The Central Electoral Commission considers the operations of the "Yabloko Without Yavlinsky" movement unlawful
Buro Pravovoi Informatsii, September 29, 2003
On Sunday the meeting of the Central Electoral Commission adopted a decision to agree with the conclusions of the working group and request that the Interior Ministry of the RF and the General Office of the Public Prosecutor abolish the operations of the "Yabloko Without Yavlinsky" movement and make a number of its activists answerable for their actions.

The Central Electoral Commission recognised the "Yabloko Without Yavlinsky" movement as unlawful election propaganda
Rosbalt, September 29, 2003
The Head of the Central Electoral Commission Alexander Veshnyakov said that mass media should consider the illegality of the operations of the "Yabloko Without Yavlinsky" movement, when reporting on its activities.

Monopolists Are Being Put on the Meter
By Ksenia Veretennikova, Vremya Novostei, September 12, 2003
Yesterday the YABLOKO party disclosed to journalists the results of its action "Let's Put Monopolists on the Meter" which aimed to indicate toYABLOKO activists whether the utilities’ tariffs were fair.

President Putin: It's a Good Idea, It's a Correct Idea
By Vitaly Ivanov and Alexander Bekker, Vedomosti, September 29, 2003
While in the United States, President Vladimir Putin again spoke out against renationalisation and approved of the idea of an amnesty for capital. The Russian tax authorities had criticised this idea in spring. Putin met teachers and students of the University of Columbia on September 26. The Russian President was asked about his attitude to "plans for renationalisation or... proposals... announced by Grigory Yavlinsky".

Putin Wants New Law on Citizenship
The Associated Press, September 26, 2003
The presidential legal amendments, which were released Wednesday, waive some of the tough conditions for getting Russian citizenship that were contained in the citizenship law which went into force in July 2002.

YABLOKO proposes an alternative budget
Dumskaya Panorama, September 25, 2003
...the main task was to overcome poverty which today threatens not only democracy and the economy, but even the federative structure in Russia.

Grigory Yavlinsky criticizes the draft budget for 2004
Anchor: Olga Belova, NTV television channel, "Segodnya" programme, September 24, 2003
"Professionally the budget is fine: as a financial document it is quite clear and reliable. However, it fails to formulate a single task that it could resolve in the coming year."

Law "On Citizenship in the RF" - updated

YABLOKO supports liberalization of the law "On Citizenship"
Press release, September 24, 2003
...the YABLOKO faction will support in the State Duma the amendments to the law "On Citizenship" that aim to simplify the procedure for obtaining Russian citizenship submitted by the President of the RF to parliament on Wednesday, September 24, 2003.

People/Mikhail Amosov - updated

Derivatives Bill
Prime-Tass, September 26, 2003
A bill on financial derivatives is expected to be submitted to the State Duma for consideration in October

Reform in education - updated

"The Defeat of the USA is Our Defeat."
By Kseniya Veretennikova, Vremya Novostei, September 25, 2003
According to Yavlinsky, the defeat of the coalition troops in Iraq would mean Russia's defeat, as it would incite terrorism and extremism on a global level.

Grigory Yavlinsky: Russian politics is deliberately being transformed into a farce
Interview with Grigory Yavlinsky by Tatyana Chesnokova, Rosbalt, September 25, 2003
"This situation has been deliberately created to make less and less people engage actively in politics and lead more and more of the population to readily accept decision-making on their behalf by third parties".

Privatisation in Russia - new

Sergei Mitrokhin: "We treat the use of administrative resource as a natural disaster."
IA Marketing i Consulting, September 22, 2003
Interview with deputy of the State Duma, Deputy Head of the YABLOKO faction Sergei Mitrokhin about the position of the YABLOKO party regarding President Putin's attendance of the United Russian congress.

The Political Council of the SPS should revise its decision on the division of electoral districts between SPS and YABLOKO
Alliance Media, September 22, 2003
"We don't think it is proper to fight against the SPS in single-mandate districts," stressed Yavlinsky.

United Russia Conquers the Air
By Anna Dolgov, The Moscow Times, September 24, 2003
The pro-Kremlin United Russia party is getting by far the widest and most favorable coverage on all the major television channels ahead of parliamentary elections, monitoring conducted by The Moscow Times over the past week indicates.

100 Deputies Challenge Media Restrictions
By Francesca Mereu, The Moscow Times, September 24, 2003
"We think that they are against the Russian Constitution, which guarantees freedom in spreading information," deputy SPS leader Alexander Barannikov said Tuesday.

