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ECONOMICS

IN PICTURES

Central Bank steered Russia out of recession

ROYAL THAI EMBASSY, MOSCOW

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Moscow’s financial world has been shaken by a recession since December, 2014.

With declining oil prices, economic sanctions and the ruble almost halving in value, many believed that this year Russia would see an economic crisis like it did in 1998, when banks closed, inflation skyrocketted and many people’s life savings became worthless. But those fears weren’t realised. The economy took a battering and real incomes suffered, but as the year draws

to a close, growth is slowly picking up, bring the recession to an end. “Quarterly evaluations show that the recession, as it is defined, is over,” Alexei Ulyukayev, Russia’s Minister of Economic Development, announced at a meeting with European diplomats in Moscow last month. And foreign analysts agree. The credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P)

reported 0.5 per cent growth in the third quarter after almost four quarters of decline, and predicted that growth would continue. But Russian analysts remain cautious, warning that the crisis is not over yet and that there’s a long road ahead for the economy to get back to where it was in the late 2000s. Currency hardships began in December 2014, the second“Black Tuesday”

in the country’s history, when the rouble fell 41 per cent against the dollar and 34 per cent against the euro. The Central Bank of Russia, the financial regulator, reacted quickly – and at the time controversially – by raising its key interest rate to 17 percent from 10.5 per cent, eliciting outrage from politicians and public figures. The regulator “shot dead the Russian economy, to spare its suffering”,oil giant Rosneft spokesman Mikhail Leontyev said at the time. Within a couple of months, currency rates had stabilised, though with oil prices having fallen from around £50 a barrel in November 2014 to less than £30 in August 2015, euro and dollar exchange rates stubbornly remained almost twice those of mid2014. The euro was worth 70 rubles compared with 46 and the dollar more than 60 rubles instead of 35. Yet it didn’t get worse, thanks to the Central Bank’s policy, according to Alexander Abramov, an investment expert at Moscow’s Higher School of Economics. “The bank acted vigorously, and the fact that we have a relatively stable currency rate we can credit to them,” he said.

TRADE

St. Petersburg to be on Silk Road now the most active investors in the St. Petersburg market. They have realised the major investment projects involved in construction of the Baltic Pearl Multifunctional Complex and

are starting the construction of the Druzhba (Friendship) Exhibition Centre. Investments in each of these projects total around 34 billion rubles ($506.8 million). Chinese investors are also

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The concept of the Silk Road Economic Belt proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping envisions one branch of the new trade artery leading from China through Central Asia to Russia, and on to Europe via the Baltic Sea. In a zone like this, St. Petersburg would be the most promising and vital point on the route, representatives of the city government said. Foundations for the successful implementation of this project are ensured, first of all, by the favourable geographic location of the city, well-developed infrastructure, and the opportunities offered by this region for localisation of foreign manufacturing plants. Chinese companies are

St. Petersburg to be a key city in Silk Road Project.

interested in participating in other important projects, like the construction of light rail streetcar lines, the creation of a special economic zone at Pulkovo Airport and the construction of a recreational theme park, among others. City hall representatives explained that the St. Petersburg railway junction is the main sorting centre, through which foreign freight traffic travels on its way to Finland, the Baltic States and the ports of the Baltic Sea. Several dozen ports operate in the city, which belong to the Big Port of St Petersburg Company. Today, this company handles containers, cars, machinery, metal pipes, extra-heavy and other major cargo.

On December 11, 2015, the Embassy of Thailand in Moscow held the Bike for Dad event to celebrate His Majesty the King’s 88th birthday.

IN BRIEF Thailand best for beaches Thailand was named the Best Beach Destination 2015 by National Geographic Traveller Russia. The kingdom was also voted the Best Beach Resort via an online poll from 240,000 readers, according to the paper. From January to October, 649,188 visitors from Russia visited Thailand.

ALYONA REPKINA

Russian pianist ﬁnishes third

Defence in Syria

The Thai International Pianist Competition was held November 15-21. Russia’s Alexandra Checkmak came third in the competition, and was awarded a cash prize of Bt70,000. The 23-year old pianist is a graduate of the Rimsky-Korsakov St. Petersburg State Conservatory’s high school for gifted children. She is currently in her last year of undergraduate studies at the Mozarteum University of Salzburg.

Russia’s S-400 Triumph has been stationed at the Russian airbase in Latakia, Syria. The defence system functions at a distance of 400 kilometres, at an altitude to 98,000 feet. How is Russia keeping its planes safe in the Syrian skies? Scan QR or use link rbth.com/325369

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Geopolitics Moscow’s focus on Asia has yielded stronger ties with some ASEAN nations and China

Asia pivot has mixed results down in both countries. The countries continued to step up defence ties in 2015. In November, China agreed to buy 24 Sukhoi Su-35 aircraft from Russia for $2 billion. Beijing became the first foreign buyer of these multipurpose fighter jets.

Russia’s strategic and economic push towards asia has achieved mixed results this year, but its ties with China, in particular, are now stronger. AJAY KAMALAKARAN RBTH

Ties with Tokyo and Canberra cool

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“When it comes to Asia, the biggest strategic economic gains came to Russia from the Asean region,” says Agosh Suharpanto, a foreign affairs analyst and former Indonesian diplomat, based in Jakarta. “There was a free-trade pact signed between the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and Vietnam, and talks are on for a similar agreement with Thailand and Singapore as well.” Suharpanto adds that Russia may be looking at a wider free-trade pact betwe e n t h e E A E U a n d ASEAN but that may not come to fruition as many ASEAN countries are joining the US-backed TransPacific Partnership (TPP). Russia has also made a concerted effort to reach out to ASEAN countries politically. In November, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev became the first senior Russian leader to visit Cambodia in nearly 30 years. The two countries signed a host of agreements, including a memorandum of understanding to cooperate in the peaceful use of nuclear energy. And in April 2015, Medvedev visited Thailand and Vietnam as well. Although Russia’s relationship with Malaysia was strained by Moscow’s refusal to allow a United Nations Security Council probe into the July 2014 shooting down of Malaysia Airlines flight MH-17, Mos-

Analysts say Russia will push ahead with its pivot to asia in 2016, in recognition of the region’s economic importance.

cow and Putrajaya set up a Joint Commission for Economic, Scientific, Technical and Cultural Cooperation. “It’s understood that Russia-Malaysia ties will continue to develop despite there not being common ground on MH-17,” Shuarpanto says.

Russia’s ties with Japan and Australia, two of the biggest US allies in the AsiaPacific region continued to be strained. Both countries have extended sanctions against Russia for its alleged support of separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine. Toeing Washington’s line, Canberra continues to blame Moscow for the shooting down of MH-17. Although since Malcolm Turnbull came to power, the world hasn’t seen the strident anti-Russian rhetoric that gained international attention when Tony Abbott was Australia’s prime minister. The bone of contention between Russia and Japan remains the Southern Kuril Island territorial dispute. The two countries have technically remained in a state of conflict over these Russian territories since the end of World War II. Putin’s visit to Japan this year was postponed over the lack of progress in this conflict. “The problem is that Japan and Russia have different interpretations of compromise on the dispute,”saysYu Tanaka, a historian based in Sapporo, Japan. “No government in Japan would be able to survive the backlash if it accepted just two of the four islands that have been claimed by Tokyo.”

ASEAN countries, which have maritime territorial disputes with China and are wary of Chinese economic domination, would be cautious about such a partnership.

