 5.2 percent in the current year.

The impact on the real economy of the financial crisis that has enveloped Russia and the global markets will depend mainly on the extent to which commodity prices are affected. Nowadays, falling commodity prices, slowing demand growth and the fiscal tightening of the past few quarters create a new atmosphere for doing business in Russia.

PetroGaz, LLC., owned by OIL Traders International, LLC. and the A&M group, is able to facilitate the purchase of Russian oil, petroleum products, and natural gas. All of the company’s clients in the United States are end consumers of fuel.

The prices of oil have increased significantly during the recent months, making the problems associated with Russia’s budgetary shortfall less acute. In May of 2009, the price of Urals crude oil reached USD 55 per barrel, surpassing the mean price of USD 45 for the period of January to April.

The Russian banking system weathered the storms of the international financial crisis with relatively few major issues. Now that the global financial markets begin to calm down, a new problem may soon arise: a crisis brought about by forces in the domestic economy.

The Russian Central Bank forecasts that the value of the country’s currency will appreciate in the near term. According to estimates, people in Russia bought USD 60 bln. worth of foreign currency after the beginning of the recession.

During the times of economic disasters, criminal activity becomes more noticeable. One only needs to remember the soaring crime rates in the U.S. during the Great Depression or the Russian criminal revolution of the 1990s.

We generally accord great attention to the personal meetings of our political leaders that set a new tone for our bilateral relations. The first talks of the presidents of Russia and the United States, which took place on April 1 in London just prior to the G-20 summit aimed at solving the global economic crisis, did not constitute an exception from the general rule.

A number of industry analysts believe that Azerbaijan can provide a substantial advancement to key European oil and gas projects. The leaders of the European Union have not recognized the significance of Azerbaijan for laying oil and gas pipelines that would deliver fuel to Europe.

During his mid-September visit to Yaroslavl, Russia’s President Dmitriy Medvedev laid out his framework for the development of the country. The Russian President also talked about the paramount significance of open political debate.

Russia’s Commander-in-Chief President Medvedev praised the move of Obama’s administration to cancel the plans for installing missile defenses in Poland and the Czech Republic. Dmitriy Medvedev noted that the decision of the U.S. President was by all measures “courageous.”

Russian expert have finalized the building of a spaceport in South Korea in July. The launch pad in Latin America is expected to be completed in October, according to the director of the Russian Federal Space Agency Roscosmos Anatoly Perminov.

Zlatoust Arms Company Ltd. (OOO “Zlatoustovskaya Oruzheynaya Kompaniya”) was established in May 2001 in Zlatoust, Chelyabinsk region. The company is one of the fastest-growing knife companies in Russia.

The chief executive officer of Russia’s largest oil and gas corporation Gazprom Mr. Alexei Miller gave an upward revision of forecasts for the company’s production for 2009. Gazprom now expects to finish the year with 500 to 510 billion cubic meters of gas produced.

The energy sector strategy is based on estimates that Russia’s oil production will reach 530 to 535 million tons by the year 2030. The production of gas is expected to be from 880 to 940 billion cubic meters. Electricity generation is anticipated to reach 1.8 to 2.2 trillion kilowatt hours.

Every February, Russian-American Business magazine chooses a winner of an honorary recognition and an extraordinary acknowledgement plaque for the artist of the year. Last year’s nominees included individuals from the film, music, and art industries and world renowned writers.

The Russian state is pursuing a program to modernize the country’s refineries by intensifying investment in operations downstream. Within the next 5 years, the Russian oil refining complex requires the infusion of additional investment of RUR 1.4 trillion.

The formation of Russia’s cultural centers for different types of handicrafts took many years and even centuries. The mastery of craftsmen, the uniqueness of each particular style, and the cumulative artistic talent developed over a long period of time. One such unique cultural craft center is Vyatka.

Manufacturers of telecom products in Russia have come to enjoy better relations with major mobile and fixed-line carriers in the country. Russian government officials are now convinced that the country’s communications sector stands on an equal footing with telecom industries in Western European states.

Russian regulators are seriously considering altering the system for allocating meat importing quotas. Andrei Slepnev, Russia’s Deputy Minister for Economic Development, said that a method for distributing the quotas through an auction may be introduced.