Can Media Cover the Elections?
Editorial, The Moscow Times, September 12, 2003
Presumably, the Kremlin did not shepherd the new legislation through parliament in order for it to trip up the president or silence two of the Kremlin's most important propaganda organs.

Almost according to Plan
By Alexander Zhelyenin, Novye Izvestia, September 22, 2003
During the plenary meeting of the Duma on Friday observers were shown once again that the budget on the eve of the elections is more than just a budget.

Russian Universities Included in Common European System of Higher Education
Rosbalt, September 23, 2003
Russia has joined the Bologna convention. As a Rosbalt correspondent reports, this was announced by the Russian Education Ministry yesterday.

MPs contest new media laws on election coverage
By Fyodor Rumyantsev, Gazeta.ru, September 23, 2003
The Union of Right-Wing Forces has collected signatures from Yabloko, the Communists and Vladimir Zhirinovsky's party in support of a complaint to the Constitutional Court, where they have asked the court to look into certain provisions of the law on media coverage during election campaigns, claiming they run counter to the Constitution.

Europe Recognises Russian Education
By Lera Arsenina, Gazeta.ru, September 19, 2003
Russia has officially joined the process of creating a single European higher education space.

Contributions to the Bologna Process
Council of Europe, Strasbourg, 7 February 2003 (Archive)
The Council of Europe is now firmly established as an important contributor to the Bologna Process, in several ways...

Russian Diplomas Given More Weight
IA Marketing i Consulting, September 22, 2003
Russia's participation in the Bologna process will increase the mobility of students and teachers, providing them with an opportunity to change countries during their studies and university for academic purposes.

Russia joined the Bologna process
Press release, September 19, 2003
"The Russian higher school has the advantages of the fundamental nature of its educational programmes. To use this advantage and attract students from other countries we have to participate in the building of a common European system," noted Shishlov.

St. Petersburg election: latest figures
RosbusinessConsulting, September 22, 2003
According to the St. Petersburg Electoral Commission, Presidential Representative in the North West Federal District Valentina Matviyenko leads in the election, with 48.61 percent of the vote. Vice-Governor of St. Petersburg Anna Markova comes second, with 15.89 percent.

Yabloko faction opposes draft budget for 2004
RosbusinessConsulting, September 18, 2003
Yabloko presented an alternative outlook on Russian budget policies today. In particular, the faction proposed to "lower VAT to 15 percent, introduce a single tax on small and medium-sized family enterprises and provide powerful assistance to education."

Elections Set To Go to Second Round
By Vladimir Kovalev, The St.Petersburg Times, September 23, 2003
Kremlin-backed candidate Valentina Matviyenko did not get enough votes to win the gubernatorial race in the first round, garnering just 48.61 percent in the Sunday poll, the City Election Commission reported Monday.

St. Petersburg Vote Goes Into a Runoff
By Vladimir Kovalev, The Moscow Times, September 23, 2003
Markova said Monday that she would form a coalition with several other candidates -- including Mikhail Amosov, head of the Yabloko faction in the St. Petersburg Legislative Assembly and Legislative Assembly Deputy Konstantin Sukhenko -- to try to defeat Matviyenko.

"Alarming" Findings in Death Probe
The Moscow Times, September 23, 2003
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said preliminary results indicate that Shchekochikhin may have been murdered.

3 Strikes on Budget, Putin Warns
The Moscow Times, September 23, 2003
"One, two, three failures and we'll ruin the working schedule on the most important economic document of the next year," Putin told Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov.

Putin welcomes parties to be part of new Russian State Duma
ITAR-TASS, September 21, 2003
On Saturday 20 September when speaking to foreign media Putin stressed that he would like both the Union of Right-Wing Forces and Yabloko be part of the new Duma, as they have carried out positive work for the lower chamber of the Russian parliament.

Monetary Policy - renamed to Banking

Duma Votes to Insure Deposits
Reuters, September 18, 2003
The State Duma on Wednesday approved in the first reading a bill on banking deposit insurance, a critical move in restoring the trust of millions of Russians in the private banking system.

YABLOKO party pledges to defend utilities customers
RTR television channel, September 18, 2003
Grigory Yavlinsky: The idea is that citizens should pay only for what they receive in the form of housing and municipal services.

