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Рубрики ВВС; Политек; Космос; Версия для печати

Враги уже волнуются, как это российский банк залез в секретные спутники ЕС

Краткое содержание статьи в английской газете - "банк Путина" купил 4% EADS, евродепутат-полупиндос от тори говорит, что надо задать вопросы, как это российский госбанк подобрался к чувствительным военным программам EADS, особенно космическим

Russian bank builds up 5pc stake in EADS
By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard 
(Filed: 30/08/2006)


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2006/08/30/cnrussia30.xml





Comment: UK risks being left defenceless in face of Russian advance
Gazprom nurtures links with Germany and France

Russia's second-biggest state bank has quietly amassed 5pc of the European aerospace and defence giant EADS, fuelling speculation that President Vladimir Putin is aiming to muscle into the Franco-German venture as a full strategic partner.

Vneshtorgbank (VTB) has bought an estimated $1.2bn (?634m) of EADS stock over the past two months, taking advantage of a share crash caused by delays in the Airbus A380 superjumbo to buy cheaply.
 

President Putin stands in front of map of Russia
and Commonwealth of Independent States

The stock rose 2.03pc to €23.10 (?15.61) on the Paris bourse after the covert acquisitions were leaked to the Moscow newspaper Vedomosti, but is still down 35pc since April.

Vedomosti said VTB - the former Soviet trade bank - planned to continue building its stake, now nearing 4.8pc. Officials refused to comment on the report.

Russian analysts said the bank was undoubtedly buying the stock on behalf of Russian United Aircraft, a state-venture launched by President Putin in February to revive Russia's rusting aircraft industry.

In its heyday, the Soviet Union produced a quarter of the world's aircraft, including passenger jets for most of the Communist world as well as highly-prized MiG fighters. It has since been shut out of commercial aviation as Airbus and Boeing carve up the market between them.

EADS already holds an interest in the Russian umbrella group through a 10pc holding in Irkut, maker of Sukhoi jets. The VTB purchases of EADS stock point to the creation of a complex Franco-German-Russian cross-holding.

Brigadier Geoffrey Van Orden, a Tory MEP and vice-chair of the European Parliament's foreign affairs committee, said the Kremlin stake raised a host of concerns.

"There are all sorts of security implications since EADS has some very sensitive defence contracts, not least in the UK where EADS Astrium builds satellites and military communications," he said.

"We are talking about a Russian state bank, which would mean even more government control over EADS on top of all the problems of French state interference. It would further upset relations with the US which is already reluctant to share military technology," he said.

Until now, the push for closer defence and aeronautic ties with Moscow has mostly come from France and Germany, which formed a "triple alliance" with President Putin in 2003 to oppose the Iraq war.

French president Jacques Chirac has long hoped to draw Moscow deeper into the EU's fledgling defence arm, viewing Russia's military might and strategic depth as a crucial if Europe is ever to match the US as a global superpower.

Indirectly, Russia is supplanting Britain in the EADS/Airbus project, since BAE Systems is selling its 20pc stake in Airbus.