Discussions between Russian regulators and a U.S. task force on the issue of poultry supplies to the R.F. market helped American officials understand Russia’s position. Talks were being conducted in the latter half of January 2010.

In 2010, passenger vehicle sales in Russia are expected to go up 15 percent to 1.6 million cars. The new forecast was prepared by Stanley Root, a partner of PriceWaterhouseCoopers. According to the less-likely pessimistic scenario, sales of automobiles may decrease by 5 percent to only 1.3 million.

Rusal, the world’s largest manufacturer of aluminum and alumina, paid its creditors 2.143 billion dollars from the proceeds received as a result of its initial public offering at the Hong Kong stock exchange, the NYSE, and Euronext in Paris.

Russia’s nuclear materials and nuclear services exporter Techsnabexport estimates that in 2010 it will supply uranium products worth USD 1 billion. Atomenergoprom, the only shareholder of Techsnabexport expects three contracts for the delivery of nuclear fuel to be signed soon.

Russian officials met with their Turkish counterparts in Moscow to discuss the construction of the Samsun-Ceyhan oil pipeline on January 13, according to R.F. Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin. Russia expects to be actively involved in the project. The ownership share that Russia will have in the venture has not yet been agreed upon.

The State Duma of the Russian Federation will in the near future adopt legislative measures to prohibit stockpiling radioactive waste in the country. The lower house of the Russian parliament voted in favor of the bill banning nuclear waste accumulation in the first reading.

OIL Traders International, LLC. is engaged in international petroleum trading and often does business with Russia. All of the company’s clients in the United States are end consumers of fuel. Largest American airlines, cargo transporters, and trucking companies have great demand for oil and petroleum products originating in Russia.

For the fourth quarter (actual results not yet released as of the date of publication), Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works was expecting to see revenues increase by another 15 percent. The company’s investment program for 2010 comes with a price tag of USD 1.7 billion.

The initial capacity of the 1 220-mm (48 in) pipeline is 600 thousand barrels per day. By 2016 the capacity of the pipeline will be increased up to 1 000 thousand barrels per day, and by 2025 up to 1 600 thousand barrels per day.

Fitch Ratings changed its assessment of the Russian economy from “negative” to “stable,” affirming long-term domestic and foreign currency issuer default ratings as BBB. Short term foreign currency issuer default rating was set at F3, while the country ceiling indicator was fixed at BBB+.

The largest Russian oil company OJSC Rosneft plans to increase the recovery of oil and gas condensate by 4.4 percent in 2010 compared to the results of 2009. The total volume of production should reach 117.6 million tons.

The Megasorb sorbent is a non-woven polymer web fabricated with the use of the Strutto technology. The thickness of the web is 25 mm, and web width is 2.0 m. The specific density is 0.02 g/cm3. Oil sorption capacity in one cycle is 36 kg by 1 kg of sorbent.

As a whole, the telecom sector did not suffer significantly from the economic crisis. Lowered investment activity in 2009 was for the most part a safety measure. At the same time, even while a boost in investments is anticipated, the total capital expenditure figures for the current year are not likely to be as high as those in 2008.

Russia’s largest non-state-owned oil company Lukoil revealed plans to increase its hydrocarbon production to 2.7 million bbls per day by the end of the current decade. At the same time, the company decided to cut back its investment projects from USD 75 billion to USD 60 billion.

Spiritual Diplomacy attempts to resolve conflicts between nations and within state borders by relying on the peoples’ spiritual values. This may be the only remaining strategy that provides a true key to the survival of the human race.

Chelyabinsk Zinc Plant ended 2009 with a profit, contrary to the predictions of some analysts. The company’s operations in the first three quarters of the year brought in a profit of RUR 268 million (computed under International Financial Reporting Standards).

Exports of grain from Russia in the current agricultural year (beginning in July 2009 and ending in June 2010) went down only slightly, even though the harvest volume was substantially lower than one year before.

In the end of January 2010, R.F. Deputy Minister for Transportation Sergei Aristov met Nicaraguan Deputy Foreign Minister Manuel Coronel for discussions related to the construction of a new canal between the Pacific and the Atlantic Oceans.