Russia: Duma Opens For Last Pre-Election Session
By Sophie Lambroschini, RFE/RL, September 9, 2003
Sergei Mitrokhin: ...it was time for the government to take responsibility for the annual crisis instead of pushing it into the hands of local authorities.

Roll-call voting in the State Duma "On the adoption of the law "On the State Budget of the RF for 2004" (first reading)", September 19, 2003
Full report

Voters Pick New St. Pete Governor
The Associated Press, September 22, 2003
If no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote, a runoff will be held.

Duma Votes to Spend $89Bln in 2004
By Alla Startseva, The Moscow Times, September 22, 2003
Lawmakers passed the $88.6 billion spending bill, which envisions a surplus for the fifth consecutive year, by a vote of 246 to 180, 20 more than the simple majority needed in the 450-seat chamber.

Duma likely to give overall approval to 2004 budget Friday
ITAR-TASS, September 19, 2003
The Russian State Duma will discuss the 2004 draft budget under the first reading Friday and is likely to give an overall approval to the document which envisages an economic growth of 5.2 percent.

Gromov Facing No Challengers in Election
By Anna Dolgov, The Moscow Times, September 19, 2003
Moscow region Governor Boris Gromov is poised to run virtually unchallenged in his re-election bid, with no major political party planning to field a rival candidate.

Putin puts 'Soviet' bar on poll coverage
Nick Paton Walsh in Moscow, Guardian Unlimited, September 9, 2003
The Kremlin has introduced a draconian election law which threatens the media with closure if they give details of candidates' personal lives or analyse their policies.

Yabloko Finds $7Bln of Slush in Budget
By Alex Fak, The Moscow Times, September 18, 2003
The government's 2004 draft budget intentionally understates more than $7 billion in revenues that the Kremlin will use to beef up discretionary spending ahead of the presidential election and plow more money into prosecuting the war in Chechnya, the liberal Yabloko party said Wednesday.

Another Provocation
Marketing and Consulting, September 11, 2003
Asked to comment, the Press Service of YABLOKO told us that the party had nothing to do with "Yabloko Without Yavlinsky" or moreover with such a publication.

What Women Want: A Seat in the Duma
By Francesca Mereu, The Moscow Times, September 17, 2003
In fact, the percentage of women deputies has been steadily falling. Fourteen percent of deputies in the 1993 Duma were women, but this figure shrank to 10 percent in 1995 and just 8 percent in 1999.

Citizens' Payment for Water Exceeds the Real Costs by 3.5 Times
By Mikhail Dichev, Finansoviye Izvestia, September 12, 2003
If the person did not live in the flat and correspondingly did not use water, a fairly high figure still appeared on the bill.

Video. The 11th Congress of YABLOKO - 2 min. 35 sek. 56 Kb/sek - 670 Kb, 128 Kb/sek - 1,89 Mb (The 11th Congress of YABLOKO) (required RealPlayer)

Video. The 11th Congress of YABLOKO. Speech of Grigory Yavlinsky. - 40 min. 56 Kb/sek - 10 Mb (The 11th Congress of YABLOKO) (required RealPlayer)

YABLOKO with Yavlinsky
By Alexei Svetlanov, Rossiyskiye Vesti, September 10, 2003
According to Yavlinsky, the party is going to elections acknowledging that the elections cannot be recognised as quite free and independent, as they fall under the significan influence of administrative resources.

People/Dr. Grigory Yavlinsky - biography updated

'Meet the press' in Russia meets the new censor
By Fred Weir, Christian Science Monitor, September 16, 2003
It smacks strongly of Soviet times - except that today's censors are not Communist Party hacks planted in editorial offices, but the managers of media outlets themselves.

Shell inks Siberia spend amid Russia oil fever
By Melanie Cheary, Reuters, September 16, 2003
Shell became one of the biggest foreign investors in Russia when it gave the green light this year for a $10 billion project on the remote eastern island of Sakhalin, where it will build the world's largest liquefied natural gas plant by 2006.

Formation of electoral political alliances over in Russia
By Natalia Panshina, ITAR-TASS, September 15, 2003
The formation of political alliances for the December Duma elections, which took almost two weeks since the beginning of the current electoral campaign, is now over.

YABLOKO: Russian citizens pay on average three to five times too much for housing and utilities services
Rosbalt, September 11, 2003
According to Yavlinsky, the preliminary results of the "Let's Put Monopolists on the Meter" action conducted in Russia's regions by the Russian Democratic Party YABLOKO demonstrated that real consumption of water in houses and flats was far lower than the amount envisaged by standard rates - from 1.5 to 7 times less.

