TEN Index

Feb. 1-15, 1996, Vol. 2, No. 3 (9) 

Transboundary News

MOSCOW-RIGA-TALLINN-VILNIUS -- BALTIC STATE REPRESENTATIVES VOTED AGAINST OR ABSTAINED in the final vote for the successful entry of Russia into the Council of Europe. All three Estonian delegates and two Latvian delegates were against entry, and one Latvian and all three Lithuanian delegates abstained. At the same time, the Baltic state representatives were effective in appending several points to the conditions of Russia's entry into the Council, including a required settlement of territorial disagreements and the return of former Lithuanian property in Paris and Rome to the Lithuanian state. The Baltic states' voting is reported to have been intended to demonstrate the representatives' skepticism and warning to the Council that Russia will not be able to fulfill its conditions of entry. (Chas Pik, 7 Feb.)

HELSINKI-MOSCOW -- AN EXTENSION OF THE EUROPEAN UNION'S TACIS PROGRAM for aid to the former Soviet Union nations could play a significant role in improving economic cooperation between Finland and Russia. The program will be extended another two years from its original two year period. Finland's geographic position as the only European Union nation sharing a border with the former Soviet Union means that Finland will especially benefit from the TACIS program renewal. It is estimated that Finland will gain one billion Finnish marks from the program in the next two years. (SPb Vedomosti, 1 Feb.)

RIGA-MOSCOW -- A REFERENDUM IS TO BE HELD ON LATVIAN CITIZENSHIP RULES and on a proposed bill which could block 740,000 "former Soviet citizens" now living in Latvia without official citizenship from receiving Latvian citizenship. The bill contains sharp restrictions on the the naturalization process. Latvian nationalists have mounted a campaign to collect signatures for the bill. It is generally viewed that the European Union would not approve Latvia's entry into the European Union with such citizenship and naturalization legislation. (SPb Vedomosti, 3 Feb.)

HELSINKI-MOSCOW -- NEGOTIATIONS OF THE FINNISH-RUSSIAN COMMISSION ON ECONOMIC COOPERATION have resulted in a guarantee from the Russian side that it will not raise import tariffs in the near future. Those tariffs in place today are considered temporary and only necessary during the present transition period, according to a Russian representative for the commission. The average import tariff imposed by Russia today on food and goods is 15 percent whereas the world average is seven percent. (SPb Vedomosti, 9 Feb.)

LAKE CHUDSKOE/PEIPSI - BORDER GUARD REPRESENTATIVES MET from both Estonian and Russian sides to discuss problems concerning violations of the border by ice fishermen. Russian border guards noted that they will not allow Estonian fishermen to catch fish on the Russian side of the lake and their catches will be confiscated. There have been no violations this year, and Estonian representative Urmas Tensing noted that Estonian fishermen have been more disciplined this year than in the past. Russian fishermen traditionally seldom fish during the winter and then only close to the Russian shore. Estonian and Russian border guard officials have agreed that in future they will contact the other side in the event of future violations. (Postimees, 14 Feb.)

FINLAND-LENINGRAD OBLAST -- THE FINNISH CUSTOMS HAS ELIMINATED ITS RECENTLY LEVIED TAXES on Russian trucks and automobiles traveling in Finland. The tax was introduced on January 1 as a response to the the introduction of a series of taxes by Leningrad Oblast over the course of last year for the use of Russian road by vehicles registered in Finland. Russian customs recently stopped collecting those taxes. (SPb Vedomosti, 15 Feb.)

RIGA-TALLINN-VILNIUS - MINISTERS OF TRANSPORTATION FROM THE BALTIC STATES MET to discuss the possibilities for greater cooperation concerning national transportation routes. The main topics of the meeting focused on the development of an international transportation corridor "Via Baltica". They also discussed the need for a single visa strategy for transit passengers and standardization of tariffs for transportation in the Baltic states. (Estoniia, 13 Feb.)

TALLINN-MOSCOW - THE ESTONIAN MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND RUSSIAN AMBASSADOR to Estonia exchanged signed ratification documents on February 2 for the withdrawal of Russian military forces from Estonia. They also signed an agreement for compensation of Russian retired military personnel living in Estonia today. Estonian President Lennart Meri and foreign diplomats in Tallinn all attended the presentation at the Estonian president's estate. (Estoniia, 3 Feb.)

Environmental News

MURMANSK-ST PETERSBURG-OSLO -- A RUSSIAN MEMBER OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL GROUP BELLONA has been arrested by Russian security forces and charged with spying on the Northern fleet. Alexander Nikitin was collecting material for a book on Russian environment problems and radioactive wastes to be published at the end of February by Bellona. Bellona maintains that all of the information which Mr. Nikitin obtained is widely available in the Russian press. He previously worked as an atomic specialist for the Northern Fleet. His foreign passport has been revoked. (Chas Pik, 15 Feb.)

ST PETERSBURG -- THE POSSIBILITY OF BRINGING CITY DRINKING WATER directly from Lake Ladoga, in addition to the Neva River, was discussed at a round table discussion at the American-Russian Press Center. Experts believe that the water from Lake Ladoga is of high enough quality that a minimum of chlorination would be necessary to make the water safe for drinking. A program for the development of such a project has been in operation since 1992. Critics point out that water from Lake Ladoga is too "soft" and therefore unsuitable. Lenkomekologia and the city Direction on the Environment both support the project. (SPb Vedomosti, 2 Feb.)

KIRISHI -- A NEW DETERGENT FACTORY has been completed and its production will be the first in Russia to be ecologically friendly, according to its producers. The factory is described as having been constructed with the use American technology in its production process. Kirishi's oil refinery center will facilitate the procurement of oil used in the detergent production process. The oil firm Kirishinefteorgsintez financed the new factory. The company plans to sell the majority amount of its production in the St. Petersburg area. (SPb Vedomosti, 15 Feb.)

