A spokesman for the Investigative Committee, a special branch of the General Prosecutor’s office, said yesterday, after the news of the rescue had reached Moscow, that the surviving pirates would be taken to Russia and charged under the piracy article of the Russian Criminal Code — Part 3, Article 227. He and Russian Navy spokesmen […]

by John Helmer - Friday, May 7th, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow The horse has special talents. One is fluency in several languages; another is a knack for stock market investment. In the rarely seen comedy, the hero inherits the horse from his parents, makes some bad acquisitions on the horse’s advice, but gets out of trouble at a horse-race. Roman Trotsenko’s […]

by John Helmer - Friday, May 7th, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow The Russian Navy announced Thursday morning that its anti-submarine destroyer Marshal Shaposhnikov had successfully liberated the Novoship oil tanker, Moscow University; released its 23-man crew unharmed;and killed or captured the Somali pirates who had boarded the vessel yesterday 800 kms off the coast of Somalia. The tanker had been under […]

by John Helmer - Thursday, May 6th, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow The Lithuanians tried it more than a decade ago. The Belarussians are trying it again – noone in Moscow believes it can be done. In fact, the Russians say it’s childish to try. When the Russian noose goes round your neck, they say, you either beg forgiveness, or you choke […]

by John Helmer - Wednesday, May 5th, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow King Canute inherited his throne in Scandinavia from a powerful father. He is well thought of for having invaded northwestern England twice in the 11th century, and been in charge there for a relatively peaceful seven years. But if Canute’s reputation is safe onshore, it’s his offshore move that has […]

by John Helmer - Monday, May 3rd, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow Sergei Generalov, controlling shareholder and chief executive of Far Eastern Shipping Company (Fesco), has issued an investor presentation on last year’s results without audited financial details. The leak appears to be a repeat of last week’s financial advertorial in London by Russian tanker fleet company, Sovcomflot, except that Fesco denies […]

by John Helmer - Tuesday, April 20th, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow According to the clinical experts, premature ejaculation is a common phenomenon that is most often caused by anxiety and overstimulation. One of the expert manuals suggests that psychological factors, such as guilt, may also be relevant. With time, the condition usually improves without formal treatment.   Pharmaceutical stimulants are known […]

by John Helmer - Sunday, April 18th, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow In case you haven’t realized, Russia is now running third in the league of world grain exporters, trailing the US and Canada, but ahead of Australia. (China remains the world’s largest producer of wheat, but eats it all up.) With the aim of competing against government wheat marketing companies like […]

by Editor - Thursday, April 15th, 2010
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In 1855, the English photographer Roger Fenton took these photographs of what the invading British Army called Cossack Bay, at Balaclava, during the Crimean War (in Russian, the Oriental War). By John Helmer in Moscow Russia’s Transport Minister Igor Levitin reported a huge number last month, which, if true, would mean that Russian shipbuilding is […]

by Editor - Tuesday, April 6th, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow It’s fashionable in trade these days, especially when delicate consumer sensitivities are involved, to call a slaughter-house a meat-packing plant, as if what goes in the front-door can be made to seem as tasteful as what goes out the back. The German slogan, “Arbeit Macht Frei”, tried the technique on […]

by John Helmer - Monday, March 29th, 2010
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