YABLOKO's action demonstrates that consumers overpay for utilities several times
Press release, September 11, 2003
The tests were conducted in Ulyanovsk, Chelyabinsk, Tula, Samara, Balgoveschensk, Moscow and Moscow Region from June to August 2003.

Who Is for the People?
IA MIK, September 9, 2003
The Duma majority is not interested in preparing the country for the winter.

Deputy Mitrokhin demands an investigation into the situation around the methanol terminal in Azov
FMBusiness, September 5, 2003
According to the documents, a number of federal legislative acts, such as the Law "On Environmental Protection ", the Law "On Environmental Expertise", the Provisions on the assessment of the impact on the environment and legislation regulating construction work were violated during the design and construction of the terminal in Azov.

Alexei Arbatov: the military budget of the country should be bigger and made more transparent
Press release, September 10, 2003
"...It is impossible to conduct serious discussions of the military reforms in the present conditions, when 90% of the information on our military policy is made secret."

On the act of vandalism in the Muslim part of the Gradsk cemetery in Chelyabinsk
Statement of the Russian Democratic Party YABLOKO, September 10, 2003
YABLOKO states that every individual, regardless of his religious beliefs or nationality has a right to respect and a deserving memory.

Press freedom list: Russia ranked 121st out of 139
rbc.ru, September 10, 2003
North Korea is at the bottom of the list, as the country with least press freedom, and China is ranked 138th. The United States, which always boasts about its democratic traditions, ranks 17th.

Parties Still Hopeful
Associated Press, September 10, 2003
Russia's two leading liberal parties may still agree to coordinate their campaigns for the December parliamentary elections despite the collapse of cooperation talks, their leaders said Wednesday.

Putin Remarks Probed
The Moscow Times, September 10, 2003
By law, an official may not promote a candidate unless speaking in a private capacity.

Duma Tries to Gain Momentum
By Anna Dolgov, The Moscow Times, September 10, 2003
With 75 crucial bills and about 500 in all to review in the next three months, deputies could not find enough work to fill Wednesday's agenda.

Levada Leaves VTsIOM for VTsIOM-A
By Oksana Yablokova, The Moscow Times, September 10, 2003
Levada said Tuesday that he and dozens of his staff have decided not to wait any longer and have set up a polling agency named Analytical Service VTsIOM, or VTsIOM-A for short.

Duma starts last session before elections
By Yelena Rudneva, Boris Sapozhnikov, gazeta.ru, September 9, 2003
The last September session will be held on September 19 and will be almost entirely dedicated to examining the draft 2004 budget.

Chubais Ready to Lead SPS Into Battle
By Francesca Mereu and Oksana Yablokova, The Moscow Times, September 9, 2003
"We are the people who get things done," Chubais said, drawing a standing ovation from the SPS delegates.

Regional Elections, 2003 - new

2 Out of 3 Governors Get Re-Elected
By Simon Saradzhyan, The Moscow Times, September 9, 2003
All three incumbents have governed their regions for more than 10 years and were running for third and final terms Sunday.

Budget Tops Agenda as Duma Reconvenes
By Anna Dolgov, The Moscow Times, September 9, 2003
Beside the budget -- which comes up for the first of four readings Sept. 19 -- the Duma is expected to consider more than 60 bills.

In response to violation of the agreements by the SPS, YABLOKO decided to nominate its candidates to compete in single-mandate electoral districts with SPS candidates at the parliamentary elections
Press release, September 7, 2003
"Consequently YABLOKO had to respond and nominate its own candidates in all the previously agreed electoral districts."

Grigory Yavlinsky: Russia is experiencing a toughest system crisis
Press release, September 7, 2003
..."the crisis of lagging behind" - manifested in the quality of life, freedoms and liberties, as well as the state building and its directions.

Ratification of the Kyoto Protocol Will Help Russia to Attract Vast Investments into Industry
RIA Novosti, September 8, 2003
"Now we cannot achieve such a capacity, with our outdated equipment. But when innovations are introduced, greenhouse gas emissions will decrease significantly," the expert believes.

Party congresses highlight divisions and cohesion
By Yelena Rudneva and Boris Sapozhnikov, gazeta.ru, September 8, 2003
At the congress held on September 6-7 Yabloko endorsed its electoral programme, which contains 11 provisions and harshly criticizes the existing regime and approved the party's electoral list.

