Police to minimize problems from tight security during Obama visit.

MOSCOW, July 4 (Itar-Tass) -- The Moscow police are taking every
measure to minimize likely inconveniences the city's people and guests may
experience from tight security precautions to be taken during US President
Barack Obama's visit to Moscow, the deputy chief of the Moscow police
force public relations department, Zhanna Ozhimina, said on Friday.

"The city's police will follow special rules on this occasion and take
extra security measures on public transport and at crowded places,"
Ozhimina said. Several thousand police, including operatives, will be
present on the streets. Investigation teams and prompt reaction groups
will be reinforced and extra patrol routes introduced. Everything will be
coordinated with the aim to minimize traffic jams and restrictions. There
will be as few roadblocks as possible," Ozhimina said on the Russian News
Service radio station.
"Maintaining security during the US president's visit to Moscow will
be the job of not only police personnel, but of practically all of Russia'
s law enforcers and special services," she added.
When the interviewer speculated President Obama was unlikely to decide
to take a ride on a subway train, the police spokeswoman replied, "And
what if he does all of a sudden? We are prepared for this."


.Duma adopts law on new rules of registration for Russian NCOs.


MOSCOW, July 4 (Itar-Tass) -- Russia's State Duma on Friday adopted in
the second and third, final reading the presidential bill that
considerably eases the rules of registration and accounting Russian
non-commercial organizations are to follow.
Under the bill the re-registration of NCOs will be notification-based
and the authorities will be allowed to demand far fewer documents at the
moment of registration.
The NCOs will be obliged to place annually the notification of their
further activity in the Internet or submit it to the mass media for
publication. The rules and deadlines for submitting such reports and
notifications shall be established by the authorized federal body of
executive power.
The reasons for which NCOs can be denied registration have been
revised. The founders will now have a chance to introduce amendments to
incorrectly presented applications. The number of inspections of NCOs will
be limited. Just as small businesses, they will be inspected once in three
years.
"I do not rule out that the document may be considered in full during
the spring session," the presidential representative in the lower house of
parliament, Garry Minkh, had told Itar-Tass earlier, adding that some of
the amendments to the current legislation may come into force as of August
1, 2009.
"Ninety percent of Russia's NCOs are tiny, with an annual turnover of
no more than three million rubles, and a staff of less than a dozen. In
the meantime, their accounting is quite burdensome and this by no means
facilitates their activity. This is the reason for making their accounting
simpler," President Medvedev said at a meeting with the chief of the
presidential council for the promotion of civil society institutions and
human rights Ella Pamfilova and Public Chamber members.
"The way I see it, these are rather serious amendments to the
legislation," the head of state said. "It would be expedient for the
working group to go ahead with upgrading legislation in this sphere and in
promoting civil society.'
"It is necessary to upgrade legislation and monitor its
implementation. That should be the mission of the prosecutors' offices and
the representatives of public organizations," he believes.
After the meeting with the president Pamfilova said she hoped that the
law would go fully operational next year. She said a second package of
amendments to the law on the NCOs was being drafted, those concerning
their economic activity, and a third package would be presented at the
beginning of 2010.
Russia's NCO legislation was fundamentally revised in 2006. As a
matter of fact, the package of new laws has regulated all aspects of
activity by the NCOs - both Russian and foreign - in the country's
territory. Very strict rules were established of their registration and
financial accounting with the aim to expose foreign sources of financing.
Those rules have repeatedly drawn strong criticism from foreign public and
political structures, including the PACE.


.Turkish Energy Ministry studies Russia's NPP construction bid.


ANKARA, July 4 (Itar-Tass) -- Turkey's Energy and Natural Resources
Ministry is studying Russia's proposal for the construction of what may
become the country's first-ever nuclear power plant.
"Russia is interested to know when a decision on the bidding contest's
winner will be made, of course," Energy and Natural Resources Minister,
Taner Yildiz, told a news conference in Ankara on Friday upon return from
Moscow where he was on a visit. "For Turkey this will be the first nuclear
power plant project, and we wish this first attempt to lay a reliable
basis from the standpoint of tariffs, infrastructures and legal aspects."
A consortium of Russian companies ZAO Atomstroiexport and OAO Inter
RAO UES and Turkish firm Park Teknik proved the sole bidder. It was
expected that their proposal will be submitted to the Council of Ministers
for consideration back last April, its analysis has taken far more time.
Yildiz said that each agency concerned was working within the range of
its competences.
"The Energy Ministry is in the process of studying the Russian
proposal and we shall be able to hand over our report to the Council of
Ministers after a while," he said.
If the government agrees with the project's value and all proposals
regarding a future price of one kilowatt-hour of electricity to be
produced, Turkey's first nuclear power plant may go operational in Mersin,
on the Mediterranean, by 2012. The Russian general contractor suggests
building four reactors with a total capacity of four gigawatts on the
basis of the NPP-2006 project. The contract's value is estimated at 7-8
billion dollars.