themoscowtimes--2020-11-25--Russian Hospital Fined for Coronavirus Patient ‘Cover-Up’

A court in the city of Ufa handed a 200,000 ruble ( $ 2,600 ) fine to the Kuvatov Republic Clinical Hospital on Monday after finding them guilty of withholding information on about 1,414 coronavirus patients in September .
A Russian hospital has been fined for concealing more than 1,000 coronavirus patients earlier this fall , with the regional health officials blaming the national authorities for a misunderstanding .
The republic of Bashkortostan , where Ufa is the administrative center , has reported 13,446 Covid-19 cases and 76 deaths since the start of the pandemic .
The hospital ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ watchdog Rospotrebnadzor , which oversees the national Covid-19 response , has led to an “ unconstrained ” spread of the disease , the state-run RIA Novosti news agency quoted the court as saying .
The hospital ’ s attorneys said they will appeal the decision .
A Kuvatov hospital epidemiologist was fined under similar charges in August , the state-run TASS news agency reported .
The hospital was closed for two-week quarantine and its chief doctor fired after a patient there tested positive for Covid-19 posthumously in April .
The Bashkortostan health administration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ secure channel for the hospital to share the Covid-19 patients ’ personal information , the RBC news website reported Tuesday .
“ There was no cover-up , ” the administration was quoted as saying .
“ All the data was sent to Rospotrebnadzor but not in the proper form .
They were sent total amounts while Rospotrebnadzor demanded the patients ’ personal data , ” it added .
Authorities say Russia ’ s coronavirus infections have nearly tripled from 6.1 to 17.1 per 100,000 people .
The total caseload has surpassed 2.1 million @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in recent weeks .

A court in the city of Ufa handed a 200,000 ruble ($2,600) fine to the Kuvatov Republic Clinical Hospital on Monday after finding them guilty of withholding information on about 1,414 coronavirus patients in September.
A Russian hospital has been fined for concealing more than 1,000 coronavirus patients earlier this fall, with the regional health officials blaming the national authorities for a misunderstanding.
The republic of Bashkortostan, where Ufa is the administrative center, has reported 13,446 Covid-19 cases and 76 deaths since the start of the pandemic.
The hospital’s failure to provide information to consumer safety watchdog Rospotrebnadzor, which oversees the national Covid-19 response, has led to an “unconstrained” spread of the disease, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency quoted the court as saying.
The hospital’s attorneys said they will appeal the decision.
A Kuvatov hospital epidemiologist was fined under similar charges in August, the state-run TASS news agency reported. The hospital was closed for two-week quarantine and its chief doctor fired after a patient there tested positive for Covid-19 posthumously in April.
The Bashkortostan health administration blamed Rospotrebnadzor for failing to provide a secure channel for the hospital to share the Covid-19 patients’ personal information, the RBC news website reported Tuesday.
“There was no cover-up,” the administration was quoted as saying.
“All the data was sent to Rospotrebnadzor but not in the proper form. They were sent total amounts while Rospotrebnadzor demanded the patients’ personal data,” it added.
Authorities say Russia’s coronavirus infections have nearly tripled from 6.1 to 17.1 per 100,000 people. The total caseload has surpassed 2.1 million with record numbers of infections and deaths in recent weeks.


themoscowtimes--2020-11-24--Key Belarus Opposition Figure Charged With Graft and Fraud

For over three months Belarus has been gripped by historic protests against the re-election of strongman leader Lukashenko , 66 , who secured a sixth term in power after jailing several of his political opponents .
Belarus authorities said Tuesday that opposition politician Viktor Babaryko — who until his arrest had intended to run against President Alexander Lukashenko in the August election — was charged with corruption and money laundering .
`` The KGB investigations directorate has completed the preliminary investigation into the criminal case against top executives of Belgazprombank , '' the Belarusian KGB , which retained its Soviet-era @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Tuesday .
Babaryko — who was head of Belgazprombank bank before entering politics — is accused of receiving bribes and `` laundering funds obtained by criminal means , '' the statement added .
Several other senior executives of Belgazprombank — the Belarusian branch of a bank belonging to Russian energy giant Gazprom — are also being prosecuted .
According to the KGB , `` all the defendants have admitted their guilt in the crimes of which they are accused , with the exception of Viktor Babaryko . ''
Babaryko , 57 , was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the presidential race .
He has since remained in police custody .
Belarus authorities accused Babaryko of being responsible for fraud and money laundering of an amount exceeding $ 60 million .
The head of his presidential election campaign , Maria Kolesnikova , later joined the team of Svetlana Tikhanovskaya , the wife of another imprisoned opponent of Lukashenko , who took her husband 's place in the polls and quickly gained popularity .
Tikhanovskaya was forced into exile in EU member Lithuania several days after the election , while Kolesnikova , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , was arrested in September for `` harming national security . ''
Lukashenko 's opponents believe Tikhanovskaya was the true winner of the election and continue taking to the streets of the capital Minsk every weekend demanding the president 's resignation .
Lukashenko , who has the firm backing of Moscow , has refused to step down and instead has suggested reforms to the constitution to placate the opposition .