YABLOKO's representatives will not participate in the SPS Congress
Press release, September 7, 2003
YABLOKO is not cancelling its agreements with the SPS, as was confirmed by YABLOKO's congress today.

YABLOKO's Congress discusses the electoral programme of the party
Press release, September 7, 2003
On Saturday YABLOKO members voted for the list of candidates for the federal and regional lists, as well as a list for single-mandate electoral districts proposed by the party for the parliamentary elections.

Yavlinsky thinks that YABLOKO will manage to make it into the State Duma
Press release, September 7, 2003
At the briefing where the leaders of the party summed up the results of the 11th congress of the party held Saturday-Sunday in Moscow, Yavlinsky explained that the final results would depend on how open and honest the election campaign would be, as well as on the political situation in the country.

YABLOKO calls on the Union of Right-Wing Forces to observe election campaign agreements
Press release, September 7, 2003
YABLOKO also called on the SPS "to adhere to the principles of honest elections during the election campaign and to refrain from using unethical methods in the election campaign."

The 11th congress of Yabloko - new (added to Activities section)

The 10th congress of Yabloko - (see at Activities section)

Address of the 11th Congress of the Russian Democratic Party YABLOKO to the Congress of the Union of Right-Wing Forces Party
Russian Democratic Party YABLOKO, 11th Congress, Moscow, September 7, 2003
The Russian Democratic Party YABLOKO greets the participants of the congress of the Union of Right-Wing Forces Party and wishes you successful work.

Budget 2004 - new

Grigory Yavlinsky: "It is impossible to create a real opposition in Russia today." (part 2 added)
Moskovsky Komsomolets, September 2, 2003
Do you know the difference between me and my opponents? They say in each difficult case that a leg should be amputated immediately, whereas I believe that the wound should be treated first.

69% of Russians Say YUKOS Scandal Tied to Redistribution of Property
Rosbalt, September 5, 2003
The survey was conducted at the end of August. In all 1,500 people were polled.

YABLOKO may not support the draft federal budget in the first reading
Rosbalt, September 4, 2003
Yavlinsky said that a distribution, where 62% of the funds remain with the federal center, while the regions obtain only 38% of the funds is unjust.

Prosecutor General answers Sergei Mitrokhin
Polit.ru, September 3, 2003
As evidence Mitrokhin demonstrated materials that came from the regions proving that RAO UES was behind the "Yabloko without Yavlinsky" activities.

Grigory Yavlinsky: "It is impossible to create a real opposition in Russia today."
Moskovsky Komsomolets, September 2, 2003
By the way, there is a big difference between business and economics. Business is the ability to make money. And economics is a science on how to create the well-being of a country.

Regional prosecutors will investigate the actions of the "Yabloko without Yavlinsky" organisation
Rosbalt, September 2, 2003
YABLOKO's press service informed Rosbalt correspondent that the request referred to "dissemination by the leader of "Yabloko without Yavlinsky" movement and some media information defaming the leadership of the YABLOKO party."

Ministry Defends VTsIOM Overhaul
By Oksana Yablokova, Moscow Times, September 3, 2003
"Russian authorities are dealing a major blow not only to sociological research, by depriving Russian and Western researchers of a unique instrument for studying contemporary Russian society, but to democracy in general"

Reforms that corrupted Russia
By Grigory Yavlinsky, Financial Times (UK), September 3, 2003
In those years two Marxist dogmas, albeit disguised in liberal phraseology, still shaped economic policy. The first was...

"We'll arrange the trial of the century for RAO UES"
By Boris Sapozhnikov, gazeta.ru, September 2, 2003
"I cannot believe that Nemtsov and Khakamada know nothing of PR-campaigns that require such huge expenses, worthy of being included in the Guinness Book of Records."

Ambitious Kokh sets sights on parliament
By Yelena Rudneva, gazeta.ru, September 2, 2003
"He has grown to miss politics very much," sources in SPS explained to Gazeta.Ru.

The 11th Congress of the Russian Democratic Party YABLOKO will take place on September 6-7, 2003 in Moscow.
ABN, September 1, 2003
Chairman of the Russian Democratic Party YABLOKO Grigory Yavlinsky and other leaders of the party will make political reports at the Congress.

Honest Elections in Russia: Myth or Reality?
RIA Novosti, August 28, 2003
The democratic party YABLOKO is the only party which openly refused to sign the declaration.

