InfoAnda - Analysis: Exxon deal sets stage for Putin return to Kremlin |

Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case
Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They

Taiwan denies boycotting Australian film festival
Thursday, August 6, 2009

AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e

Merkel's support dips, regional ally resigns International
Thursday, September 3, 2009

By Sarah Marsh and Noah Barkin

BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German

Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who

Asian markets mixed after Wall Street rally
Wednesday, March 18, 2009

By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an

The Nation's weather | 19 September 2009
Jackson wasn't ready for London comeback: father | 14 July 2009
Rwandan leader's widow arrested in France | 2 March 2010

Elton John concert to go ahead despite Mayan anger | 3 April 2010

Forum Views () Forum Replies ()

Read more with google mobile : Analysis: Exxon deal sets stage for Putin return to Kremlin |

Edition: U.S. Africa Arabic Argentina Brazil Canada China France Germany India Italy Japan Latin America Mexico Russia Spain United Kingdom Home Business Business Home Economy Technology Media Small Business Green Business Legal Deals Earnings Summits Business Video Markets Markets Home U.S. Markets European Markets Asian Markets Global Market Data Indices M&A Stocks Bonds Currencies Commodities Futures Funds peHUB World World Home U.S. Brazil China Euro Zone Japan Mexico Russia Afghan Journal Africa Journal India Insight Global News Journal Pakistan: Now or Never? World Video Politics Politics Home Front Row Washington Politics Video Technology Technology Home MediaFile Science Tech Video Opinion Opinion Home Chrystia Freeland Felix Salmon Breakingviews George Chen Bernd Debusmann Gregg Easterbrook James Pethokoukis James Saft John Wasik Christopher Whalen Ian Bremmer Mohamed El-Erian Lawrence Summers The Great Debate Unstructured Finance Newsmaker MuniLand Money Money Home Analyst Research Global Investing MuniLand Reuters Money Alerts Watchlist Portfolio Stock Screener Fund Screener Personal Finance Video Life & Culture Health Sports Arts Faithworld Business Traveler Left Field Entertainment Oddly Enough Lifestyle Video Pictures Pictures Home Reuters Photographers Full Focus Video Article Comments (0) Full Focus Editor's choice A selection of our best photos from the past 24 hours. Full Article Follow Reuters Facebook Twitter RSS YouTube Read White House could unveil mortgage plan next week | 9:43am EDT Labor leaders must pay for parade if GOP banned, mayor says 30 Aug 2011 HP resurrects TouchPad for one last go at the iPad 5:47am EDT University bucks convention in Texas with vegan dining hall 30 Aug 2011 Florida lawmaker hands out belts under saggy pants ban 30 Aug 2011 Discussed 168 Labor leaders must pay for parade if GOP banned, mayor says 121 White House to nominate Krueger as top economist 107 Astronomers discover planet made of diamond Watched Buenos Aires Fashion week sizzles Mon, Aug 22 2011 Experimental plane reaches 13,000 mph Fri, Aug 26 2011 Libyans scour bombed military base for "spoils of war" Tue, Aug 30 2011 Analysis: Exxon deal sets stage for Putin return to Kremlin Tweet Share this Email Print Related News New blow for BP in Russia as office raided 11:40am EDT Police say three bombers behind Chechnya attack 9:57am EDT Exxon, Rosneft tie up in Russian Arctic, U.S 6:24am EDT Instant View: Rosneft, Exxon to explore oil in Russian Arctic Tue, Aug 30 2011 Russia delays space mission after crash Mon, Aug 29 2011 Analysis & Opinion Europe, cooperation and train wrecks Step up, Mr Prime Minister Related Topics World » Russia » Russian President Dmitry Medvedev (R) and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin attend a wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb of Unknown Soldier on the eve of Victory Day celebrations in Moscow, May 8, 2011. Credit: Reuters/Misha Japaridze/Pool By Douglas Busvine MOSCOW | Wed Aug 31, 2011 10:14am EDT MOSCOW (Reuters) - Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's blessing of a deal with ExxonMobil to extract oil and gas from the Russian Arctic sends a strong signal that he will return to the Kremlin in an election next year. Neither Putin, 58, who was president from 2000 to 2008, nor President Dmitry Medvedev, 45, has announced whether they will run for the presidency next March. But Putin demonstrated he is firmly in charge and ready to remain Russia's paramount leader by securing the deal with Exxon after rivalries in Russia's dual power structure wrecked a similar agreement this year with British oil company BP. "It confirms my personal view that Putin is coming back. He can guarantee the deal much more effectively if he is ensconced back in the Kremlin," said Vladimir Frolov, president of LEFF Group, a government relations and PR firm based in Moscow. Putin made clear he was the key figure behind Rosneft's deal with Exxon by attending the signing ceremony on Tuesday and saying it would open "new horizons." The Kremlin made no comment, with officials saying it was a government matter. In cutting a deal with Putin rather than Medvedev, Exxon is betting that the presidential election will put a formal seal on Putin's authority. He could then serve for 12 more years because the presidential term has been increased to six years. As premier, Putin ranks below Medvedev, but is more