The relationship with Russia was one of the most important issues in the presidential campaign. Other salient issues included the future development of the nation’s gas pipeline network and the fate of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.

The Minister said that both the U.S. and NATO have been informed that the missile defense strategy should be reconsidered from the very beginning, starting with a joint analysis of the actual threats facing the Western world.

The San Francisco-based company RussFolk Art was established in 1987. RussFolk Art is well-known for the large collection of unique and original lacquer miniature works that are impossible to find elsewhere.

The Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation revised its forecast for 2010-2012. According to the new estimate, inflation is expected to be significantly lower than what previous models predicted.

The Nord Stream Consortium intends to commission Russia’s OMK, Europipe of Germany, and Sumitomo of Japan to supply more than 1 million tons of steel pipes for building the second segment of the Nord Stream project.

The level of industrial production in Russia went down by 10.8 percent, according to the State Statistics Service. For the last month of the year, output increased by 2.7 percent on year-on-year basis. Compared to figures for November 2009, production in December grew by 5 percent.

The results of a recent poll conducted by the Russian Public Opinion Study Center shows that the majority of Russian citizens approve the work of President Barack Obama. The poll was conducted in 42 Russian regions in mid-January 2010.

Political analysts unanimously agree that the first year of Barack Obama’s work in office had a positive effect on bilateral relations between Russia and the United States. According to Vyacheslav Nikonov, head of the Politics Foundation, the climate in the relationship “noticeably improved.”

Gazprom Neft was successful in winning the tender for the Badra oilfield. Reserves at the oilfield have been estimated at 2 billion barrels. In addition to Gazprom Neft that holds 30 percent in the venture, the consortium for the development of Badra includes Kogas of South Korea (22.5 percent), Petronas of Malaysia, and TPAO of Turkey.

In January 2010, American company Exxon Neftegaz Limited, which is the operator of Sakhalin-1, reported completing two inclined wells at the Odoptu field in the offshore zone of Sakhalin Island. The wells are 9 kilometers deep. The plan is to have 7 wells drilled at Odoptu.

The Federal Tariffs Service of the Russian Federation made the decision to increase transportation charges for the transit of natural gas through pipelines by independent producers. The increase of 12.3 percent became effective at the start of 2010.

According to Mr. Miller, the difference in the cost of energy – and, more specifically, the cost of natural gas – puts Russian companies at an undue advantage and allows them to enjoy steady cashflow from the sale of products manufactured through the use of an old-style technological process.

The Minister of Natural Resources of the Russian Federation expressed opposition to the plans for forming a state oil reserve comprised of unexplored hydrocarbon fields. Minister Trutnev indicated that it would be of greater advantage for the government to distribute oil and gas fields to companies as demand for fuel rises.

Research shows that the most expensive MBAs in Russia (EUR 38 000 and EUR 90 000 for an 18-month course) have no problems finding students. At medium-priced business schools a 5 percent dropout rate has been noted.

The Internet affects the everyday lives of people around the world. However, legal issues relating to the World Wide Web have not, until recently, been addresses in Russia in a comprehensive way.

TMK, a Russian company that is one of the largest producers of pipes for the oil and gas sector worldwide, ended 2009 with a loss of USD 324 million (International Financial Reporting Standards). In the first quarter of 2010, the company’s revenue increased to about USD 1.3 billion.

The main type of fuel used in Russia is natural gas. In 2009, the share of gas in the Russian energy equation was 56.2 percent. Oil accounted for only 18.3 percent of the country’s energy consumption, coal for 14.4 percent, nuclear energy for 5.3 percent, and hydropower for 5.6 percent.

Although Russia’s chemical sector has been hit by the global economic downturn and falling oil prices, in the longer term, its advantaged feedstock position should ensure healthy growth prospects.

The profit of Uralkali in the second half of 2009 fell by 44 percent under IFRS. In accordance with Russian accounting standards, the potash producer experienced RUR 3.943 billion in net losses during the last quarter of 2009.

Cell phone calls from Russian airliners and mobile Internet service aboard those planes will soon be commonly available in Russia. At the same time, the services are not likely to be of great popularity with the passengers at least initially – due to the high cost and the need to have special equipment.