Russian PresidentVladimir Putin has called for a wider economic partnership between the EAEU, ASEAN and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). “Together, our states make up nearly a third of the global economy, in terms of purchasing power parity, Putin said during his annual state of the nation address on December 3.“Such a partnership could initia-

lly focus on protecting investments, streamlining procedures for the crossborder movement of goods, joint development of technical standards for next-generation technology products, and the mutual provision of access to markets for both services and capital.” Analysts say there is potential for such a partnership but that there would be a lot of competing interests. “The elephant in the room is the United States,” says Doris Tung, a political analyst based in Hong Kong.“Any partnership between these three groupings would be seen as an economic threat to the US, as well as to Washington’s own Asian initiatives.” Tung adds that many

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Wider asian partnership

Sino-russian ties build Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping met four times in 2015, a year that witnessed a flurry of political and defence engagement between the countries. “China appreciates the fact that Russia has largely stayed neutral in the South China Sea maritime disputes,” Tung says. “The focus of the China-Russia relationship has been on common strategies at multilateral forums such as BRICS [Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa], Apec [Asia

Pacific Economic Cooperation], and the G20.” Moscow and Beijing are both eager to push for an alternate economic world order. The New Development Bank, which was started by the BRICS members, commenced operations this year, along with the Chinainitiated Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). Russia and China agreed to expand the SCO to include India and Pakistan as full members, a move which required compromise from both countries, given Moscow’s close ties to Delhi, and Beijing’s strategic relationship with Islamabad. Although bilateral trade between Russia and China fell by a third this year, this was more a reflection of the economic slow-

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Travel After the airliner downing in Egypt and the fracas with Turkey, Russian tourists will seek safer travel options

Russian tourists may swap Turkey for Asia Vietnam, China, Sri Lanka and Thailand may replace Egypt and Turkey as the main international tourist destinations for Russians. MARINA KARPOVA RBTH

A month ahead of the New Year break, Russians had to scratch Turkey and Egypt off their travel destinations. These were two of the most popular destinations for Russians last year. In 2014, 42 per cent of Russian outbound tourists visited either country, with 4 million visiting Turkey and 2.2 million visiting Egypt, according to Russia’s Federal Agency for Tourism. After the October 31 bombing of an aircraft containing Russian tourists over the Sinai Peninsula, Russia suspended flights to Egypt and evacuated all Russian tourists from the country. And then, when Turkey downed the Rus-

sian Su-24 bomber carrying out a combat mission in Syria on November 24, Moscow imposed a ban on charter flights to Turkey, abolished the visa-free regime and recommended that tourists not travel to that country The closing of two highly popular destinations has forced travel companies to urgently look for a replacement and some of the main candidates are in Southeast Asia. According to industry specialists surveyed by RBTH, Asian beaches are competitive when it comes to price and service, but it takes longer to fly to them from the European part of Russia, and they are not well known to Russian tourists. An air ticket from Moscow to Vietnam or southern China costs almost three times as much as a ticket from the Russian

Asian beaches are now looking more attractive to Russian tourists.

capital to Turkey or Egypt. “The main expense for travel to Asia is the airplane tickets,”Vladimir Kaganer, chief executive of Tez Tour, one of the largest Russian tour operators, told RBTH.“Flights from Moscow to Southeast Asian countries are expensive and take a long time, not less than eight hours.” Turkey and Egypt could be replaced by “Vietnam, Thailand, China and Sri

Lanka, since these countries have the necessary tourist infrastructure in place,” Kaganer said. “Hainan may be a quality alternative to Egypt, because it also provides beach recreation in the winter season,” said Svetlana Pyatikhatka, executive director of the World without Borders Tourist Association. “As well, in contrast to Egypt and Turkey, Hainan has no common borders

with the regions that pose a terrorist threat.”

Cost and distance considerations Tour operators realise that the Asian resorts will not be able to fully replace Turkey and Egypt because of their remoteness and the high cost of flights. A flight from Moscow to China or Vietnam takes eight hours instead of four and costs nearly three times as much.

However, in contrast with Moscow and the western regions of Russia, the country’s eastern regions – the Urals, Siberia and the Far East – are equidistant from Europe and Asia, so distance is not such an issue. “For the residents of the Trans-Urals and the Far East, a tour to Vietnam or, for example, to the Chinese island of Hainan can even be cheaper than Egypt,” a representative of the Travel.rambler.ru online service told RBTH. Another factor stopping Russians going to Asia is their lack of awareness about the resorts there. Only 450,000 of the 1.12 million people who visited China in the first nine months of 2015 were tourists, said Pyatikhatka. “Egypt and Turkey were the leaders in the tourism segment of the advertising market. Billboards in major cities, commercials on television, articles in magazines and newspapers told Russians about the beauty of the beaches and the variety of leisure options in these countries,”Pyatikhatka added. In 2012, Turkey’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism spent $5 million in the Russian Federation just for advertisements, according to Pyatikhatka.

Auto industry Demand for European cars in Russia has fallen dramatically An analytical publication that focuses exclusively on the complex challenges and opportunities shaping the US-Russia relationship

Korean cars now dominate market

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Domestic production and cost competitiveness have helped South Korean automobile manufacturers become the leaders in Russia’s new car market. In the first nine months of 2015, South Korean manufacturers had a 23.2-per-cent share in the Russian market, up from 19 per cent in 2014. Hyundai Solaris was the most popular foreign brand in Russia, with 85,500 cars being sold in the country in this period. Japanese brands were in second place, with a

22.5-per-cent market share, while Russian cars had a 19.4-per-cent market share. As well, demand for European cars fell by almost by 40 per cent. A year ago, German cars had a 14.2-per-cent market share, which has now fallen to 13.5 per cent.

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This report examines the changes happening in Russia ever since the issue of global warming was introduced on the global agenda. For Russia, which is preoccupied with its foreign policy and economic problems, climate change issues are coming to the forefront, as warming in the country occurs at a considerably higher rate than globally on average.

Though demand for new cars in Russia has fallen by nearly 30 per cent, domestic production has helped Asian automakers increase market share.

Fall in new car sales According to the Avtostat analytical agency, 1.1 million new cars were sold in the Russian Federation in the first nine months of 2015, which is a third less than in the same period a year ago. Car manufacturers that “were not able to launch local production before the crisis chose to minimise their presence in Russia,” said Nikolai Stepanov, regional director of the Russian AutoMotoClub (RAMC).

He cited the example of Honda, which, he said,“still imports 100 per cent of its cars to Russia,” and “whose sales dropped to a few dozen cars a month.”

Price competitiveness In 2015, the average price of the Korean brands increased by 10 per cent from a year ago, but European and Rus-

sian manufacturers increased their prices even more. Sergei Baranov, editor-inchief at AutoBusinessReview magazine, said that the price of Renault Logans had increased by 25 per cent, while sales of Skoda Rapids and Ladas had grown by 18 and 17 per cent, respectively. “Two models alone, the Hyundai Solaris and the Kia Rio, have made up 14 per cent of all cars sold in 2015,” Baranov said. He added that the two companies, which are operating at a loss, may increase their prices if the ruble strengthens. Pavel Martynyuk, an analyst at the National Rating Agency believes that in 2016, the South Korean manufacturers will maintain a market share of 21 to 23 per cent.

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Investments Russian projects offer good returns midst falling oil prices

Currencies Trade settlement option

Why Arab funds are investing in Russia

Indonesia and Russia may do away with dollar Russia has made several attempts to switch to national currency trade with partners like China, India, Indonesia, and Thailand. LEONID HOMERIKI

The sovereign investment fund of Kuwait will inject $500 million into projects in Russia, and analysts say this is part of a broader trend. RBTH

The Kuwait Investment Authority will invest an additional $500 million in the Russian economy. In November, it signed an agreement to that effect with the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), a special investment fund set up by the Russian government in 2011 to attract foreign investment into the fast-growing sectors of the Russian economy. Thus, the amount of Kuwaiti investment into Russian projects will double. The Kuwaiti fund had already invested $500 million in Russia in 2012. RDIF also works together with the Mubadala fund from the UAE, the Mumtalakat fund from Bahrain, Qatar Holding, and the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Dund.

Growing interest in Russia Arab investors have largely developed an interest in Russian assets due to falling oil prices. “Increasingly, their national wealth funds are acting as saviours of their

Promising sectors For religious reasons, Arab funds cannot invest in certain sectors, such as banking or institutions that han-

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economies,” said Vladimir Rozhankovsky, head of research at the Okey Broker investment company. He added that classic investment instruments, like Western stock exchanges, no longer ensure high yields. The nearly 50-per-cent depreciation of the ruble in the second half of 2014 has considerably increased the rate of return offered by industrial projects in Russia, added Pavel Salas, managing director of еТоrо. According to him, over the course of five to seven years, return on investments in Russia may touch 120-130 per cent. Arab funds also look at strategic interests when investing in Russia. “In recent years, Arab funds have been investing mainly in infrastructure projects and sectors that are related to the processing and transportation of oil,” said Denis Belyaev, partner with DS Law. According to him, Arab investors are aware of price forecasts for Russian energy products and then adjust the prices of their oil and gas.

Infrastructure projects are attracting Arab investors.

NUMBERS

500

300

million USD

per cent

million USD

Amount Kuwaiti fund will invest in Russian economy.

The rate of return after the depreciation of ruble.

Investment from a joint Russia-UAE fund.

dle debt, said Anton Tabakh, director of regional ratings at the Rusrating rating agency. They mainly invest in transport infrastructure, construction, real estate and retail, he said. “Investment in infrastructure may prove extremely lucrative thanks to China’s Silk Road Initiative, a large part of which will be running through Russian territory,”said eToro’s Pavel Salas. Other popular areas for investment are high-tech projects and commercial real estate, since the return on investment in these areas is higher in Russia than in Europe, said Daniil Karik-

ov, managing partner of the Karikov Group. He added that distribution costs are also lower in Russia. Arab funds started investing in Russia six years ago. In 2010, UAE port operator Gulftainer set up a $500-million fund for investment in infrastructure projects in partnership with the Rostec state corporation. As a result, Gulftainer became a co-owner of a terminal at the Ust-Luga port. Rostec also partnered with the UAE’s Damac development holding to launch a $300-million fund for investment in real estate projects.