TAMPERE, FINLAND -- THE PROGRAM "RENOVATION THROUGH COOPERATION" has been launched for finding a solution to the problem of water supplies in whole of the Northwest Region of Russia. V. Iakovlev, the First Deputy Mayor of St. Petersburg, D. Hanson, General Director of the British Council, and A. Hiunnenen, Deputy Secretary of the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, met recently in Tampere to discuss development of the program. The program is being financed the British Know-How Fund. The three representatives have expressed an interest in identifying commercial investors for the project. (Vechernii Peterburg, 12 Feb.)

ST PETERSBURG -- A NEW SYSTEM OF PAYMENT FOR SEWAGE WASTE IS BEING INTRODUCED by the city water supplier Vodokanal for industrial enterprises. In the past, industrial enterprises have had to pay higher tariffs for their sewage which represented almost half of all city sewage by volume. Because production and corresponding sewage volumes have fallen drastically in the last five years, sewage from those enterprises today represents only 12 percent of all waste. The tariffs are now too expensive for most enterprises, according to Vodokanal officials. The higher tariffs will be eliminated on March 1. (Nevskoe Vremiia, 14 Feb.)

CHUDSKOE/PEIPSI AND PSKOV LAKES -- A CLEANUP VESSEL HAS BEEN ADDED TO THE RUSSIAN MILITARY FLEET operating in the border area of the lake. It is equipped with special equipment to allow it to collect oil and other fuel spills from the surface of the lakes, while also cleaning water of other substances. The vessel will also be used in the case of spills on the Pskov and Great Rivers. (Novosti Pskova, 30 Jan.)

PSKOV -- A DECREE "ON THE CLEANING OF POLLUTED CITY LAND" has been approved by the city administration. According to the decree, land belonging to all forms of legal entities will be affected by the decree. The decree specifies criteria for maintaining "quality of the land" and for a "system of control on that land," according to a city administration official. (Novosti Pskova, Feb. 6)

Conferences, Events, and Meetings

ST. PETERSBURG -- A MEETING BETWEEN CITY ASSEMBLY DEPUTIES AND FINNISH MINISTER OF THE ENVIRONMENT Pekka Haavisto included a review of progress on a series of Finnish-Russian environmental projects. One of the largest projects is the building of a waste treatment plant in Krasnyi Bor. The minister announced that he would help in persuading authorities in Moscow that national funds must aid this project. Problems with the planned construction of a highway between Turku and Petersburg and the preservation of forest in the Finnish-Russian border zone were also discussed. (Smena, 15 Feb.)

PSKOV -- THE SENIOR COMMITTEE OF THE COUNCIL OF STATES OF THE BALTIC SEA met on January 30-31 in order to discuss the project the "Baltic Energy Circle". The implementation of the project would give the possibility for the creation of a stabilized electric energy market in the region and would solve current legal problems concerning regional energy problems. The Council aims to encourage and support cooperation among nations of the region, focusing on such directions as the building of democratic institutions, economic and technical help, humanitarian questions and health, and environmental and energy issues. (Pskovskaia Pravda, 2 Feb.)

ST PETERSBURG -- THE FIFTH CONFERENCE OF THE CONSULTATIVE COMMITTEE OF ACOPS, an international organization devoted to the preservation of the Arctic Sea, brought together 150 experts on the Arctic Sea, many from the seven other members of the Committee in addition to Russia: Canada, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, and the United States. The conference recommended a series of 60 points addressed to government heads of their respective countries for improvements in the environmental protection of the Arctic. The headquarters of the non-governmental organization is located in London. (Murmanskii Vestnik, 2 Feb.)

ST PETERSBURG -- THE ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL TOURIST FESTIVAL "INTOURFEST-96" was held recently and included participants from a large number of foreign countries in addition to representatives from the near abroad. Seminars, presentations, and business meetings were part of the festival's program. It was noted that while the growth of Russian tourists traveling abroad has continued steadily to grow, the number of tourists visiting Russia has declined in recent years. (Vechernii Peterburg, 2 Feb.)

MURMANSK -- A TRAINING SESSION FOR FINNISH AND RUSSIAN UNEMPLOYED MANAGERS provided instruction on establishing business contacts in the transboundary region. The training session was the result of an agreement between the Committee on Labor of Murmansk Oblast and Lappland Direction of Labor Resources. The session was held simultaneously in Finnish and Russian languages. It was the first training session of its kind in the region, according to Murmansk Oblast representatives. (Murmanskii Vestnik, 2 Feb.)

New Facts and Statistics

NORTHWEST REGION, RUSSIA -- A MINIMUM OF 400 TONS OF NON-FERROUS METALS WERE SMUGGLED out of Russia through the Northwest Region last year, according to estimates by Russian customs officials. The principal suppliers of the metal were from St. Petersburg and Leningrad Oblast. The metals is usually smuggled out of the country with the use of false documentation. (Nevskoe Vremiia, 15 Feb.)

ST. PETERSBURG -- TWO THOUSAND TONS OF OLD ARTILLERY ROUNDS lie in military warehouses outside of the city. The rounds have already past their expiration dates by several years. (Chas Pik, 9 Feb.)

IVANGOROD-NARVA - OPTICAL CABLE NOW REACHES between TALLINN and Ivangorod and will be extended further to St. Petersburg. Only two of the 12 strands of the fiber cable will be used initially, allowing 30,000 simultaneous telephone conversations. (Estoniia, 31 Jan.)

TALLINN - THE IMMIGRATION QUOTA FOR ESTONIA has been set to a maximum of 1,000 persons for 1996.

TEN Index