Oleg Deripaska, the Chief Executive Officer of the RUSAL aluminum production giant, received a bonus in the form of 0.33 percent of the company’s shares of stock (valued at USD 70 million) after RUSAL’s initial public offering on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

Furthermore, Minister Shmatko noted that Europe’s spot market for gas does not present any significant threat to Gazprom’s long-range supply contracts.

American poultry-processing companies would be allowed to ship to Russia only those products that were processed with the use of non-chlorine compounds that have undergone testing and approval in Russia.

Russia’s gas giant, Gazprom and Ukraine’s Naftogaz gas company may establish a joint venture on a parity basis, Alexei Miller, head of Gazprom, said during a meeting with Ukraine’s Fuel and Energy Minister Yury Boyko.

Russian officials entered into an international agreement designed to impose regulatory measures to combat unreported and unlawful fishing. The discussion of the agreement was conducted under the auspices of the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, which now includes 15 countries.

Rosneft showed a profit of RUR 51.25 billion in quarter one, 2010 in accordance with Russian accounting standards. These figures represent major improvements compared to the previous year. In the first quarter of 2009, the company posted losses of RUR 5.77 billion.

In 2009, the geologists working for company Surgutneftegas discovered nine new fields that are capable of production.

The Russian division of Alcoa has posted break-even results in the first quarter of the year, according to the company’s Chief Executive Officer Klaus Kleinfeld.

In April of 2010, ConocoPhillips sold 4.644 million shares of Lukoil at a total price of USD 274 million. At the end of March, the American company owned 851 million shares of Lukoil. A month later, the company’s share of ownership of Lukoil decreased to 19.89 percent.

The net profits of the company Buryatzoloto in the first quarter of 2010 was RUR 406.7 million, representing an increase of 70 percent compared to the previous quarter. In the last quarter of 2009, the company incurred RUR 311.6 million in losses.

In January of 2010, Alrosa’s sales receipts for diamond purchases were around USD 300 million, according to a top-manager of the company.

Severstal NA will sell 4 metal service centers that it currently operates in the United States to Aurora Resurgence. The designated buyer is a privately-owned equity fund based in Los Angeles, California.

Russian mobile operator Mobile TeleSystems has outsourced the daily operation and maintenance of its entire mobile network across central Russia to Nokia Siemens Network as part of a five-year managed services deal.

The car sector in Russia continues to cope with the fallout from country’s economic crisis. Experts nevertheless are optimistic and say that market recovery is around the corner. In 2009, sales of new vehicles decreased by 49 percent to 1.47 million cars.

The increase in the real gross domestic product in the Russian Federation will be 4.7 percent over the course of 2010. The increase will be fueled mostly by exports. Reduced demand around the world will in the medium term reflect negatively on the health of the Russian economy.

The territorial administration of Altai has issued a statement that the first casino in the Siberian Coin Altai gaming zone will be launched before the end of the current year. Hotels are scheduled to open in 2013.

Russia’s private oil company Lukoil will keep its current investment ratings, according to analysts at two credit agencies. In the end of July, Standard & Poor’ announced it intends to reassess the long-term corporate rating of Lukoil, currently held at BBB- with a “negative” outlook.

Nikolai Brunich, Director General of Zarubezhneft, and Phug Dinh, the Chief Executive Officer of Petrovietnam, entered into several cooperation agreements for developing cooperation on projects in the petroleum industry.

The City of Moscow together with Gazprom Neft embarked on a project to renovate the Moscow Oil Refinery. In July, officials took part in the symbolic launch of reconstruction works at the refinery’s unit for isomerization of light naphtha.

Eldorado, one of the largest retailers of consumer electronics in Russia, did not perform well in 2009, amidst widespread financial problems in the country prompted by the onset of the global economic crisis.

The agricultural arm of Basic Element, formed after the Russi-Asiatic Investment Company was transferred into the holding group of Oleg Deripaska, plans to register its 2010 profits at RUR 270 million, compared to RUR 143 million in 2009.

Spiritual Diplomacy attempts to resolve conflicts between nations and within state borders by relying on the peoples’ spiritual values. This may be the only remaining strategy that provides a true key to the survival of the human race.

