By John Helmer, Moscow US statutes require the registration of American agents who are acting for foreign companies or foreign individuals in an attempt to influence US legislation, political debate, or government decision-making in favour of their clients’ interests. Camouflage and concealment are unlawful, and can verge on espionage in the minds of some US […]

by John Helmer - Tuesday, November 2nd, 2010
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By John Helmer, Moscow Does he or doesn’t he? Is S&M best practice in his management thinking — cutting-edge in the literal sense? Mikhail Prokhorov has a funny way of answering questions about his tastes, and ingratiating himself with reporters at the same time. When interviewed recently by a special reporter for the New York […]

by John Helmer - Tuesday, November 2nd, 2010
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“One oligarch, One divorce, Two abysses”, Pierre-Alexandre Sallier, Le Temps, Geneva, October 30, 2010 — translated from the French In Geneva, the wife of Dmitri Rybolovlev demands half of his wealth of 12 thousand million Swiss francs ($12.1 billion) Their separation plunges Swiss justice into the heart of the battle between the Kremlin and the […]

by John Helmer - Monday, November 1st, 2010
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By John Helmer, Moscow Anonymous reports about Alisher Usmanov usually appear because he is selling or buying something, and wants to advertise his price. Or else they are there because Usmanov’s rivals and critics are at work. A report from London on Sunday that Usmanov is about to clinch a deal with the Japanese trader […]

by John Helmer - Tuesday, October 26th, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow Today the news comes to you from Homer, with Odysseus doing the talking: “We came to the land of the Kyklopes race, arrogant lawless beings who leave their livelihoods to the deathless gods and never use their own hands to sow or plough; yet with no sowing and no ploughing, […]

by John Helmer - Thursday, October 21st, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow The US Government has decided not to let Victor Vekselberg off so easily. The US District Attorney for the Southern District of New York (Manhattan) has filed for an extension of time to allow the Justice Department in Washington to consider a detailed brief, arguing that Vekselberg should face the […]

by John Helmer - Sunday, October 17th, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow With just a week to go before Oleg Deripaska asks Norilsk Nickel’s international shareholders to vote in favour of his hostile takeover of the company, the UK High Court has ordered an end to Deripaska’s tactics towards former patron and partner, Michael Cherney (Chernoy); dismissed more of Deripaska’s claims about […]

by John Helmer - Thursday, October 14th, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow Gennady Timchenko and his allies in state-controlled companies in the Russian oil business are gradually consolidating their dominance over much of Russian oil from the wellhead to the tanker enroute to international markets, and much of the transportation network in between. As the largest energy exporter in the world, Russia […]

by John Helmer - Wednesday, October 13th, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (New York) decided yesterday that the US racketeering statute can reach Russian wrongdoers only if their deeds are done on American territory. Running the loot, laundering, or spending it through US banks and bank accounts, or on American real estate and […]

by John Helmer - Wednesday, September 29th, 2010
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By John Helmer in Moscow Victor Vekselberg was acquitted today by a Swiss court in Bellinzone of charges of illegal stock market manipulation in his 2006 takeover of Oerlikon, a major Swiss enterprise.

by John Helmer - Thursday, September 23rd, 2010
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