For over three months Belarus has been gripped by historic protests against the re-election of strongman leader Lukashenko, 66, who secured a sixth term in power after jailing several of his political opponents.
Belarus authorities said Tuesday that opposition politician Viktor Babaryko — who until his arrest had intended to run against President Alexander Lukashenko in the August election — was charged with corruption and money laundering.
"The KGB investigations directorate has completed the preliminary investigation into the criminal case against top executives of Belgazprombank," the Belarusian KGB, which retained its Soviet-era name, said in a statement on Tuesday.
Babaryko — who was head of Belgazprombank bank before entering politics — is accused of receiving bribes and "laundering funds obtained by criminal means," the statement added.
Several other senior executives of Belgazprombank — the Belarusian branch of a bank belonging to Russian energy giant Gazprom — are also being prosecuted.
According to the KGB, "all the defendants have admitted their guilt in the crimes of which they are accused, with the exception of Viktor Babaryko."
Babaryko, 57, was arrested last June, two months ahead of the presidential race.
He has since remained in police custody.
Belarus authorities accused Babaryko of being responsible for fraud and money laundering of an amount exceeding $60 million.
The head of his presidential election campaign, Maria Kolesnikova, later joined the team of Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, the wife of another imprisoned opponent of Lukashenko, who took her husband's place in the polls and quickly gained popularity.
Tikhanovskaya was forced into exile in EU member Lithuania several days after the election, while Kolesnikova, who also became a major opposition figure, was arrested in September for "harming national security."
Lukashenko's opponents believe Tikhanovskaya was the true winner of the election and continue taking to the streets of the capital Minsk every weekend demanding the president's resignation.
Lukashenko, who has the firm backing of Moscow, has refused to step down and instead has suggested reforms to the constitution to placate the opposition.