According to Vladimir Potanin, the director of the Interros group, there are no points of contention between the shareholders of Norilsk Nickel. “There are only different approaches,” Mr. Potanin is reported to have said.

In the first half of 2010, coal company Raspadskaya saw a considerable reduction in production activity following one of the largest mining accidents in Russia. Altogether OJSC Raspadskaya was able to produce 4.778 million tons of raw coal.

Moody’s altered the outlook of the rating for Magnitogorsk Steel Works from Ba3 “stable” to “positive.” The company’s national scale rating is Aa3.ru. The agency’s decision was based on the 2009 performance of the steel company.

In early September Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin extended Russia’s ban on wheat exports until the harvest of 2011 to ensure the country’s agricultural industry would bounce back from a severe drought and wildfires that destroyed 20 percent of the crop this year.

The German-based retail chain with hypermarket stores spread out across several regions of Russia saw an increase in sales on the Russian market by about 31 percent in 2009.

The largest retail supplier of cellular telephones in Russia company Euroset reported that its revenues in quarter 2, 2010 reflected a 15.7-percent growth on a year-on-year basis. In the three months from April to June 2010, the company’s revenues stood at RUR 13.564 billion.

The Russian subsidiary of Nestle recorded a profit of RUR 801.9 million from its operations in Russia in 2009. In 2008, the company’s net profit stood at only RUR 270.3 million. At the same time, Nestle has reported that its revenue from sales in Russia went down.

The cumulative revenue figure for the three largest television stations in Russia (Channel One, VGTRK, and NTV) decreased by 22 percent in 2009. The total figure was down to RUR 52.4 billion, compared to RUR 66.8 billion in 2008.

The holding company Svyazinvest had a net profit of RUR 23.067 billion in 2009 in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards. The profit was 5.46 percent less than in 2008.

TeliaSonera, a Scandinavian mobile holding company, received a boost in its revenues as a result of its acquisition of a stake in MegaFon. The company’s revenues from sales in the second quarter showed an increase of 0.5 percent.

Norway’s company Telenor registered a profit of nearly USD 1.5 billion in the second quarter of 2010, which represents an increase of more than 400 percent in relation to the USD 280-million result from the second quarter of 2009.

The Russian coal and steel giant Mechel decided to lower its outlays for capital projects to under USD 1.4 billion, according to the company’s Senior Vice President for Finances Stanislav Ploschenko.

In the end of July 2010, Bulgaria agreed to participate in the construction of Russia’s South Stream pipeline. Despite the new agreement, the country’s officials still remain committed to the European Union-backed Nabucco project.

The TMA-01M Soyuz craft is the first in the new digital series. In the words of Nikolai Bryukhanov, deputy general designer of the Energia Corporation, the plan in devising the new series of spaceships was to narrow the technology gap.

American tycoon Ronald Lauder has recently issued a statement that he will launch a new hotel chain in Russia. Lauder’s plans include building 18 economy two- and three-star hotels in Moscow. The cost of the project has been estimated at USD 1 billion.

The Russian government has initiated the revision of the Glonass satellite program. According to Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, the government is working on a draft of the program up to the year 2020.

Mid-Atlantic – Russia Business Council, founded in 1994, is a major non-profit organization in the Mid-Atlantic region that provides information and services related to Russia and the C.I.S. MARBC conducts more than 25 events annually in the United States.

Russian company Lenzoloto owned by Polyus Gold registered a net profit of RUR 492.42 million in the second quarter of 2010. In the first quarter, the profit figure was only RUR 3.62 million.

In the first two quarters of 2010, the production of ferrous metal roll in Russia was up 22.8 percent according to Federal State Statistics Service. Production results for June reflected a 12.8 percent rise on a year-on-year basis.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia has said that it considers the United States to be in breach of several treaties on the nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction and arms control.

The major operator of oil pipelines in Ukraine Ukrtransnafta (wholly owned by Naftogaz Ukrainy) saw a reduction in the shipment of oil in the first half of 2010 by 25.9 percent to 14.88 million tons, according to the country’s Fuel and Energy Ministry.

