Russia's beleaguered oil giant Yukos broke ties Monday with the last of six core shareholders who once controlled the company but are now all facing jail or exile in what many see as a politically-driven campaign.
Yukos said in a statement posted on its Web site that it had dismissed Mikhail Brudno as president of Yukos RM, the company's refining and marketing arm.
Brudno, who owns more than 3 percent of Yukos, was charged last month with embezzlement, joining the other five core company shareholders being pursued by the legal authorities either in Russia or abroad in exile.
"Being guided by a Yukos board of directors recommendation that no shareholders should interfere in the company's operational management, the Yukos management board adopted a decision today to relieve Mikhail Brudno of his duties as president of Yukos RM and as a member of the management board," the statement said.
Yukos, Russia's largest oil producer, has been in prosecutors' firing line since June and its main shareholder and Russia's richest man, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, was jailed in late October on fraud and tax evasion charges.
Deputy chairman of the board Yury Beilin said in an interview published Monday that "in order to preserve the company" Yukos would restrict "the participation of Yukos employees or resources in any political or other activities of shareholders."
Khodorkovsky resigned as chief executive in November. The second-biggest shareholder, Leonid Nevzlin, who is in Israel, has been financing the election campaign of a liberal opposition candidate in March presidential elections.
Beilin also told the Vedomosti business daily that the company was likely to reduce its dividend payments. Yukos approved a record US$2 billion dividend payout in October last year.
"The management has suggested to the board of directors that we reassess our dividend policy this year to take into account the additional risks which require establishing a financial reserve," he added.
Another company manager told the daily on condition of anonymity that Yukos would now stop using aggressive tax minimization schemes.
Yukos has been hit with a US$3.4 billion tax bill by the fiscal authorities who claim the company misused tax loopholes to evade taxes.
The attack on Yukos is widely seen as politically motivated after Khodorkovsky angered President Vladimir Putin by financing opposition parties before December parliamentary elections, in which pro-Kremlin forces eventually triumphed.
"The board of directors has to do everything it can to remedy the situation," commented Valery Nesterov, an analyst from Troika Dialog brokerage.
"That's why they are trying to build up protection and keep the company intact, by putting distance between them and shareholders," he added.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS