Dalnergo power cuts put Primorye in dark
Primorye electricity provider Dalenergo is cutting power to companies and apartments from 6:30 a.m. to midnight every day as workers at most of its plants went on strike for back wages. Some residential blocks werewithout electricity 16-18 hours per day. The most persistent corporate defaulters on energy and heat payments were cut off entirely. The krai was short 200 MW — a third of normal consumption. Workers struck at the Vladivostok Thermal and Electric Station No. 2, and are still striking at the Artyom Thermal and Electric Station, and Primorskaya Power Station’s railway and mine in Luchegorsk. The strikers are demanding wage arrears through February.

Vietnam consul regrets chilly reception
Consul General of Vietnam Do Van Zato met with Ussurisk Chief Executive Vladimir Vedernikov recently to talk about possible joint ventures and prospects for cultural exchange and trade cooperation. Do Van Zato complained that Russian law enforcement agents in Primorye beat, victimize and extort money from Vietnamese citizens. He regretted that the formerly friendly ties between the two countries had chilled.

Thai warship visit will be a first to Vlad
For the first time, Thai warships will visit Vladivostok July 14-19. The Thai frigates Taksin and Mekut Rejikuman will sail in under the command of Rear Admiral Vadcharamur Pirasak. A Pacific Fleet submarine and tow-boat paid a visit to Thailand last October in honor of the 100th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. The Thai Navy is returning the gesture.

Russia, Japan top brass polish up naval plans
Pacific Fleet top brass met with seven Japanese senior officers headed by Self-Defense Forces Deputy Chief of Operations Motobu Satake July 7-10 to discuss plans for joint maneuvers in late July. They determined the number of participating ships, rescue exercises, and other details. These are the second rescue maneuvers at sea held by the two neighbors.

U.S. Russia ready for joint sail-and-save
A Russian-American conference recently reviewed plans for Cooperation at Sea exercises to run Aug. 4-10. The exercises will take place in Ussurisky Bay and on the shores of Desantnaya and Ketovaya Bays. The 7th Fleet USS Germantown, under the flag of Rear Admiral Highfill, will represent the U.S. The Russians will send a landing craft, destroyer and five other ships commanded by Rear Admiral Nikolai Temeryov.

Traffic rolls on new Trans-Siberian bridge
Traffic started on a new Trans-Siberian Railway bridge across the Amur River near Khabarovsk June 27. The two-tiered structure has an automobile passageway on top. Construction of the bridge, which allows increased traffic on this stretch of the Trans-Siberian, began in 1992 and cost 1 billion rubles. The old bridge was in operation for 100 years. Officials expect the bridge to recover its cost in five years.

New Chinese market opens in Vlad
The launching of a yellow balloon marked the opening of a new Chinese market at 49 Balyayeva Street in Vladivostok recently. The market, owned by the Russian company ORPOK-Business, is home to 40 vending containers but is expected to expand thanks to incoming Chinese traders from the Bachurina market in the Balyayeva area. A large overpass recently built near the Bachurina market has forced Chinese traders to move. The Bachurina market was once the largest Chinese market in Vladivostok.

North Koreans nabbed in closed zone
Border guards from Nakhodka recently seized a North Korean fishing boat for sailing into a restricted warned Dudnik zone in Peter the Great Gulf’s Vityaz Bay. Documents onboard revealed that the ship sailed from the port of Zarubino for Japan July 1 with a load of sea urchin. The boat diverged from its route and ended up in the closed area. An investigation is underway.

Fee to fly from Artyom canceled
Artyom City Court ruled that the 100-ruble fee leveled by the Artyom Duma on passengers flying out of its airport is illegal and invalid. The fee, established last February, was meant to pay for completing construction of the airport’s international terminal. The Artyom city prosecutor appealed the fee this past spring, but the Duma had ignored the appeal.

Duma deputy injured
Federal Duma deputy Vladimir Grishukov was seriously injured in a car crash near Shkotovo village about 50 km northeast of Vladivostok June 26. According to the police, a drunk local resident drove his Toyota Chaser into the opposing lane and collided with the deputy’s Toyota Tercel. The Tercel was thrown onto a passing Russian-made Neva. Grishukov, a Communist member of the Federal Duma’s committee for non-governmental and religious organizations, suffered a concussion, chest injury and forearm fracture. The Neva’s driver broke his left leg. The Neva’s two passengers, one a child, were also injured. The accident’s instigator was uninjured.

Compiled from press reports