themoscowtimes--2020-11-24--Ozon Shares Jump 40% on U.S. IPO

Ozon Shares Jump 40% on U.S. IPO

When trading got underway in the U.S. later Tuesday evening , Ozon ’ s shares immediately leapt 40 % to stand above $ 42 a share .
Initial trading was delayed for a few hours on the Nasdaq exchange , meaning Russian investors , where Ozon has a secondary listing , were first to pile in , pushing the ruble share price up by more than a third .
It was the first chance Russia ’ s swelling cohort of retail investors had to snap up the shares , as Russian regulations prohibited non-professionals from taking part in the IPO @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stock market debut has been strong in the weeks leading up to the IPO .
Ozon 's American Depository Receipts ( ADRs ) , a financial instrument representing underlying shares , were sold to investors who had subscribed for the IPO at $ 30 each — comfortably above the $ 22.50- $ 27.50 price range Ozon had anticipated when it outlined its prospectus earlier in the month .
The first-day jump gives Ozon a valuation of more than $ 7 billion in what analysts saw as a wildly successful launch .
Ozon is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and is placing itself to become Russia ’ s answer to Amazon with a plan to consolidate and dominate the fast-growing online retail space over the coming years .
Shares in Russian online retail giant Ozon surged by more than 40 % in the first minutes of trading after the most eagerly anticipated Russian initial public offering ( IPO ) in years .
Ozon raked in more than $ 1 billion from the IPO and a simultaneous private share sale to long-time investors Baring Vostok and Sistema .
It is expected to put @ @ @ @ @ @ @ That is more than double the firm ’ s initial plans when news of the IPO was first announced earlier this year .
By 21:40 Moscow-time , shares had slipped back slightly to stand just under $ 41 — an increase of 35 % on the IPO price .
The listing was only the second U.S. stock market launch for a Russian company since 2014 , when Russia ’ s annexation of Crimea , imposition of sanctions and oil price crash put a freeze on big Russian dealmaking .
It is also the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in any stock market launch — Russian or foreign — since metals and energy giant EN+ was valued at $ 8 billion in its 2017 IPO on the London Stock Exchange , according to data from corporate analytics firm Mergermarket .
Ozon was founded 22 years ago , but has struggled to turn a profit .
In 2011 , investors had to step in with a new round of funding to “ save ” the business , venture investor Leonid Boguslavsky told business site The Bell recently .
The company ’ s prospects @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have soared since it launched an online marketplace in 2018 .
Sales volumes have more than doubled over the last 12 months — thanks in part to the coronavirus pandemic — and analysts expect Ozon will continue to expand rapidly and eat up market share in a Russian e-commerce industry which has significantly lagged its international peers in size and maturity .
The market is also highly fragmented .
Russia ’ s five largest online retailers and marketplaces account for under a quarter of the total industry .
By comparison , Amazon alone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and more than a third in key European countries .
“ Ozon ’ s investment activity will continue , as the expansion of the marketplace requires serious investments in offline logistics infrastructure , ” Alfa Bank analyst Anna Kurbatova said in a recent note .
She estimated that the Russian e-commerce market will grow at an annual rate of around 33 % in the coming years — a rapid expansion , but from a low base .
Chasing a rapid-growth model charted by many tech companies , Ozon has prioritized gaining market @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The company ’ s bottom line has improved this year , but it posted almost 13 billion rubles ( $ 170 million ) in losses during the first nine months .
The IPO proceeds — more than $ 1 billion — will help the retail giant fund what analysts predict will be a rapid expansion .
Despite rival Wildberries being three times Ozon ’ s size and the first online retailer to rake in 100 million rubles ( $ 1.3 billion ) in quarterly revenue over Russia ’ s spring lockdown , Ozon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ smaller company as well-placed to make a challenge for the top place .
Leonid Delitsyn , head of IPO analysis at Finam Group has highlighted that Ozon is by far the most recognized brand among all online retailers , with twice the brand recognition of its nearest competitor .
Other leading players in Russia ’ s online market space include AliExpress Russia — a Russian version of Chinese e-commerce behemoth Alibaba — as well as Yandex Market , Citilink and electronics retailer MVideo .

When trading got underway in the U.S. later Tuesday evening, Ozon’s shares immediately leapt 40% to stand above $42 a share.
Initial trading was delayed for a few hours on the Nasdaq exchange, meaning Russian investors, where Ozon has a secondary listing, were first to pile in, pushing the ruble share price up by more than a third. It was the first chance Russia’s swelling cohort of retail investors had to snap up the shares, as Russian regulations prohibited non-professionals from taking part in the IPO itself.
Interest in Ozon’s stock market debut has been strong in the weeks leading up to the IPO. Ozon's American Depository Receipts (ADRs), a financial instrument representing underlying shares, were sold to investors who had subscribed for the IPO at $30 each — comfortably above the $22.50-$27.50 price range Ozon had anticipated when it outlined its prospectus earlier in the month.
The first-day jump gives Ozon a valuation of more than $7 billion in what analysts saw as a wildly successful launch.
Ozon is the country’s second-largest e-commerce player and is placing itself to become Russia’s answer to Amazon with a plan to consolidate and dominate the fast-growing online retail space over the coming years.
Shares in Russian online retail giant Ozon surged by more than 40% in the first minutes of trading after the most eagerly anticipated Russian initial public offering (IPO) in years.
Ozon raked in more than $1 billion from the IPO and a simultaneous private share sale to long-time investors Baring Vostok and Sistema. That is more than double the firm’s initial plans when news of the IPO was first announced earlier this year. It is expected to put the funds to use expanding its logistics network.
By 21:40 Moscow-time, shares had slipped back slightly to stand just under $41 — an increase of 35% on the IPO price.
The listing was only the second U.S. stock market launch for a Russian company since 2014, when Russia’s annexation of Crimea, imposition of sanctions and oil price crash put a freeze on big Russian dealmaking. It is also the largest valuation a Russian company has received in any stock market launch — Russian or foreign — since metals and energy giant EN+ was valued at $8 billion in its 2017 IPO on the London Stock Exchange, according to data from corporate analytics firm Mergermarket.
Serious investments
Ozon was founded 22 years ago, but has struggled to turn a profit. In 2011, investors had to step in with a new round of funding to “save” the business, venture investor Leonid Boguslavsky told business site The Bell recently.
The company’s prospects picked up after that, and revenues have soared since it launched an online marketplace in 2018. Sales volumes have more than doubled over the last 12 months — thanks in part to the coronavirus pandemic — and analysts expect Ozon will continue to expand rapidly and eat up market share in a Russian e-commerce industry which has significantly lagged its international peers in size and maturity.
The market is also highly fragmented. Russia’s five largest online retailers and marketplaces account for under a quarter of the total industry. By comparison, Amazon alone controls half of the U.S. e-commerce market, and more than a third in key European countries.
“Ozon’s investment activity will continue, as the expansion of the marketplace requires serious investments in offline logistics infrastructure,” Alfa Bank analyst Anna Kurbatova said in a recent note. She estimated that the Russian e-commerce market will grow at an annual rate of around 33% in the coming years — a rapid expansion, but from a low base.
Chasing a rapid-growth model charted by many tech companies, Ozon has prioritized gaining market share and boosting revenues over profit. The company’s bottom line has improved this year, but it posted almost 13 billion rubles ($170 million) in losses during the first nine months. The IPO proceeds — more than $1 billion — will help the retail giant fund what analysts predict will be a rapid expansion.
Despite rival Wildberries being three times Ozon’s size and the first online retailer to rake in 100 billion rubles ($1.3 billion) in quarterly revenue over Russia’s spring lockdown, Ozon’s backers and analysts see the smaller company as well-placed to make a challenge for the top place.
Leonid Delitsyn, head of IPO analysis at Finam Group has highlighted that Ozon is by far the most recognized brand among all online retailers, with twice the brand recognition of its nearest competitor.
Other leading players in Russia’s online market space include AliExpress Russia — a Russian version of Chinese e-commerce behemoth Alibaba — as well as Yandex Market, Citilink and electronics retailer MVideo.


