"Quiet Americans" Racket Economy of the Whole Planet

The source in Putin’s administration informed about telephone conversation between Condolise Rice and Vladimir Putin, an event took place under her initiative. C. Rice reproached V. Putin that reduction of poultry import from the USA to Russia carries signs of administrative pressure from the government upon the Russian importers.

Really, it was declared in the last month about the decision of importers to self-limit themselves within the limits of 30% from the declared quotas on poultry import. Explanations given were the following: in connection with the bird's flu consumption of paultry was sharply reduced, wholesale prices decreased, importers began to bear considerable losses.

In April importers took the decision about self-restriction, profile ministry and public were informed about it. As it was stated, decrease of wholesale prices stopped. First of all this restriction refers to the USA that caused understandable discontent of the American poultry breeders and it, in its turn, caused concern of the State Department of the USA.

We turned for the comment to A.V.Surikov - Executive Director of Association of the Russian Operators on the poultry market which unites the largest importers of poultry, pork and a beef from the USA, Braziland EU. At the present moment Surikov makes a business trip across Arabian peninsulaand conversation with him was done by phone.

- I do not know, - Surikov said, - whether there was a conversation and whether the question was put as you say. But if the American party put the question like this then it doesn’t coincide with the reality. The decision about self-restriction on import was born in the Association and all that occurred at my presence. Already in January we put the question of necessary restriction of import before the Ministry of Agriculture and Мinistry of Economic Development and Trade but that time we asked that the decision would be taken by the state. However the state did not do it, motivating it in a way that such decision would break rules of WTO which we were going to enter. After that we decided to self-limit. There was no pressure except for pressure of the market: in the first quarter losses from import operations composed 80 million dollars.

Our other expert - Vladimir Filin - lives now in San-Paolo and though his business is basically connected with investments into avia-space branch, he is also the shareholder and the investor of the export companies including those engaged in import of poultry to Russia.

- On a field of protection of the economic interests Americans behave extremely impudently, - Filin considers. - Their own policy in trading with Russiahas the aim not to admit competitors on the Russian market. In particular, a share of the USAin the general quota for import to Russia- is more than 3/4 and a share of Brazilis maximum 5 %. While the quality of Brazilian poultry meat is better and if not such distribution of quotas it would press up American one long time ago.

Besides we asked V.Filin about the situation arisen in the San-Paolo with Boris Berezovsky.

- Boris Berezovsky, - Filin thinks, - is known as a rather scandalous person. He gets intense attention to himself everywhere and it starts to extend on all Russian businessmen living in this country. In San-Paolo, for example, there are many Russian businessmen who don’t need scandalous attention to their work. I believe that it was an attempt to explain to Boris Abramovich that he has nothing to do in this area.

Our expert - Ruslan Saidov - who is in Dubainow at once declared that he’s not an expert in the field of food stuffs trade. However that region where he is now is an object of unfair competition from part of the USA.

- For example, - Saidov said, - in February, 2006 Bush approved sale of six American seaports to company Dubai Ports World which is also registered in the United Arab Emirates. This decision caused sharply negative reaction in the Congress. Opponents of the transaction declared that the sale of ports would increase probability of acts of terrorism. In the beginning of March Dubai Ports World announced that ports would be transferred under the control of one American organization.

Another example - in the United Arab Emiratesthere is a trading network "Persian Carpets and Antiques" as it is possible to guess from the name engaged in trading of the Persian carpets and antiques. It has more than 20 shops which basic assortment is Persian carpets and the Pakistancashmere scarves. So, the sellers are visited by "quiet Americans" who ask questions about their country-suppliers whom they consider to be suspicious. Possibly this is not carpets but contraband of nuclear, rocket and biological technologies? Well, after the sellers gave them some carpets the visits stopped. The other started to come – with the same questions. They were also given presents – the third party came, the process’s endless.

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