Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev has called for a common media and information space across the Commonwealth of Independent States. At the same time, he pointed to problems facing Russian TV channels and printed media in a number of former Soviet republics, the Komsomolskaya Pravda reports. Restrictions on Russian-language broadcasters imposed in the past few years amid the increasing presence of other foreign media clash with the spirit of partnership, the newspaper quotes the president as saying. Ethnic Russians account for a considerable part of the population in most CIS member-states.
A Russian version of the U.S. “Silicon Valley” may appear on the basis of a business school in the village of Skolkovo near Moscow. The Gazeta online newspaper says the choice of the venue was determined by its proximity to the capital and convenient transport infrastructure. The future research compound will have up to 100,000 tenants.
Part of Russian enterprises may be granted long-term tax exemptions, the Vremya Novostei reports. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told the Cabinet on Thursday that tax incentives were crucial to building an innovative economy. He said it was important to exempt noncommercial organizations in the sphere of education, culture and medicine from income tax payments.
Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan will start running a single customs territory in three months, the Rossiyskaya Gazeta says. The customs union between the three countries may turn into a currency union to boost integration of financial markets and to use national currencies in mutual trade. Meanwhile, about 60% of trade operations between the three countries are conducted in national currencies.
The Third International Circus Arts Festival finished in the city of Izhevsk, Urals, the Rossiyskaya Gazeta says. This time the festival brought together companies from 17 countries but all major prizes came to the Russian tamers and acrobats. In 2010, circus groups from Russia have already won the grand-prix in Budapest, a special jury prize in Monte-Carlo and a bronze in Albacete.
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