In April 2015, Indonesia said it was ready to switch to trade settlements with Russia in the ruble and rupiah. Supporting a Russian proposal to use national currencies for trade, Sofyan Djalil, Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister of Economic Affairs said Jakarta would like to reduce its dependence on the US dollar. The Russian and Indonesian national currencies have been constantly losing value vis-à-vis the US dollar over the last 12 months. Bilateral trade between Russia and Indonesia, which amounted to $7 billion in 2014, is not dependent on natural resources.

US dollar under threat If Russia and Indonesia agree to settle their transactions in national currencies, the move may affect Indonesia’s relations with the US, especially since Jakarta declared its will to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership. “The US is categorically opposed to the use of national currencies since it sees this as a threat to the use of the dollar in the world economy,” said Vladimir Burlachkov, a professor at the Plekhanov Russian University of Economics. However, Indone-

sia is keen to strengthen trade and economic relations with Moscow, he added.

Economics or politics? According to еТоrо managing director, Pavel Salas, the joint initiative between Russia and Indonesia has more to do with politics than economics, but it may translate into a real economic advantage. If Russia manages to find customers in Indonesia for its machinery and weapons, secure contracts for the construction of infrastructure facilities, and grant ruble loans for such projects, then the switch to national currencies would be politically and economically expedient, said Maxim Vasin, head of the methodology department at the National Rating Agency. “An effective system of bank settlements is necessary: direct exchange of the ruble to the rupiah requires additional infrastructure,” he said. The countries could initiate the process by using national currencies for state contracts and intergovernmental agreements, he said. A growing number of countries are looking to substitute the dollar with national currencies for international trade settlements said Olga Meshcheryakova, director of the Peramo management company. “Russia already has relevant experience in trade with India and China, and is now discussing this issue with Vietnam and Thailand,” she adds.

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Employment A company specialising in job-finding and recruitment helps Thai companies and job-seekers alike

Career startup platform a success Jobnisit, co-founded by the son of a Russian diplomat in Thailand, provides career-counselling services to young professionals. IRINA VINOKUROVA SPECIAL TO RBTH

PRESS PHOTO

In Thailand’s booming economy, companies are finding it increasingly difficult to retain talented employees. At the same time, fresh graduates face challenges entering the job market. “The situation critically reduces the productivity of the economy as a whole,” says Alexander Kerbo, a 26 year old, who co-founded Jobnisit, a startup that provides career-counselling services for students and young professionals. Kerbo is the son of a Russian diplomat who spent his formative years in Vientiane, Laos. A product of the Russian Embassy school, he was raised on Soviet values of international solidarity. Ever since he was a young boy, Kerbo has been passionate about Russia’s ties with Southeast Asian coun-

The career-counselling company made it to the Echelon’s Top 100 Startups in Asia list.

tries. He enrolled for the fulltime Bachelor of Arts in Economics program at the Chulalongkorn University, and later became the first Russian graduate of the university. His academic achievements included an MBA from Sasin University, and receiving his graduate and postgraduate degrees personally from Her Royal

Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn. During his student days, Kerbo noticed there was no dedicated platform in Thailand for career counselling and that all internship placements were done mainly by word of mouth. There were also no campus recruitments, and the students had to do all the ground-

work themselves when looking for a job. It was then that Kerbo and his university classmate Jens Pold founded Jobnisit. The startup, which made it to the Echelon’s Top 100 Startups in Asia list, will now be based in new offices in Bangkok’s Thonglor Soi 10 to accommodate a growing team.

Jobnisit is working together with forward-looking organisations in Thailand, including multinationals, industry leaders as well as fastgrowing startups. The Jobnisit team has always been focused on helping young people find relevant jobs. This is at the core of their Nisitmatch job suggestion algorithm. “The feature intends to make the life of users easier, as there is no longer a need to scroll through endless unrelated jobs in which they have no interest in,” Kerbo says. “In Thailand, 40 per cent of the annually recruited work force comprises of fresh graduates and young professionals between the ages of 18 and 30,” says cofounder Pold. “Jobnisit is the only career development platform that targets this segment.” Within only a year, the company has grown rapidly and has an increasingly large volume of daily users. Companies recruiting through the platform have

been able to reach more qualified candidates than via traditional channels. “Jobnisit is the definite website for recruiting young professionals”a spokesperson for the Human Resources Department of Samsung Electronics, Thailand, said. Jobnisit’s company pages resemble a Facebook profile page, with interactive content and real insights into workplace and company cultures. Research done by the company shows that 79 per cent of young professionals want to learn more about potential employers before applying for a job. In addition, SMEs and Thai startups find it difficult to compete with big brands without a channel like Jobnisit. This start-up helps them level the playing field when trying to attract and recruit the most talented candidates. Jobnisit also aims to educate young professionals in the area of working life and career development, providing a large pool of quality content online, written by the company’s team of career experts. The articles provide tips for job interviews and advice on increasing professional productivity.

Polls Nearly three-quarters of Russians fear being affected by terror attacks

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GOING EASTWARD

Fear of terror has penetrated deep The majority of Russians are afraid of becoming victims of terrorist attacks, while growing numbers are taking steps to avoid crowded places. MARINA OBRAZKOVA RBTH

LORI/LEGION MEDIA

a s i a . r b t h . c o m /w o r l d / t r o i k a

Nearly three-quarters of Russians fear that they, or their families, could become victims of terrorist attacks. More than 30 per cent are “very afraid” of this, the Russian Public Opinion Research Centre (VTsIOM) revealed in a November survey, recording the highest figure in the last decade. Only 12 per cent of respondents remained indifferent (it was 18 per cent in October). The number of those who

Fear of terror attacks is affecting where people go.

[After the attacks] people have given up visiting concerts, sporting events or film theatres

are “very afraid” has leapt up, increasing from 19 to 31 per cent in one month. Even after the explosions in the Moscow metro in 2010, this figure was not that high; the percentage of people who were very frightened was 29 per cent. VTsIOM’s CEOValery Fyodorov linked the growing fears with the succession of recent incidents (the Russian aircraft being blown up in Egypt, the terrorist attacks in Paris etc) and the “information background” that has been created in the country in the wake of these terrorist attacks. According to another survey carried out online by the research firm Online Market Intelligence (OMI), almost half of respondents (47.1 per cent) said that the recent terrorist attacks had influenced their behaviour in one way or another. This percentage was higher in Moscow and St. Petersburg than in Russia

as a whole, with the inhabitants of Crimea being the most alarmed. The survey showed that after the recent attacks, 34.5 per cent of respondents have been trying to avoid crowded places. People have given up visiting concerts, sporting events or film theatres. At the same time, the percentage of those who have given up flying because of the terrorist attacks is low – only 3.8 per cent have cancelled a planned trip. The fact that more than 30 per cent began to experience intense fear (this was not observed earlier) “means that the fear has penetrated very deeply into the collective unconscious,” saidYelena Shestopal, head of the department of sociology and psychology at Moscow State University. A special significance is today being acquired by the media, which “should assume a psychotherapeutic role,” she said.

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Heroism Director of a Thai company in Russia received an award for his bravery

Russian Dance Festival in Bangkok

Thai exec saved two women in Mokhovoy fire

SOURAT RAKHIMBABAEV SPECIAL TO RBTH

It was the summer of 2010 and forest fires were raging across Russia. Not even Moscow’s suburbs were spared from the fires, which raged a few kilometres away from the pig farm of Thai agricultural company, Charoen Pokphand Foods (CPF). When news of the fires reached the farm, the management of CPF, which employed 300 locals and 21 Thai specialists, sprung to action to help local villagers. Several employees of

the company, headed by the then director Kriangkrai Vuttivorakulchai, drove towards the area covered by the fire. By incredible coincidence, or simply because of negligence, the fire had reached Mokhovoy, a village of 200 people. Thai and Russian employees of CPF picked up escaping villagers and drove them away to safety. There were many heroes on that summer day, but one man’s bravery stands out. That afternoon, Vuttivorakulchai, who is affectionately called Khun Thai, could not bear to hear the screams of a woman from a burning house. Without hesitation, he threw himself into the inferno, fought through smoke and went up to the

The festival was dedicated to the fifth anniversary of the Katyusha folk dance ensemble. IRINA VINOKUROVA RBTH

VLADIMIR ASTAPKOVICH / TASS

The former general director of Charoen Pokphand Foods (CPF), near Moscow, received an award for his heroism in assisting victims of 2010 fire.