themoscowtimes--2020-11-26--Russia's Top Diplomat Accuses West of Meddling in Belarus

Sergei Lavrov held talks with Lukashenko and other top officials in the capital Minsk , in the latest show of Russia 's support for authorities in its ex-Soviet neighbor .
Russia 's foreign minister accused the West of interfering in Belarus on Thursday as he met strongman leader Alexander Lukashenko who has faced months of protests over his disputed re-election .
Thousands of protesters demanding Lukashenko 's resignation have taken to the streets of Minsk every weekend since an Aug. 9 election that saw the 66-year-old claim the sixth term in office .
Protesters believe political novice Svetlana Tikhanovskaya , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's place in the presidential race , was the true winner .
Moscow has continued to back Lukashenko since the protests erupted , with several meetings between senior officials from both sides in recent months .
Speaking at a press conference with his Belarusian counterpart Vladimir Makei , Lavrov accused the United States and several European countries of `` gross interference '' in the domestic affairs of Belarus .
`` The wise Belarusian people are able to sort themselves out without any outside prompting and intrusive offers of unsolicited mediation , '' Lavrov @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of orchestrating the demonstrations and conspiring to have him removed after 26 years in power .
Lavrov said the West is `` using dirty methods of so-called color revolutions , including manipulating public opinion , supporting forces that are openly anti-government and promoting their radicalization . ''
Several Western leaders have refused to recognize the results of the election and voiced support for Tikhanovskaya , who fled to EU member Lithuania shortly after the vote .
The European Union has slapped sanctions on Lukashenko and a number of his allies citing election rigging @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Belarus police detained thousands of protesters in the first days of the demonstrations , with many reporting torture and abuse in custody .
They have continued to regularly arrest demonstrators and opposition figures , and several people have died during the protests .