St Petersburg Company Wins Role in Sakhalin-2 Gas Project
Rosbalt, August 21, 2003
As part of the second stage of Sakhalin-2, the Sakhalin Energy Investment Co. is building Russia's first, and the world's most powerful, plant to liquefy natural gas, with an annual capacity of 9 million tons.

The YABLOKO party will conduct its election campaign strictly within the framework of the law, promised Grigory Yavlinsky
Rosbalt, August 21, 2003
The Statement was forwarded to the organisational committee of the "Elections 2003" Fund and to the Chairman of the Central Electoral Commission Alexander Veshnyakov.

The YABLOKO party will conduct the election campaign honestly and within the framework of the law, but is not going to sign the "Elections 2003" agreement
Press release, August 21, 2003
"The Russian Democratic Party YABLOKO has always observed and will always comply with Russian legislation in all its actions."

On observing the principles for honest elections in 2003-2004
Russian Democratic Party YABLOKO, Statement, August 20, 2003
In all election campaigns the Russian Democratic Party YABLOKO has acted exclusively within the framework of the law and plans to continue doing so in future.

Why Is the All-Russia Public Opinion Research Centre Being Broken Up?
By Alexander Golov and Orkhan Jemal, Novaya Gazeta, August 14, 2003
The authorities haven't liked the ratings it has produced; in the opinion of the authorities, the ratings have been incorrect in some way.

The YABLOKO party launches a nation-wide action 'Let's Put the Monopolists on the Metre
Press release, August 1, 2003 (Archive)
The Russian Democratic Party YABLOKO and public organisations are establishing a network of civil control committees to protect citizens' rights in monopolist-dominated sectors, such as the housing and utilities, electricity and communications sectors.

Deputy Goes After Kokh, For a Day
By Francesca Mereu and Valeria Korchagina, The Moscow Times, September 1, 2003
"It was my personal initiative. I did it without a previous agreement with the Yabloko leadership," Melnikov said Friday in an interview.

Alexei Melnikov: "We will investigate this case as long as necessary"
Recorded by Nikolai Morozov, Komsomolskaya Pravda, August 27, 2003
"If we don't succeed here now, then the forces that are emerging in the law and enforcement agencies will decide that they can do anything".

As the Duma election campaign begins, two non-Kremlin parties have become implacable political rivals.
By Sergei Borisov, Transitions Online, August 25, 2003
Some observers labeled the Elections 2003 forum, aired on two television national channels on 22 August, as "political fiction."

Students advocate a free education: they unite in the struggle against extortion in universities
By Maxim Pokrovsky, Komsomolskaya Pravda, August 21, 2003
The YABLOKO party turned out to be a traditional and efficient ally of the students in their fight for their rights.

Sergei Mitrokhin expects that Alfred Kokh's statement on the intentions of the SPS to conduct a tough struggle against YABLOKO to be disavowed
MK-Novosti, August 12, 2003 (Archive)
"For the first time an official representative of the SPS openly admitted that this party was going to fight against YABLOKO"

Altai District. YABLOKO to put the monopolists on the meter
AMITEL Information Services, August 12, 2003 (Archive)
A network of public control committees defending citizens' rights in areas where monopolists dominate (the housing and utilities sector, electricity and communications) will be developed.

A fake 'apple'* has ripened in the country
By Sergei Alexandrov, Komsomolskaya Pravda, August 9, 2003 (Archive)
YABLOKO beat a record among the party victims of the black PR.
   * YABLOKO means 'apple' in Russian.

Liberals blame Chubais and Kokh for dirty campaign tactics
By Alexander Kolesnichenko, Novye Izvestia, August 8, 2003 (Archive)
Sergei Mitrokhin maintains that Anatoly Chubais, head of the Russian United Energy Systems (UES) has allocated $5 million to discredit Yabloko, and that the anti-Yabloko campaign is being orchestrated by Alfred Kokh, campaign manager for the Union of Right-Wing Forces (SPS).

Maxim Reznik: There has never been a split in the St. Petersburg branch of the YABLOKO party
Rosbalt, August 7, 2003 (Archive)
Such a comment on Irina Khakamada's statement about the action 'YABLOKO without Yavlinsky' was made by the leader of the St. Petersburg branch of the YABLOKO party Maxim Reznik to the Rosbalt correspondent.

Who Is Taking a Bite out of YABLOKO*?
Gazeta, August 5, 2003 (Archive)
YABLOKO activists are determined to close ranks in the face of the new threat.
   * YABLOKO means 'apple' in Russian.