A forest fire swept through the village of Mokhovoy.

second floor of the house to rescue the elderly woman. When he found the woman, he realised that she was not alone in the house. He caught his breath after rescuing her and rushed back inside to save her daughter.

A legacy of charity Khun Thai and the employees of CPF continued to assist the survivors of the Mokhovoy tragedy, who

were accommodated in a settlement called Beloomut. The villagers, who lost everything, were provided with blankets, warm clothes, food and money. Khun Thai decided to financially support the two women he saved until they moved to a new apartment that was given to them by the government. This experience with the Mokhovoy villagers deeply

moved Khun Thai, who continued to work with charitable organisations in Russia. Until he left the country, Vuttivorakulchai donated half his salary every month to a children’s clinic in Moscow. This was enough to sponsor surgeries for 42 children in the Russian capital. In 2012, he was conferred with the Hero of Labour of the Russian Federation Award.

Deserter For 11 years, he lived in Kamchatka without even getting in touch with his family

‘Dead’ man found living in forest after 11 years A man thought long dead by his family has been found living in a dugout in the forests of Kamchatka after 11 years. VLADIMIR VASHCHENKO GAZETA.RU

A man who deserted from his military unit in Kamchatka, in Russia’s Far East, and was subsequently proclaimed dead, has been discovered by police in a local forest, where he has been living for the last 11 years.

The man, from Taganrog in the Rostov region, south of Moscow, was drafted into the army in 2003 and sent to the remote peninsula of Kamchatka, on Russia’s underpopulated northeastern Pacific coast, to a military and fishing town called Vilyuchinsk. Back then, the man, whose name the Kamchatka branch of the Interior Ministry has not revealed, was 19 years old. He did only half of his

military service (one year) and then deserted. Since according to Russian legislature such an action is considered a crime, he was declared wanted. He was detained by local police on November 30. The police in the Kamchatka Region say that a few months later the deserter’s family identified a deceased person as the young man. The deceased person was buried, and cthe man-

hunt for the deserter was dropped. Meanwhile, the young man continued living in the forest, and did not get in touch with his relatives, because he was afraid of being captured by the police. Surprisingly, he appeared not to have been afraid of the great numbers of bears and insects that live in Kamchatka. He had left the military base behind, walked around Avachinsk Bay, at

the other end of which is the regional capital Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, and decided to settle down in the area, in the woods between the village of Nagorny and the military settlement of Radygino. In order to isolate himself he dug out a hole a kilometre and a half from the highway and covered it with logs and a layer of earth, creating something between a hut and a dugout.

On November 26, the Main Hall of the Thammasat University Auditorium hosted the Russian Dance Festival, dedicated to the fifth anniversary of the Katyusha folk dance ensemble, established by choreographer Ekaterina Alexeeva in Bangkok for Thai children on a charity basis. The main requirement for the young dancers to join the studio is that they be motivated and diligent. Over the years, the group has prepared more than 200 dance performances, participated in various competitions, concerts and in the solemn diplomatic reception in honour of the 70thVictory Day Anniversary and Russia Day. On its fifth birthday the troupe performed a new program that included Russian folk dances and dances from other cultures of the world. The jubilee concert saw the participation of special guests: the Rosinka International Russian Ballet School from the Thai town of Pattaya, the Dance Republic Ensemble from Phuket and the students from the School of the Russian Embassy in the Kingdom of Thailand. There were also students from the Thammasat University Russian Studies Program, who will also study with Ekaterina Alexeevna’s group, something that was officially announced by the programs director, Professor Yotboon Loestrit.

RUSSIA BEYOND THE HEADLINES

Travel

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EXPLORING SIBERIA RBTH DEBUNKS THE MOST COMMON MYTHS ABOUT SIBERIA AND LOOKS AT SOME OF THE MORE ECONOMICAL WAYS TO GET THERE.

BUSTING MYTHS ABOUT SIBERIA CHRISTMAS The ultimate Russian Christmas gift guide rbth.com/2091

Siberia is known for being perpetually wintry, a place of exile, and for being full of brown bears. In other words, it’s known for being dangerous. ANNA GRUZDEVA

Travellers come to Siberia for great adventure holidays, explorations and high-adrenaline activities in high rocky mountains, forgotten villages and along the Trans-Siberian Railroad.

SPECIAL TO RBTH

Travel writer and Siberian native Anna Gruzdeva chose the three most common stereotypes about Siberia and tried to look at them from the perspective of a person who knows nothing else about Siberia. Many don’t know that Siberia covers almost 10 per cent of the Earth’s land surface. It borders the Mongolian frontier to the south and the icy shores of the Arctic Ocean in the north. It’s a land of convicts and heroes, gas-fields, oil derricks, coal and gold-mines – and one which boasts the largest forests in the world.

1. Eternal winter “It’s cold in Siberia” is probably one of the stereotypes you hear most often about Siberia.” It’s pointless to argue with such a stereotype because as early as October, I’ve usually already gotten my tall winter boots, warm hat and mittens out of the closet. But winter in Siberia is not eternal. As the Polish photographer Rafal Milach, who came to Siberia several times to work on his project 7 Rooms, once told me:“My first visit was dur-

ing the summer: I came to Novosibirsk wearing winter boots and it was 40 degrees Celsius. I thought that it would be a little bit colder in Siberia. I had to run to the store to get summer clothes.” There is great variety in the climate in Siberia, a region which encompasses a huge part of the Eurasian continent. If you come to the very north of Krasnoyarsk Territory in June, to the town of Dikson, for example, you will see snow piles, the icy Kara Sea and people wearing warm jackets – because this is the Arctic. If you visit the city of Krasnoyarsk, which is much farther south in June, you will see students lying in the sun on the banks of the Yenisei River, families with children riding their bikes and roller skating

around Tatyshev Island, the city’s equivalent of Central Park. And if you don’t cover your shoulders you will risk getting sunburnt. But if you go to the dramatic Altai mountains in June, you will be met by a

Many don’t know that Siberia covers almost 10 per cent of the Earth’s land surface brisk coolness because you will be surrounded by snowy peaks.

2. Bears “Bears walk the streets” – this is another popular myth about Siberia.” Indeed, there are gigantic tracts of unpopulated taiga forests in our region, where brown bears live, and

RUSSIA BEYOND THE HEADLINES

Travel

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Travel tips It’s not that difficult to travel independently in Siberia

How to do Siberia on a shoestring Six tips for travelling across stunning Siberia on a budget, from how to get around, where to stay and what to eat while you’re there. FABIO DE LEONARDIS SPECIAL TO RBTH

“Doing the Trans-Siberian” is often thought to be expensive, however, if you carefully organise your trip on your own, you can manage to make the most of your Trans-Siberian trip, even on a relatively low budget (of about $10001300 for 30 days, visa and flight to Russia excluded). 1 First, read up on Siberia and choose carefully what you really want to see and do: whether you wish to spend time in colourful cities like Tomsk or Irkutsk or set out on an expedition

to come in contact with humans (and the feeling is mutual). It is common to call the bear one of Siberia’s symbols, but there is a lot of other wildlife in Siberia, too. If you go to the south

The chance of encountering a bear in Siberia certainly varies from region to region of Altai, the first thing you might notice is that the sky often has vultures hovering in it. And if you happen to be in the Dauria steppe in the south of Zabaikalsky Territory, you will find out that the main animals in this area are manuls (also known as Pallas’s cat), roe deer and Mongolian gazelles (dzerens).

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it would be wrong to deny that these animals are our neighbours in Siberia. The chance of encountering a bear in Siberia certainly varies from region to region. If you go hiking in the Western Sayan Mountains, or make it to the tiny villages of Tofalaria, in the Irkutsk Region, which is surrounded by taiga, or to the remote Chara Sands desert, the chance of encountering a bear is actually relatively high. But in a big city such as Krasnoyarsk or Novosibirsk, it is basically impossible. Yes, from time to time, bears appear on the edges of cities. But most often they are forced to approach human settlements because of forest fires or a poor harvest of nuts and berries. When things are going smoothly, bears prefer not

into the wild, or simply enjoy nature on the shores of Lake Baikal, Siberia offers opportunities for all tastes. Do not limit yourself to guidebooks, surf the net for more information. RBTH can offer you plenty of suggestions. A place of stunning beauty like the Chara Sands is not even mentioned in most guidebooks, despite its relative accessibility. 2 Plan all stops beforehand and buy tickets for each destination well in advance, optimising the time you spend in trains and taking advantage of special offers:.You can check the timetables, the availability of tickets and the fares on the Russian Railways website. Given the distances, for most Siberian residents trains are the only affordable

Budget-class train tickets still make for a comfortable trip.