The institution of higher excise duties on fuels and lubricants will cause the cost of these petroleum products to rise by 0.4 to 0.6 percent, according to the Minister of Transportation of Russia Igor Levitin.

Export tariffs on oil from fields in Eastern Siberia will increase to USD 80.3 per ton from their current level of USD 69.9. Export duties on light oil products were raised to USD 190 per ton effective August 1 (previous tariff was USD 179.9).

The electric station at Rosa Khutor that will supply power to Olympic facilities in the Sochi highlands will be operational by the end of 2010. The construction of the 110-kilowatt substation commenced in 2009.

Throughout the summer, wildfires burned in many regions of Russia. The smog hovering over Moscow and other cities in central Russia made it difficult for people in the streets to breath.

The Russian Federal Tariffs Service approved the plan for the electricity production and consumption balance for 2011. Under the new framework, the balance of production and consumption will increase 3.3 percent to reach 1.0264 trillion kilowatt-hours.

Three to five percent of all crude oil produced is ultimately unusable. When transported in ships or stored in tanks, sludge settles to the bottom of the vessels and containers. It cannot be drained from the tanks and must be removed and hauled away at considerable expense.

Companies from outside of Russia will participate in the Yamal liquefied natural gas project, according to Yevgeny Kot, director for LNG project development for NOVATEK. Russian companies will have a 51-percent stake in the venture.

Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin expressed his support for BP chief Robert Dudley during his trip to the Russian capital in early August 2010. Mr. Dudley was on the trip together with the retiring company CEO Tony Hayward.

According to the former National Security Advisor Brent Scowcroft, the new START agreement is critical for arms control. Scowcroft, who served as the National Security Advisor under Presidents Gerald Ford and George H.W. Bush, addressed an audience at the Brookings Institution.

Russia held the presidency of the United Nations Security Council for the month of August 2010. The Russian presidency was just as intense as it was promising to be at the outset.

The Russian government has been requested to phase out the country’s economic stimulus program by officials at the International Monetary Fund. The International Monetary Fund executive board held talks with Russia in the middle of the summer.

Supplementary revenues from taxes and non-tax measures taken by the Russian government will result in over RUR 1 trillion of revenue in 2011 – 2013, according to Ilya Trunin, the head of the Tax and Customs Policy Department of the Finance Ministry.

The revenue of passenger air transportation carriers in Russia stood at USD 10.1 billion in 2009. Compound annual growth was 11.4 percent from 2005 to 2009. The volume of passenger transportation increased at a compound annual growth rate of 6.2 percent from 2005 to 2009.

In recent years, the software industry has been one of the most rapidly-growing IT subsectors in Russia with an annual average growth exceeding 18 percent. The software market reached the size of USD 2.5 billion in 2009.

Russian political analysts believe that a new conflict between Georgia and South Ossetia is impossible. International affairs experts in Russia also believe that the reaction of the West constitutes the acknowledgement of Russia’s position on the situation in the Caucasus.

The head of the European Union on foreign affairs Catherine Ashton, as well as the representatives of the six countries that participated in negotiations with Iran on its nuclear program, conducted talks with the Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council.

The selection of Russia as the host nation for the FIFA 2018 World Cup presents an opportunity for boosting the popularity of soccer in the country and for preparing outstanding teams to compete in the championship.

In early December, the United States and Russia have finalized the fifth round of negotiations, reaching consensus on most disputed issues regarding international adoption, according to a spokesman of the Ministry of Education and Science.

The flyover of Russian anti-submarine planes in an area of the sea where the U.S. Navy and Japan conducted joint military exercises did not violate the rules of international law, according Russia’s Pacific Fleet commanders.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia Mr. Grigory Karasin met with the Foreign Minister of Transdniestria Vladimir Yastrebchak. The officials discussed the possibility of restarting the negotiating process to address the status of the breakaway province.

In an interview with Larry King of CNN, the Prime Minister of Russia Vladimir Putin said that he thinks the U.S. Defense Secretary Gates does not have a truthful picture of the state of democratic advances in Russia.

Russia’s Pharmsynthez is making plans to purchase European pharmaceutical companies. The company was expected to make the announcement as to the first transaction before the end of the year, according to the chairman of Pharmsynthez’s board.