Sergei Lavrov held talks with Lukashenko and other top officials in the capital Minsk, in the latest show of Russia's support for authorities in its ex-Soviet neighbor.
Russia's foreign minister on Thursday accused the West of interfering in Belarus as he met strongman leader Alexander Lukashenko who has faced months of protests over his disputed re-election.
Thousands of protesters demanding Lukashenko's resignation have taken to the streets of Minsk every weekend since an Aug. 9 election that saw the 66-year-old claim a sixth term in office.
Protesters believe political novice Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, 38, who took her jailed husband's place in the presidential race, was the true winner.
Moscow has continued to back Lukashenko since the protests erupted, with several meetings between senior officials from both sides in recent months.
Speaking at a press conference with his Belarusian counterpart Vladimir Makei, Lavrov accused the United States and several European countries of "gross interference" in the domestic affairs of Belarus.
"The wise Belarusian people are able to sort themselves out without any outside prompting and intrusive offers of unsolicited mediation," Lavrov said.
Lukashenko has accused Western countries of orchestrating the demonstrations and conspiring to have him removed after 26 years in power.
Lavrov said the West is "using dirty methods of so-called color revolutions, including manipulating public opinion, supporting forces that are openly anti-government and promoting their radicalization."
Several Western leaders have refused to recognize the results of the election and voiced support for Tikhanovskaya, who fled to EU member Lithuania shortly after the vote.
The European Union has slapped sanctions on Lukashenko and a number of his allies citing election rigging and a violent police crackdown on demonstrators.
Belarus police detained thousands of protesters in the first days of the demonstrations, with many reporting torture and abuse in custody.
They have continued to regularly arrest demonstrators and opposition figures, and several people have died during the protests.
Belarusian medics this week have been staging demonstrations in solidarity with a doctor who is facing criminal charges for disclosing information about an activist who died after he was taken into police custody.
Authorities insist that 31-year-old Roman Bondarenko, who died from brain damage earlier this month, was inebriated when police arrested him.
Medics and activists have been posting photos on social media of themselves holding up signs with "zero per mille" written on them — a reference to a measure of blood alcohol content — in support of doctor Artyom Sorokin who revealed that tests showed no trace of alcohol in Bondarenko's system.
Police have also arrested independent journalist Katerina Barysevich for writing an article about Bondarenko in which she disclosed the doctor's findings.
Earlier this week human rights group Viasna called for the "immediate and unconditional" release of Barysevich and two other Belarusian journalists who are in custody and facing criminal charges.
Several more journalists have been arrested during the protests and handed short jail sentences on administrative charges.


themoscowtimes--2020-11-26--Russia Test-Fires ‘Tsirkon’ Hypersonic Missile

Like the previous test launch held on President Vladimir Putin ’ s birthday on Oct. 7 , a Russian Navy frigate fired the Tsirkon that hit its target in the waters of northwestern Russia , the state-run TASS news agency reported .
The Russian military has test-launched its vaunted Tsirkon hypersonic cruise missile for at least the third time this year , the Defense Ministry announced Thursday .
A 20-second video of the latest launch released by the Defense Ministry showed the Tsirkon ’ s night-time launch from the Northern Fleet ’ s Admiral Gorshkov frigate in the White Sea @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reported that the Tsirkon traveled at a speed of more than Mach 8 , or around 10,000 kilometers per hour , and struck its intended target 450 kilometers away in the Barents Sea .
The Defense Ministry had disclosed the same flight parameters on Oct. 7 for the Tsirkon ’ s earlier test .
Previously , the Admiral Gorshkov test-fired the Tsirkon in January from the Barents Sea toward a ground target in the northern Urals over 500 kilometers to the east .
The Tsirkon program began in 2011 and entered the active @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Tsirkon as part of a new generation of advanced weapons in 2018 .
He has said the Tsirkon ground- and sea-based hypersonic rocket can fly at nine times the speed of sound and hit underwater and ground targets more than 1,000 kilometers away .
Putin has warned that Russia would be forced to deploy hypersonic nuclear missiles on submarines near U.S. waters in response to arms-control tensions .
Washington waved off Putin ’ s warnings as disingenuous propaganda .

Like the previous test launch held on President Vladimir Putin’s birthday on Oct. 7, a Russian Navy frigate fired the Tsirkon that hit its target in the waters of northwestern Russia, the state-run TASS news agency reported.
The Russian military has test-launched its vaunted Tsirkon hypersonic cruise missile for at least the third time this year, the Defense Ministry announced Thursday.
A 20-second video of the latest launch released by the Defense Ministry showed the Tsirkon’s night-time launch from the Northern Fleet’s Admiral Gorshkov frigate in the White Sea.
Citing the Defense Ministry, TASS reported that the Tsirkon traveled at a speed of more than Mach 8, or around 10,000 kilometers per hour, and struck its intended target 450 kilometers away in the Barents Sea.
The Defense Ministry had disclosed the same flight parameters on Oct. 7 for the Tsirkon’s earlier test. Previously, the Admiral Gorshkov test-fired the Tsirkon in January from the Barents Sea toward a ground target in the northern Urals over 500 kilometers to the east.
The Tsirkon program began in 2011 and entered the active testing stage in 2015.
Putin unveiled the Tsirkon as part of a new generation of advanced weapons in 2018. He has said the Tsirkon ground- and sea-based hypersonic rocket can fly at nine times the speed of sound and hit underwater and ground targets more than 1,000 kilometers away.
Putin has warned that Russia would be forced to deploy hypersonic nuclear missiles on submarines near U.S. waters in response to arms-control tensions. Washington waved off Putin’s warnings as disingenuous propaganda.