3. Dangerous place Sometimes I hear from foreigners who visit Siberia that their relatives tried to talk them out of the trip because Siberia is “a dangerous place.” Presumably this is due to the fact that in Soviet times many gulag labour camps were located beyond the Ural Mountains and many people suffered terribly in them. But Siberia’s regions have been welcoming tourists for some time now, and while it is a place that is popular with tourists seeking adventure: hikers, climbers, canyoners and white-water rafters, it’s really not a particularly dangerous place. In Siberia, just like in Europe, the US or Australia, one can experience warm hospitality, but you could also run into troubles. Blogger Peggy Lohse, who travelled from Germa-

ny to Russia’s North, shares her experience: “Siberia is no more dangerous than other parts of the world. People may seem a bit harsh at first, but they are very good in general. “Once when I was travelling from Tomsk to Krasnoyarsk through Kemerovo, “ she wrote. “I had to change the train from Yugra-2 to train Yugra-1. I thought: I can deal with a change, it’s a small town. As a result, I was on the edge of town with a large backpack with absolutely no idea how to get where I was going. It was fall. It was windy. I was stranded in the street and was shaking with cold. But the people accompanying another passenger at the station asked if I needed help and eventually took me to where I needed to go to, and even gave me a tour of the city.”

means of transportation and beyond the Urals tickets can sell out in advance. Booking in advance becomes absolutely vital if you intend to go on an expedition to more far-flung places. The more remote the place, the fewer guides there are, so it’s better to make sure that there are guides available. Avoid DIY expeditions in remote areas. 3 Take your time: Siberia is huge and diverse and isn’t suitable for fast tourism. Ideally your trip should take a whole month, but it could take a lot longer or a lot shorter, depending on your preferences. Although it may seem to contradict the previous piece of advice, allow for some flexibility in your plan: If you come to a place and don’t like it, move on. One thing about trains is that, unlike low-cost airlines, you can always change your tickets. 4 Although “kupe” (second class) is undoubtedly more comfortable than “platskart” (third class), a good way to cut down your expenses is to travel in platskart over“shorter”distances (up to 20-25 hours) and reserve kupe for the longer journeys, when that little extra bit of comfort and privacy will help you recharge your batteries.

Moreover, platskart is an excellent way to meet new people and experience a more authentic Russia. You’re very unlikely to find many fellow tourists there. 5 Choose hostels, an accommodation category that is currently mushrooming all over Russia. Their quality is generally tailored to the needs of budget travellers, so don’t expect luxury rooms, but the level of comfort they can provide is often surprisingly good, including free breakfasts and having strategic locations, near stations and city centres. Moreover, they can often provide you with invaluable information and even organise excursions or expeditions. Most of them are so new that they won’t be found in guidebooks. Check sites like hostelworld.com or booking.com instead. Again, it is advisable to book in advance, even in places which are not popular among tourists because hostels are becoming a viable alternative for Russians travelling for work and looking for cheap accommodation. 6 In big cities, try a “stolovaya”: these self-service cafeterias are an excellent alternative to restaurants and will allow you to enjoy the best of local food at surprisingly low prices.

TRAVEL Datsans, lamas and shamans: 7 facts about Buddhism in Siberia rbth.com/2065

RUSSIA BEYOND THE HEADLINES

Opinion

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VIETNAM’S STRONG ECONOMIC MARCH Anton Tsvetov COMMENTATOR

ietnamese ink has been all over this year’s free trade agreements – from South Korea and the European Union (EU) to the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). The last two present immense interest due to a strong political fleur around them. Both the EAEU-Vietnam FTA and the TPP are certainly more than just trade pacts. For Russia, the Eurasian Union has become the main instrument of economic leadership in the post-Soviet space, a central element of holding together the country’s neighbourhood and tapping into the potential of somewhat

deteriorating economic ties left behind by the USSR. Vietnam’s FTA with the EAEU, signed this May, was an experiment in gearing up a distant Asian state to the young Eurasian bloc. It capitalised greatly on

Politics and economy become intertwined and transcend each other Russia’s strong history of cooperation with Vietnam. But it was more than that. The leadership also meant the FTA to be a manifestation of the re-announced Russian rebalance towards the Asia Pacific, demonstrating an economic dimension to the political shift.

In the most politicised of framings, TPP presents itself as the economic arm of the US pivot (or rebalance) to Asia with the ultimate aim of containing Chinese political growth. Even if we reject such a clear cut explanation of what the TPP is, we will have to agree that it goes far beyond trade in goods, setting the playing field in technical barriers, investment protection, services, labour legislation and many other areas. This mega deal is an attempt to create the rules of a new game that the cool kids will all want to play. As an unnamed government official put it: “That’s a second WTO.” Of the 12 TPP members, Vietnam is the least developed, but is likely to reap the most benefits. Most importantly, Vietnam gets to eliminate import duties on

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its clothes and shoes to the US, the top export product to the top export market. But there’s more.Vietnam has already started attracting more foreign investment thanks to the TPP conclusion and it is not even in force yet. Politically, the trade pact is an essential part of the burgeoning US-Vietnam relations. The US is on the top list of Vietnam’s partners mainly to balance China, which is not only pressing Vietnam in the South China Sea, but is also causing a lot of concern in Vietnam by a substantial trade deficit. Comparing the two trade deals in terms of Vietnam’s economic benefits does not make the EAEU look very good. Supporting documents claim that after several years after entering into force the EAEU-Vietnam FTA may help the parties reach a trade surplus of $8 billion to $10 billion. That alone would actually mean at least doubling trade. However, even these impressive figures are dwarfed by the $36 billion (11 per cent) of added GDP by 2025 that the TPP is projected to give Vietnam. Being small makes you smart and swift.Vietnam is hedging the risks of being in a region with so many giants present and so many issues by betting on multiple initiatives and projects. Some of these stakes might prove worthy, some may not. But FTAs are more than just trade deals - politics and economy become intertwined and transcend each other and the Vietnamese seem to understand that perfectly. Anton Tsvetov is the Media and Government Relations Manager at the Russian International Affairs Council.

TURKEY’S ACT OF AGGRESSION LEADS TO INCREASED INSTABILTY Vladimir Avatkov ACADEMIC

ays after Turkey brought down a Russian bomber, Russia revoked its visa-free regime with Turkey and signed a decree imposing immediate economic sanctions against Ankara. In the meantime, the media was speculating whether Russian President Vladimir Putin was going

It was a mistake for Russia to rely exclusively on Turkey’s current leadership to meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the COP 21 UN Climate Summit in Paris. But he didn’t. Turkey’s shooting down of the Russian Su-24 bomber over Syria on November 24 has brought RussianTurkish relations to their lowest point since the Cuban missile crisis in the early 1960s. The incident, which led to the deaths of a Russian pilot and marine, has caused serious damage to the relationship between the two countries. Turkey is now trapped because its actions could be presented by its opponents as providing support to the very groups that the Russian Air Force is fighting in Syria.

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Russia had been working hard to build a mutually beneficial economic partnership with Turkey. Cooperation should not have been limited to the economic realm, however. It should have encompassed geopolitics and security – two areas which historically have been problematic for the two countries. It was a mistake for Russia to rely exclusively on Turkey’s current leadership, which could always have been subject to change. It should have engaged with all of Turkey’s political forces. Erdogan has grown weak and will most likely not be able to contain Turkey’s hawks, including Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu who is pushing the idea of rebuilding the Turkish Ottoman Empire. Russia, a major world power, has de facto suffered an act of aggression. Unfortunately, as a result, regardless of Moscow’s response the region, and the world on the whole, is unlikely to become any more stable. Vladimir Avatkov is a scholar of Turkish studies who teaches at the Military and Middle and Near East Languages faculties at Russia’s MGIMO. Read the full version at russia-direct.org

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RUSSIA BEYOND THE HEADLINES

Military

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Aviation Russian technology meets the challenge aircraft increasingly face in dealing with missile attacks

New systems for protecting aircraft With more terrorist groups getting their hands on anti-aircraft technology, the market for aircraft defence resources is becoming more important. ALEXANDER KOROLKOV SPECIAL TO RBTH

VITALY V. KUZMIN

After looting military depots in Libya, Syria, Iraq andYemen over the last few years, terrorists have gotten their hands on weapons capable of striking civilian aircraft. The question of whether and where they will be used remains to be seen. There are more than 1 million man-portable air-defence systems (MANPADS) in the world today and it is difficult to know how many of them are now in the hands of terrorists. In recent years, most cases of MANPADs being traded on the black market occurred in the course of the overthrow of the Mu’ammar Gadhafi regime in Libya and the advance of ISIS in Syria and Iraq. According to the US State Department, from 1970 to 2006 more than 40 civilian airplanes were brought down with MANPADS missiles, causing more than 1000 deaths (including victims on the ground). With every MANPADS transaction on the market the threat of them appearing near airports in countries far from military activity increases significantly.