influential under a power-sharing agreement worked out when he helped usher his protege into the Kremlin in 2008 because the constitution did not allow him a third successive term. Exxon will hope Putin's backing can help it avoid the mistakes BP made in its attempted alliance with state-controlled Rosneft this year. The British company was sued by the wealthy partners in its existing Russian venture, TNK-BP, after it forged its alliance with Rosneft. "The previous deal with BP unraveled because there were competing groups. It's no secret that Medvedev's people supported (the TNK-BP partners) and encouraged them to sue," said Frolov. "For Exxon, political risk is much reduced compared to what BP faced -- there are no Russian oligarchs in the Exxon deal structure." SECHIN BOUNCES BACK Senior political sources told Reuters in July that Putin was close to a decision to seek to return to Russia's highest office even if he has not yet made a final decision. Polls show either he or Medvedev would be likely to win the March election comfortably. They are unlikely to run against each other or to both step aside in favor of a third candidate, the sources said. The Exxon-Rosneft deal has clearly confirmed Putin's dominance over Medvedev, profiling him as a leader with a long-term strategy to strengthen Russia as a global energy power. And by giving his blessing to the Exxon deal, Putin has strayed into Medvedev's foreign policy competence and puts his own stamp on the 'reset' in bilateral relations with the United States sought by President Barack Obama. "Putin is demonstrating that he is the person in charge and if Exxon Mobil had tried to make the deal with Medvedev, nothing would have happened," said Pavel Salin, an analyst at Russia's Center for Current Politics. "Even if they had got something with Medvedev, the deal could have collapsed at any time, whereas Putin will be the guarantor." The Exxon-Rosneft deal also marks a comeback for Putin's energy lieutenant, Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin, who was forced to resign as Rosneft chairman this year in a purge of ministers from the boards of state firms ordered by Medvedev. Sechin is widely regarded as the informal leader of the so-called "siloviki," a group of top officials with a security-service background that is often at odds with a liberal faction that backs Medvedev's modernization agenda. Although Sechin quickly hired an ally to be Rosneft chairman and retained control of strategy, the Exxon deal delivers a strong political riposte after Medvedev, who criticized the government in May for failing to do due diligence on the BP-Rosneft deal. That agreement foundered on a non-compete clause in the TNK-BP shareholder agreement, and was not a result of the political risk of doing business in Russia, said Karen Kostanian, energy analyst at Bank of America-Merrill Lynch in Moscow. "The assumption behind the BP deal was that they could violate the TNK-BP shareholder agreement and then have dinner with Putin, who would club the oligarchs over the head," said Kostanian. "Why investors assigned an equity risk premium to Russia, and not BP, escapes me. It was a BP screw-up, and the Russian government did not meddle." Analysts played down the risks to Exxon of staking a multi-billion-dollar wager on Putin's ability to uphold a deal that would probably not deliver any significant flows of Arctic oil even if he serves another two terms. They noted that the up-front costs of the exploration effort, at $3.2 billion, represented a relatively small down-payment on total investments that Russian officials say could run into the hundreds of billions of dollars. "Which is more risky today: Iran, Libya or Russia?" said Kostanian. "As long as Russia needs technology and Exxon needs access to reserves, these people are safe for several years to come." (Writing by Douglas Busvine, Additional reporting by Guy Faulconbridge, Steve Gutterman and Denis Dyomkin; Editing by Jon Boyle) World Russia Related Quotes and News Company Price Related News Tweet this Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints We welcome comments that advance the story through relevant opinion, anecdotes, links and data. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. For more information on our comment policy, see http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2010/09/27/toward-a-more-thoughtful-conversation-on-stories/ Comments (0) Be the first to comment on reuters.com. Add yours using the box above. Social Stream (What's this?) Edition: U.S. Africa Arabic Argentina Brazil Canada China France Germany India Italy Japan Latin America Mexico Russia Spain United Kingdom Back to top Reuters.com Business Markets World Politics Technology Opinion Money Pictures Videos Site Index Mobile Legal Bankruptcy Law California Legal New York Legal Securities Law Support & Contact Contact Us Advertise With Us Connect with Reuters Twitter Facebook LinkedIn RSS Newsletters About Privacy Policy Terms of Use Our Flagship financial information platform incorporating Reuters Insider An ultra-low latency infrastructure for electronic trading and data distribution A connected approach to governance, risk and compliance Our next generation legal research platform Our global tax workstation Thomsonreuters.com About Thomson Reuters Investor Relations Careers Contact Us Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests. NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.

