The amendments are the mandatory condition to set in motion privatization of the state-run stake in Svyazinvest previously blocked by enforcement bodies.
Photo: Grigoriy Sobchenko
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Enforcement Bodies to Have Continuous Communication
Russia’s State Duma passed in the first reading yesterday the amendments to the Act on Communication, which would ensure continuous service of enforcement bodies after privatization of Svyazinvest, one of the biggest telecom holdings in the world. Nevertheless, the market players doubt the cabinet will sell the state-run stake in it before presidential elections of 2008.
The essence of amendments shaped by deputies of United Russia faction is to ensure continuous service for special users – Russia’s Defense Ministry, Federal Security Service, Internal Ministry, Emergency Ministry, Federal Guards Service and Justice Ministry, which operate over 600,000 telephone numbers on aggregate.
The amendments are a mandatory condition to set in motion privatization of the state-run stake in Svyazinvest previously blocked by enforcement bodies. The government’s enterprises owed 1.4 billion rubles to firms of this telecom holding at close of the first half-year. Of that amount, the enforcement arrears accounted for around 70 percent.
Past year, Svyazinvest failed to reach the list of strategic enterprises to be made private. The reason was simple – enforcement bodies feared the arrears would prompt Svyazinvest to cut them off from time to time after privatization.
No doubt, the enforcement bodies will get what they want sooner or later. The State Duma will probably pass the amendments in the second and third reading already tomorrow, i.e. on the last day before summer vacation. Or it may lack the time to do it. Then, the consideration will be shelved till the fall. As Svyazinvest needs half a year for pre-auction arrangements, the government will be hardly able to put up the stake for sale earlier than in the next year.
Recalling the scandal of 1997, which accompanied the sale of 25 percent in Svyazinvest, the market players doubt the holding would be made private before presidential elections of 2008.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of July 06, 2006
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