Russia has developed protective systems for aircraft, which can effectively prevent them from being hit by missiles.

Global experience

Banking on universality

In order to prevent such events, technology companies have begun adapting existing combat systems, placing them on civilian planes when deemed necessary. In the US, these systems have become too expensive, both for the buyer and for the user. As a result only 12 of the so-called Guardian systems were produced and the project was subsequently recognised as ineffective.

In Russia this type of work is based on military developments and is embodied in systems under the name of President-S, produced by the Radioelectronic Technologies Concern (KRET). Russian engineers chose to focus on the system’s universality, making it a technology with many applications. “If necessary, systems that block the aiming of missiles with radar, laser and infrared GOSs can be

placed on the planes,” said advisor to KRET’s First Deputy General Director Vladimir Mikheyev. “This is a collection of apparatuses that can be set up together or separately. They scan the space around the plane simultaneously for radar, laser, infrared, ultraviolet and television signals and if they are detected, the system automatically creates disturbances, forcing the launched missile to deviate from the target.”

In practical terms, such universality means that President-S can prevent the plane from being hit not only with a MANPADS missile, which is equipped with an infrared homing head, but also with an air-to-air missile or even a defence missile, which have separate and combined guidance systems. Such a system could have potentially saved the Russian Tu-154 airliner, which was mistakenly destroyed by a Ukrainian defence mis-

sile in 2001, or Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17, which was shot down over eastern Ukraine in July 2014 by a Russian-made BUK ground-to-air missile in circumstances that are still not clear. “The apparatuses constituting the system can be set up in external attachment points or inside the fuselage [excluding the laser station for opticalelectronic blocking] on any type of plane or helicopter, Russian or foreign,” said Mikheyev. The systems have been tested for effectiveness in combat conditions in which MANPADS missiles were fired at both model planes a n d re a l h e l i c o p t e r s equipped with the President-S onboard defence system. In these tests, the disturbances created by the station were able to change the missile’s intended trajectory and not one of them struck the target. According to KRET representatives, currently all new military and special aviation technology models are equipped with these systems. Mass production thanks to government orders and experience in using the systems have helped reduce their production and maintenance costs. According to Mikheyev, this will help equip all Russian planes flying in dangerous zones with the systems.

M A K E I T PA R T O F Y O U R S T R AT E G Y in the Armed by Russia Special Section rbth.com/armed_by_russia

Less is more: Switch to small missile carrier ships paying off for Russia

Eye in the sky: Russian drones join the ranks of the world’s unmanned craft

Syria surgical missile strikes upstage old-style tank and troop warfare

RUSSIA BEYOND THE HEADLINES

Tech

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Energy Innovation in solar tech

Agriculture Heritage wild fruit trees in Circassia are particularly hardy

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Wild heritage fruit grove becomes the basis of a new eco-park in southern Russia.

Organic eco-park with heritage trees Scientists in the Republic of Adygea, in southern Russia, are bringing back old varieties of fruit trees, a project which has the support of local residents. DARYA KEZINA RBTH

The Circassian gardens have been around for more than 150 years, and in order to preserve this unique heritage scientists want to bring back and breed the most precious varieties of Adygea fruit trees. The list includes trees that bear apples, pears, plums, quinces, peaches, sweet cherries, walnuts, hazelnuts, and chestnuts. Circassian fruit trees are particularly resistant to di-

seases and pests, and their fruit are rich in pectin and can be stored for a long time without special treatment because of the high content of acids. Adygea is a small picturesque republic in the south of Russia with many mountains, rivers, waterfalls and caves. The native population, the Adyghes, are one of the most ancient ethnic groups in the west Caucasus region. Although their written language emerged much later, the Adyghes have long had a highly developed culture, especially in blacksmithing, jewellerymaking and gardening. “The West Caucasus was the birthplace of fruit bree-

ding in Russia and western Europe, and the old Circassian gardens are as just important as the Seven Wonders of the World,”saidYury Sukhorukikh, dean of the Ecology Faculty at the Maykop Technological State University. There are still kilometrelong stretches of apple, pear, quince, cherry plum, and nut trees growing in the forests on the land once populated by the Adyghes. Modern agronomists are amazed at how skillfully the trees were grafted and how, despite their age, they still bear fruit. Fruit farming has long been considered a noble pursuit in the Caucasus re-

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gion. According to local tradition, if a young man has not planted at least 40 trees, it’s too early for him to get married. “I personally have planted 67,000 small plants and 3000 to 4000 big ones. Young women joke that I could have already married many times,”Sukhorukikh said with a smile. Almost 47 hectares along the Maykop-Guzeripl road are taken up by forests with wild fruit trees, and an ecopark is being created here. Circassian varieties have already been grafted on the first 200 young trees. In the spring of 2016, the search for remaining old varieties will resume. “The revival of the Circassian gardens will give the local population access to organically-grown produce, and people will be able to come to the eco-park and pick the fruit,”Sukhorukikh explained. “We are approached by old and young people alike; everybody wants to plant a tree and learn to graft because they want to leave a trace on Earth after they’re gone.” The project to restore fruit tree nurseries is funded with money raised by the Heritage Foundation, and it involves local scientists and residents.“It would be impossible to restore the fruit tree nurseries without enthusiasts,”Gazy Chemko, head of the Heritage Foundation, told RBTH. “For instance, university professor Irina Bandurko has grown Circassian varieties of pears and apples from seeds, and they are already bearing fruit and are excellent material for breeding at fruit tree nurseries.”

Russian inventor packs more power into solar cells A new type of solar cell is attracting attention from the world’s leading oil companies, and the start-up is entering the international market. DINARA MAMEDOVA SPECIAL TO RBTH

Russian inventor and entrepreneur Dmitry Lopatin is promoting his latest project, a new type of solar cell. The main feature of Lopatin’s design is that it does not use the usual silicon, but instead uses perovskite, a calcium titanium oxide mineral. The inventor touts the new cells as more durable and cheaper than what is today available on the market. India is Lopatin’s first target because the country is running a state programme to provide its population with cheap energy. Next, he plans to enter the American and European markets. The project is almost ready for mass-production, and Lopatin is now completing the assembly of an industrial 3D printer that will be used to produce the cells. “Scientists all over the world have been making solar cells using silicon, but this has several drawbacks,” Lopatin said.“If the silicon has even 0.001 per cent of impurities then the cell will fail, and growing a crystal of pure silicon is time-con-

suming. That’s why siliconbased cells are two or three times more expensive than our design, and much less durable; silicon cells may fail after a few months of use. We use perovskite, which is an organo-metallic material that can be sprayed on any surface, and we can produce our cells using an industrial 3D printer.” Lopatin and his partner, Oleg Baranov, have invested $20,000 of their own funds in the project, with another $30,000 coming from private investors.They need a total of $300,000 to $400,000 to start full-scale production. In 2016, Lopatin plans to start selling his technology and the equipment to print cells. He has already set up a production facility in India at one of the factories of the prominent company, Tata. The choice of India as a production site was not accidental. That sunny country has a state program to increase the supply of electric power to its population, and the investor plans to use state funding to continue research. Lopatin expects to enter the American and European markets by creating joint ventures with local entrepreneurs. He said that 30 or 40 square metres of cells will cost between 2000 to 3000 euros to produce.

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RUSSIA BEYOND THE HEADLINES

Culture

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Literature Young writers in Russia are thriving in environment which is much freer from ideological constraints

Young writers thrive in new Russia Russian and Soviet literature has a well known classic canon, but who are the young writers driving contemporary literature today?

Books Translations that do justice

Russian works you can add to your Christmas gift list

MIKHAIL VIESEL SPECIAL TO RBTH

Moving on from the Soviet past During the Soviet era, describing a writer as“young” meant that she or he was just beginning their literary career. So there were “young”writers aged 40 or even 50. Yevgeny Popov, a prominent member of the Soviet underground literary movement who was himself a “young” writer until his beard turned grey, used to say, “you remain a young writer until your work gets printed.” There is no such categorisation today, and Ksenia Buksha, Sergey Shargunov,

If Russian literature has a face, it is perhaps Leo Tolstoy in his later years: bearded and austere. However, there is a long tradition of vibrant young writers pushing the boundaries of the country’s prose and poetry in Russia. Alexander Pushkin was well-established in the literary imagination by the age of 24, Lermontov was 23 when he was acclaimed as the “new Pushkin”, Dostoevsky gained recognition for his first novel at 25. Kharms, Mayakovsky and Akhmatova were all pursuing ground-breaking work in their early 20s. The 21st century has seen the rise of successors to these famous names who are carving out their own niches in domestic and world literature.