Other News on Wednesday, 31 August 2011
Strauss-Kahn back in France within days: Socialist leader Aubry |
Jeremy Shockey to the rescue: Panthers tight end saves teammate from choking
Eight killed in Chechnya suicide attack: report |
Beyoncé and Jay-Z baby news breaks Twitter records
Hundreds still missing in Nepal years after end of war
Analysis: New nadir in Mexican drugs war puts PAN in trouble |
U.S. supports Senator McCain, EPP leader Martens’ call for release of Tymoshenko
Accused U.S. airmen shooter appears in German court |
Pentagon reiterates that al Qaeda in Pakistan serious threat
Survey: Melbourne bumps Vancouver as world’s most liveable city
Boeing Co. to deliver upgraded 737 carriers in 2017
CNN acquires iPad magazine developer
Nation's disaster relief agency FEMA says it is nearly broke
Mexican facing deportation claims to be DEA spy
Graphene finding could lead to super-fast Internet |
Oracle brings new claims against HP in Itanium case |
Freemium businesses boom as computing costs fall |
Limelight sells EyeWonder unit for $66 million |
Google investor sues board over online drug ads |
Angelina Jolie dismisses talk of marriage, babies |
Kids of 9/11 get a voice on TV as 10th anniversary looms |
Edinburgh Fringe shines through August rain |
Gaddafi loyalists hold out during Eid holiday |
Another Grand Slam champ ousted at U.S. Open as Li Na upset in first round
Syrian troops raid Hama homes, residents say |
Former Vols coach Bruce Pearl leaving game
Pats wideout Wes Welker OK after neck injury;
Price is right for Ohio State tickets after scandal
Real Housewives of Beverly Hills to air special that addresses Armstrong suicide
Khamenei warns of security risk for Iran elections |
Nevada Wallops Bank of America With Sweeping Suit; Nation-wide Foreclosure Settlement in Peril
Courtney Thorne-Smith heads back to "Two and a Half Men"
Sudan sends complaint against South to U.N. Council |
Funeral home introduces cremation alternative with machine that dissolves body
China, Russia rush to rebuild North Korea's transport links |
Cuba dissidents ask Church to stop harassment by state |
Sony, Toshiba, Hitachi to merge small display operations |
AT&T vows to bring back 5,000 U.S. jobs if merger approved |
HP resurrects TouchPad for one last go at the iPad |
U.S. probes Oracle on African deals: report |
RIM rises on new BlackBerrys, changing landscape |
Samsung says not planning sharp cut in LCD output |
Angelina Jolie dismisses talk of marriage, babies |
Daryl Hannah arrested in White House protest |
Analysis: Exxon deal sets stage for Putin return to Kremlin |
Kosovan confesses to shooting U.S. airmen in Germany |
U.S. factory orders up 2.4 percent in July
Nigeria says Boko Haram, al Qaeda-link behind U.N. attack |
U.S. ready to work with Nepal’s Maoist leader
WikiLeaks says website was target of cyber attack |
Malaysia rejects FAO’s bird flu warning
Killer "Black Death" bacteria most likley extinct
Suspected suicide bombing kills 10 in Pakistan |
Justin Bieber gets into Ferrari fender bender
For expat Africans, patriotism may pay |
Man arrested at Miami airport with snakes in pants
Newborn survival low in U.S. – WHO study
Police say three bombers behind Chechnya attack |
Jogging fights beer belly fat better than weights
Libyan rebels see Gaddafi’s end within a week
Libyan rebels believe they have ‘right to kill’ Gaddafi
U.S. files to block AT&T deal for T-Mobile |
Sony's tablets may be a tough sell with price tag |
Financial Times pulls its apps from Apple store |
Motorola deal offers Google tax, patent benefits |
WikiLeaks says website was target of cyber attack |
Sony sets date for mobile 3D headset Japan launch |
Headphone maker Skullcandy buys European distributor |
George Clooney explores dirty politics in Venice film |
Free drama of popular protest rocks London stage |
A Minute With: Barbra Streisand's songwriters |
Beyonce shows off baby bump at MTV video awards |
Greece at new risk of being pushed off euro
Bodies of missing Tenn. mom, Jo Ann Bain, and daughter found
Female Breasts Are Bigger Than Ever
AMD Trinity Accelerated Processing Units Now in Volume Production
The Avengers (2012 film), made the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time
AMD to Start Production of piledriver
Ivy Bridge Quad-Core, Four-Thread Desktop CPUs
Islamists Protest Lady Gaga's Concert in Indonesia
Japan Successfully Broadcasts an 8K Signal Over the Air
ECB boosts loans to 1 trillion Euro to stop credit crunch
Egypt : Mohammed Morsi won with 52 percent
What do you call 100,000 Frenchmen with their hands up
AMD Launches AMD Embedded R-Series APU Platform
Fed Should not Ignore Emerging Market Crisis
Fed casts shadow over India, emerging markets
Why are Chinese tourists so rude? A few insights

USD EUR - 1 year graph	VPN on MacOSX	BlogMeter 1.01