Inter RAO has been engaged in talks with Gazprom Energy Holding for exchanging assets, whereby the company would stand to receive Gazprom’s controlling share in Kalingrad TETS-2, a power and heat plant in the outlying Russian region on the coast of the Baltic Sea.

The pharmaceutical market as a whole saw compound annual growth rates of 14.2 percent in the period of years from 2006 to 2010. The most profitable subsector on the pharmaceutical market was the “therapeutic treatment” category, where revenues stood at USD 4 billion.

China’s power company Yangtze Power will acquire a significant stake of EuroSibEnergo, a subsidiary of En+. Group En+ controls the energy sector companies held by Basic Element, a company of Oleg Deripaska.

The Standard & Poor’s ratings agency assigned a “BB-” long-term corporate credit rating to the X5 Retail Group, which operates the biggest grocery retail chain in Russia. The company was also placed on the agency’s CreditWatch list with negative implications.

On December 2, Wimm-Bill-Dann Foods reached an agreement with PepsiCo for the sale of the Russian company to the American corporation for USD 5.8 billion. Wimm-Bill-Dann Foods is one of the biggest dairy and juice producers in Russia.

Larisa Makhova graduated from the Stroganov Moscow High Art-Industrial School, specializing in design. While still in school, she joined the Jewelry Stones student association and discovered how to work with metals, precious stones, and enamel.

The Severstal-controlled Canadian precious metals producer High River Gold registered a profit of C$ 25.8 (USD 25.5) million for the third quarter of 2010. The company’s net profit in the second quarter of the year was C$ 29.3 million, while its net loss in the third quarter of last year totaled C$ 4.6 million.

Company Vysochaishy, operating under the brand name of GV Gold, experienced a slight decline in its net profit figure in the first nine months of 2010. The company registered a fall in net profits of 0.8 percent on a year-on-year basis to RUR 986.3 million.

Norilsk Nickel increased its revenue from sales figure by 39 percent in the first three quarters under Russian accounting standards. The revenue totaled RUR 214.371 billion, according to the company’s performance statements.

The Russian federal subsurface agency Rosnedra is planning to auction off the rights to explore and mine diamonds in the northwest regions of the Sakha republic, according to the agency’s Yakutsk regional division. The auctions will be conducted on December 28, 2010.

According to Rosstat, the production of diamonds in Russia went up by 3.2 percent on a year-on-year basis in the first three quarters of the year. The Russian State Statistics Service calculated that diamond production decreased by 12.6 percent in October in relation to September.

The Federal Financial Markets Service of Russia revoked the license of the Moscow Diamond Exchange. While the license was initially suspended in December of 2008, it was officially annulled as a result of the Exchange’s serious violations of regulatory provisions.

The revenue from sales of Alrosa under Russian accounting standards increased by a whole 90 percent on a year-on-year basis during the first three quarters. The total figure was RUR 75 463 billion. The cost of production increased by 63 percent to RUR 38.557 billion.

Russian food-processing companies continued to rely on imported meat products, as meat imports (with the exception of poultry products) rose by 1.5 percent in the ten months of the year.

The Customs Union Commission has set import tariffs to 0 for coking coal being exported from Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan. The duty rate was at 5 percent before it was zeroed in early December by the Commission’s decision No. 477.

U.S.-based exporters of poultry to Russia will not fill the quota for chicken meat imports into Russia set for 2010, according to Gennady Onishchenko, who serves as Russia’s public health chief and the head of the country’s consumer rights inspectorate Rospotrebnadzor.

According to Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev, the country will pursue the objective of achieving the status of a major exporter of food products to world markets. The government is ready to establish the necessary economic mechanisms.

The current debt load of Evraz is USD 8 billion, and the outstanding balance is decreasing. The company’s EBITDA figure for 2010 is expected to be USD 2.4 billion. The ratio of net debt to EBITDA will be at 3 at the start of 2010.

According to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Uranium One will not be permitted to export uranium from deposits within the United States after the company comes under the control of Atomredmetzoloto.