Book reviews of classic Russian reads, which sparkle with wit, humour and drama. Consider these for this year’s Christmas gift list. PHOEBE TAPLIN SPECIAL TO RBTH

Russia has a range of grants, foundations and prizes to help young writers get a foothold.

Crime and Punishment − Fyodor Dostoevsky

Anna Starobinets and Alisa Ganieva are all “young” in the typical sense and achieved success before turning 30. Zakhar Prilepin published his first novel at 30, but this might have come earlier had he not been sent to

Hailed by AN Wilson in The Spectator as a “truly great translation” that captures the novel’s “knife-edge between sentimentality and farce”, Ready’s new translation of Crime and Punishment is thoughtful and elegant. Dostoevsky’s moody, murderous, handsome, penniless ex-student Raskolnikov has become a byword in many languages for an immoral protagonist feverishly obsessed by his own crimes. Ready shows us once again why this novel is one of the most intriguing psychological studies ever written.

“You remain a young writer until your work gets printed,” said writer Yevgeny Popov fight in Chechnya and then had to work hard to support his family. Now 40, Prilepin is established as one of Russia’s contemporary classic writers, and has published his collected works. Prilepin himself represents another way that contemporary Russia differs from the Soviet Union in the opportunities it offers for young writers: a lessening of Moscow’s dominance. The country is still very

centralised, with about 90 per cent of artistic and literary events taking place in Moscow or St Petersburg. But this is changing slowly. The Krasnoyarsk Book Fair has been running for almost a decade, and there is no longer an expectation that you have to move to Moscow to make it in the creative world. Prilepin himself attended Nizhny Novgorod State University and now lives in a remote village on the Volga.

Free from ideological constraints The Soviet period was dominated by ideology, but now young authors can found their own literary magazines. The writers Katya Morozova and critic Igor Gulin (both under 30) did just that, establishing their own print magazine, Nosorog (rhinoceros). Contemporary young writers also have various grants, foundations and programs to choose

from – to say nothing about the Debut Prize, which is awarded to writers under 35. Young Russian writers have responded to the new opportunities and freedoms of the post-Soviet period to produce highly diverse subject matter, catering to every reader’s taste. There is Guzel Yakhina’s Zuleikha Opens her Eyes, which is a personal family story based on the experiences of her grandmother, who was exiled from a village in Tatarstan to Siberia. Fans of the more mystical will appreciate Anna Starobinets’s Asylum 3/9, while Dmitry Glukhovsky’s Metro 2033 stands out as an example of a post-apocalyptic epic. They may not have the thousand-yard stares and beards of old, but the new contingent of young writers are making sure that the country has a literary future as bright as its past.

Black Snow − Mikhail Bulgakov Bulgakov’s final, unfinished, theatrical satire is another book that exists in multiple translations, although it hasn’t yet reached Dostoevsky’s power to spawn proliferating English versions.

Michael Glenny, who translated The Master and Margarita in the Sixties, first had a go at rendering this novella in English; Andrew Bromfield translated it for Penguin Classics as A Dead Man’s Memoir in 2007 and now Roger Cockrell has produced a new version for Alma Classics. Each translation has its virtues but Cockrell’s light touch often lifts the text on to a playful plane. “It’s just an attack of nerves,” the narrator tells his cat after a bad dream (Glenny called the same episode “the onset of neurosis”).

An Armenian Sketchbook − Vasily Grossman Robert Chandler brought Vasily Grossman’s work to western audiences with his version of Life and Fate. His recent translation, written with his wife Elizabeth, of Grossman’s Armenian Sketchbook is out in paperback and presents the Soviet author in a new light. This travelogue, written in 1962 after two months in Armenia, is in sharp contrast to his epic novel about war and totalitarianism.

RUSSIA IS NOT JUST A EUROPEAN COUNTRY See Russia’s relations with Asian nations through the eyes of our bloggers Lo o k i n g E a st rbth.com/looking_east

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Culture

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Festive season How Christmas in the UK compares to how Russians celebrate New Year’s Eve

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Christmas traditions in Russia Comparing festivities: marking his first Christmas back home, our recently returned expat compares festive seasons in the UK and Russia. RICHARD WINTERBOTTOM SPECIAL TO RBTH

I see holly, mistletoe, fairy lights, fir trees and tinsel everywhere as I prepare for my first Christmas in the UK for years. Taking all of this in and bracing for the coming festivities, I can’t help but compare what I’m seeing with what I was used to while away. Let’s get down to brass tacks: 25th of December means nothing to most Russians. Unless it’s a weekend, it’s just a normal working day for your average Ivan. Last year I spent the day teaching English to 300 coach drivers in preparation for the Winter Games in Sochi.

I wore a suitably festive hat the entire day, but no one twigged until the very last slide of the presentation, on which I had written “Thanks for coming… and Merry Christmas.” A few grunts and a lame “Happy Christmas”was all I got in return, which is more than I had expected from people who simply don’t get what Christmas for us is all about. For Russians, the winter holidays are all about New Year’s Eve. In fact, this is the holiday of holidays for the nation. Forget Hogmanay, Novy God (New Year) is where it’s at.

For Russians, the winter holidays are all about New Year’s Eve. This is the holiday of holidays for Russians. Forget Hogmanay, Novy God (New Year) is where it’s at Fireworks are as essential to Russian New Year as carols are to Christmas

Father Frost Though now often found in red, Ded Moroz (Grandfather Frost), Father Christmas’ Russian counterpart, traditionally wears a blue fur-trimmed coat. Despite this, Russian children rare-

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ly confuse the pair of wintry geriatrics, not least as Ded Moroz is taller, slimmer, more demanding and wields a big stick. Not the type to surreptitiously slide down chimneys, of which there are few in apartment-dominated Russian cities, Ded Moroz brazenly knocks at your door with his wooden staff, interrupting parties to demand that you sing or recite a poem in order to earn a gift. Instead, he drafts in blonde, blue-eyed Snegurochka (The Snow Maiden), apparently his granddaughter. You can forget flying reindeer too, there’s no need for all that sort of nonsense when a troika will do the job just as well.

New Year traditions Russians also include televised speeches in their festivities, though

nothing so sedate at the early afternoon Queen’s Speech we know. Interrupting the New Year’s musical extravaganzas, dutiful Russians, a glass of something alcoholic in hand, switch channels to watch the president make his speech just before midnight strikes on the Kremlin clock. Russia’s nine time zones mean you can celebrate New Year more than once. In Novosibirsk, for example, a group of friends and I celebrated both the local New Year and then, three hours later, once more for Moscow. You won’t find turkey on a traditional festive spread in Russia, not unless it’s been included in the evening’s star dish, Olivier (Russian Salad). Though recipes vary, the salad is made from diced carrots, pota-

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toes, cucumber, egg and meat, mixed together in overwhelming amounts of mayonnaise and topped with dill. This takes pride of place amongst a huge number of cold dishes, salads and pickles, which are picked at from midnight on. This is all washed down with a vast amount of fiercely bubbly Sovetskoye Shampanskoye (Soviet Champagne), the plastic corks of which are ejected with considerable velocity. Very painful if get you one on the chin, as an unfortunate friend once told me.

Musical fireworks Fireworks are as essential to Russian NewYear as carols are to Christmas. In Moscow, my favourite spot to watch them on New Year’s Eve was Vorobyovi Gori (Sparrow Hills), in front of MGU (Moscow State University). From there you can see much of the city below and more firework displays than you can imagine. Plus, you can enjoy the spectacle of drunken reckless revellers around you letting off their own pyrotechnics. We’re not talking bengalskie ogni (sparklers) here, I’ve more than once had to leap out of the way as a whole barrel of fireworks explodes behind me. Dangerous, but fun. There is, however, much the two countries have in common. Yolki (Christmas trees) are decorated much as they are at home, festive cards share many of the same images, though sometimes with a Russian twist , and the shops are just as crammed.

