We've 'nothing to fear' from Russian mafia
Wednesday March 04 2009
THE Russian Deputy Prime Minister yesterday assured Irish businesses that they have nothing to fear from the Russian mafia.
Dmitri Kozak, visiting yesterday as part of the biggest Russian trade mission in a decade, said the Russian government had done a lot to tackle the problem.
"Russian companies and foreign companies operating in Russia face the same amount of criminality as in any other country. So the problem I believe from the government's side has been tackled," he said.
Irish firms exported €1.5bn worth of goods and services last year to Russia, which is the world's eleventh largest economy. The Russian mafia, comprising a range of groups, has been linked to extortion of foreign businesspeople, money-laundering, drug-dealing, prostitution and global banking fraud.
Boosting
Mr Kozak, a close ally of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, met with Tanaiste Mary Coughlan in Dublin yesterday to discuss ways of boosting trade between the two countries.
He said that the ban on Irish pork exports to Russia in the wake of last December's dioxin scare had been dealt with.
"We had agreement on when and how to resume the pork supply, and what to do with the contaminated pork that has been supplied," he said.
The Russian government has agreed to study a report being prepared by the Irish Government which outlines the actions taken to prevent a similar pork contamination crisis in the future.
Although no specific date was provided for when Irish pork exports would resume, Ms Coughlan expressed optimism about the situation. "There has been a considerable amount of progress and I would like to thank the Russian Deputy Prime Minister for facilitating that," she said.
Ms Coughlan and Mr Kozak also discussed last month's oil slick off the southwest coast, which was caused by a discharge from a Russian Navy aircraft carrier. Mr Kozak said he appreciated the information provided by the Irish Government on the "environmental accident".
"So we are also thankful for the opportunity to deal with the issue as quickly and efficiently as possible with the participation of the Russian Ministry of Defence," he said.
But Mr Kozak is resisting the State's attempts to get the Russian government to pay for the cost of monitoring the oil slick, which amounted to €250,000.
Although there were fears that the oil slick would pollute the south-west coast, it dispersed due to good weather without causing any serious environmental damage.
- MICHAEL BRENNAN