The rating agency Fitch left its long-term foreign and local currency issuer default rating for the Russian asset of British Petroleum TNK-BP International at “BBB-”. The short term issuer default rating for TNK-BP was set at “F3”.

The rating agency did not change its “BBB-” long-term corporate credit rating for the oil company, and reaffirmed the “ruAA+” Russia national scale rating that it assigned to Gazprom Neft previously.

Mr. Vadim Zhivov, who is now the director of the Russian uranium-mining company Atomredmetzoloto is expected to receive an appointment as the president of the Canadian company Uranium One. The companies are now finalizing an asset-swap transaction.

Father Frost lives in his wooden palace in the pine forests at Votchina, 15 kilometers away from the town of Veliky Ustyug on the bank of the Sukhona river. His residence includes not only the house of Father Frost, but also comfortable cottages made of wood.

Open Joint Stock Company Bashneft that holds together a number of oil, gas, and energy assets in the Russian republic of Bashkortostan experienced a significant decline in net profits under international financial reporting standards.

The tender for the rights to develop the giant Trebs and Titov fields in the Nenets autonomous district was to be hosted by the federal subsurface agency Rosnedra. The bid that Bashneft put in for the license was RUR 18.476 billion.

The joint venture of GM and AvtoVAZ that has increased its production 50 percent by beginning second shift operations has announced a recall for 1 720 Chevrolet Nivas. The company now produces 200 vehicles per day. The identified defect is a faulty break fuel line.

The Russian State Space Agency Roskosmos has agreed to sign a protocol with NASA in December to carry out joint space exploration programs. The new cooperation initiative was announced by the head of Roskosmos Anatoly Perminov.

The government of Belarus would be prepared to conduct negotiations with American companies if it decides to reject the project plan proposed by Russia. At the same time, it is unclear if plans for cooperation will go forward in the aftermath of Belarusian presidential elections.

Rosatom and officials from the United States Department of Energy have signed an executive agreement to work together in analyzing the methods of converting Russian experimental breeder reactors from highly-enriched uranium reactors to low-enriched uranium reactors.

The government of Russia is evaluating several candidates for acquiring the stake it owns in VTB. The U.S. private equity firm TPG Inc. is among several potential purchasers that want to acquire the government’s shares of VTB.

According to Ambassador Beyrle, it would be the job of the Russian and the U.S. governments to establish the rules of conducting business, explain how they work, but then leave the market participants to their own devices without interfering in their business.

The new framework agreement between Russia and the European Union can be signed as early as in 2011, according to Kremlin officials. Sergei Prikhodko has suggested that it would be fully realistic to talk about completing the draft of the basic E.U.-Russia agreement in 2011.

The foreign trade surplus of Russia increased 30 percent on a year-on-year basis from January to October. The surplus is now USD 136.4 billion, up from USD 105 billion in the first ten months of 2009. Russia’s volume of trade for the first ten months of the year was USD 496.3 billion.

Lukoil’s new model would need to take into account the company’s loss of a strategic investor, namely the U.S.-based ConocoPhillips. The head of Lukoil Mr. Vagit Alekperov said that the company’s management decided to acquire a sizeable percentage of its own shares of stock.

The sales of new passenger vehicles and small commercial cars on the Russian market went up by 28 percent in the first eleven months of the year. The number of cars sold from January until November was 1 706 254. Sales were 189 902 in November.

In January 2010, the Russian government approved the federal target program designed to bring a new technology platform for the nuclear power industry based on fast reactors.

Some commentators say that the papers relating to NATO’s plans to defend Poland and the countries of the Baltic region against Russia’s invasion are going to present negative ramifications for Kremlin’s relationship with the North Atlantic Alliance.

The final document, on which both Russia and the E.U. were able to reach consensus ahead of the Russia-E.U. Summit, contains provisions setting forth the procedure for addressing the remaining issues standing in the way of Russia’s accession to the World Trade Organization.

According to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the slow pace of economic expansion in Russia will stand in the way of critical economic programs that the country’s government is intent on implementing.

On December 22, 2010, the Senate of the United States ratified the New START nuclear armaments reduction treaty between the U.S. and Russia. Commentators hailed the treaty as a major success of President Obama, as the passage of the accord happened in the last days of the congressional lame-duck session.