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Celebrations Yolka concerts still popular with children

From Soviet propaganda to American fairy tales

ALEXEI BELYAKOV SPECIAL TO RBTH

At the end of the 1920s, because of the unofficial ban on religion, Russians virtually ceased to celebrate Christmas, at least officially. But it was replaced in 1935 by another winter holiday – New Year. Without much thought, the decision was made to leave the Christmas tree as the official symbol for New Year. Now, however, the tree symbolised winter, while the star atop the tree went from symbolising Bethlehem to symbolising the Soviet Union, acting as a cousin of sorts to the ruby stars that crowned the Kremlin. The Soviet authorities sought to promote a culture of the masses, which transformed what was traditionally a family holiday into a public holiday. National celebrations were organised for Soviet adults in houses of culture and in public squares. Meanwhile, children

gathered at stadiums, daycare centres, and even military grounds to celebrate a “yolka” – a holiday concert where children watched costumed performances, took part in competitions, and received gifts. Thanks to these shows, New Year became one of Soviet children’s favourite holidays.

Yolka concert themes The scripts of the yolka concerts were imbued with short-term ideological goals and were obligated to reflect the achievements of the USSR in a way that was accessible to children. For example, the launch of Sputnik 1 in 1957 heralded the beginning of the space period in staged performances. The basic outline was always simple and clear: The forces of evil were trying to prevent children from celebrating the New Year holiday, the forces of good would overcome, and the situation would stabilise just in time for the clock to strike midnight. The forces of good were Grandfather Frost (the Russian version of Santa Claus) and his helpers, while the forces of evil could be var-

ious characters from fairy tales and folklore, such as Bag of Bones, Baba Yaga, pirates, or robbers.

Yolkas at the Kremlin The Kremlin yolka, held at the Kremlin Palace of Congresses, was the most coveted NewYear party among Soviet children. Only the best students and the children of well-connected parents such as party workers were invited to attend. It was believed that the show was most colourful and the gifts best at the Kremlin yolka. Children who managed to get invited to this elite party bragged to their classmates about the tasty candy and amazing gifts long after the event. An interesting feature of the Kremlin yolka was that parents were not allowed to attend, the aim being to give more children the opportunity to take part. Upon entry to the Palace, children were greeted by clowns, bunnies, and squirrels, escorted to the coat check, and led in dances – a tradition that has been preserved to this day. After the show, children left the Palace of Congresses and were paraded

GRIGORY SYSOEV / TASS

Yolka concerts began in the 1930s, melding elements of Christmas traditions and soviet propaganda. Today this secular celebration is intrinsic to the festive season.

around like luggage on an airport carousel as their parents picked them out from the crowd.

Yolka concerts today Even though religion is back in favour in modern Russia, and despite the fact that about 80 per cent of the population considers itself Orthodox Christian, the yolka remains a purely sec-

ular celebration. Orthodox Christmas is celebrated on January 7, while shows for children begin at the end of December, when Christians should be observing the fast. Yolka concerts still enjoy an enormous audience. Tickets to the New Year shows are publicly available, and parents can choose a show based on their

tastes and budget. Yolkas can be fairy tale performances, shows on ice, and even scientific experiments at the Polytechnical Museum in Moscow. Children can visit dozens of various yolka concerts during the New Year holidays. When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, yolka shows also lost their ideological elements.

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Cuisine

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Christmas Tchaikovsky masterpiece provides inspiration for festive season’s culinary delights, notably sugar plums

Feasting on Nutcracker sweets Searching for a Russian Christmas confection, food writer Jennifer Eremeeva finds inspiration in Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker. JENNIFER EREMEEVA SPECIAL TO RBTH

Is there anything more holiday mood-enhancing than the familiar strains of Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker? If there is, I haven’t encountered it yet. The strong downbeat followed by the robust and festive march is a clarion call to trim the tree, stuff the stockings, and sift the dry ingredients. And in honour of Russian Christmas, we are laying on a sugary smorgasbord of Nutcracker-themed confectionery. Food is the candy cane stripe that runs through the ballet: From the moment the curtain rises, we are plunged into a world of expansive and lavish Russian holiday entertaining; in the second act we join Clara/ Maria and Prince Johann in the magical Kingdom of Sweets, where we meet dancers impersonating flavours such as ginger, candy canes, chocolate, coffee, marzipan, and, of course, the Sugar Plum. Americans associate The Nutcracker with George Balanchine, who co-founded the NewYork City Ballet and gave us one of the most famous screen versions of The Nutcracker (1993), starring Darci Kistler as the Sugar Plum Fairy and Macaulay Culkin as the Nutcracker. Balanchine’s staging remains the template for all Western interpretations of Tchaikovsky’s

beloved Christmas ballet, but, of course, his inspiration was firmly rooted in Russia. Born Georgi Melitonovich Balanchivadze in St. Petersburg, Russia in 1904, Balanchine was trained as a dancer at the prestigious Imperial Ballet School. As a child, he was fascinated by the trays of sweets on display in the opulent windows of Yeliseyev’s grocery store on Nevsky Prospekt. This Petersburg landmark survived the Communist era and is now once again offering visitors tempting bonbons confected of sugar, almonds, marzipan and glistening sugar atop syrupy candied fruit. On a recent visit to St.

Petersburg, I retraced Balanchine’s steps from the Imperial Ballet School on Rossi Street, through Ostrovsky Square and across the Prospekt to Yeliseyev’s to shelter from a sleet storm. Seated on the perimetre of the massive pineapple, which graces the centre of the store, I sipped a welcome cup of Yeliseyev’s signature tea blend, indulged in a sliver of rich chocolate torte and treated myself to the feast for the eyes that the confectionery cases offer. And then I understood what Balanchine was striving for in his staging of The Nutcracker: sweets as both cozy and comfortable, but also other-worldly and magical.

Learn about Russian cuisine and culinary traditions with useful tips from our authors workshops from Delicious TV and recipes from The Soviet Diet Cookbook

So, with all of these visions of sugar plums “dancing in my head”, I set about creating a little culinary tribute to The Nutcracker, and inaugurate a new tradition in our family for Russian Christmas. I took as my inspiration the Divertissements in Act II, which follow the arrival of Clara/Maria and the Prince in the Kingdom of Sweets. These set pieces contain some of the most recognisable tunes from the ballet and culminate in the comedic arrival of Mother Ginger and her children. Mother Ginger’s large skirt is a nod to a famous candy tin, popular in Imperial Russia, in the shape of woman in a wide hoop skirt.

No culinary homage to The Nutcracker can even begin without the signature sugar plums. In Balanchine’s day, these were most likely complex and syrupy bonbons: layers and layers of sugar wrapped around one almond or a cardamon seed. But equally possible is a much more manageable and equally delicious ball of dried fruit and nuts, steeped in liqueur and rolled in sugar. “Plum” in the language of the 19th century was synonymous with “paramount”or“best”and so a sugar plum is the queen of the sweets. The Russian candy canes top off festive Red Velvet and Candy Cane Cupcakes, and Mother Ginger makes her appearance in my favorite Guinness Gingerbread Cupcakes, which are frosted with tangerine-flavoured icing in a gentle nod to the more current Russian holiday flavours. This is a wonderful project to share with children, who will find icing and decorating the cupcakes an absorbing and enjoyable activity in the lead up to Christmas. So crank up The Nutcracker, roll up your sleeves, and let’s get baking.

Candy Cane Cupcakes My daughter Velvet is addicted to RedVelvet cupcakes and I’ve tried every recipe out there since they don’t sell it in a box in Russia! The most reliable and delicious version was one I discovered this year from Sally’s Baking Addiction. Wishing you delicious things in 2015.

RECIPE

Candy Cane Cupcakes 1. Preheat oven to 180C/350C degrees and adjust the oven rack to the middle position. 2. Line a standard muffin tin with paper liners. 3. Sift flour and cornstarch together. Whisk with cocoa, baking soda, and salt. 4. Place butter in bowl of a standing mixer. Use paddle attachment to beat butter on high speed until creamy. Add sugar and beat on high for 2 minutes, then add oil and beat for an additional 2 minutes. 5. Add egg yolks and vanilla and beat on medium until combined. Add natural food colours until you get your desired colour. Scrape sides and beat until combined. 6. Add dry ingredients in roughly three batches, alternating with buttermilk. Work quickly and don’t over-mix. Set batter aside and in a separate bowl beat egg whites with a handheld mixer until they are thick and foamy. 7. Fold egg whites into cupcake batter with a wooden spoon until combined. Pour batter into prepared cupcake liners, filling them about two thirds of the way. 8. Bake for 20 minutes until the cupcakes are springy and a toothpick inserted into the cupcakes emerges clean. 9. Cool for twenty minutes before turning out onto cooling rack. Then ice with your favourite flavoured icing before sprinkling with crushed candy canes. Find more recipes rbth.com/42735

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