 
CHANNELS SPACEWAR WIRE MILITARY SPACE UAV NEWS MILITARY COMMS CYBERWARS MISSILE NEWS RAYGUNS TERRORWARS SPACEDAILY TERRADAILY MARSDAILY SPACE TRAVEL SPACEMART SPACE DATABASE  SERVICES |  
The Russian government has called for the appointment of a security services general to replace the head of a top defence firm who was gunned down in a Moscow street two months ago, media reported Tuesday. Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov ordered the state property ministry to propose Vladimir Menshchikov of the FSB security agency to head the Almaz-Antei company, Russia's biggest designer and manufacturer of air and space defence weapons, the Kommersant daily reported. The appointment of Menshchikov, a member of the entourage of President Vladimir Putin, himself a former FSB chief, would have to be approved at a general assembly of the company which is wholly state-owned. Igor Klimov, the company's previous chief executive, was shot dead near his home on June 6 in an apparent contract killing. A second senior company official, Sergei Shchitko, was shot dead in his car, also in Moscow, a few hours later. Neither killing has yet been elucidated. Menshchikov, 44, currently deputy chief of the Russian state reserves agency, is believed to be the sole candidate to replace Klimov. The government's press service refused to comment on the report, and Almaz-Antei spokesmen were unavailable for comment. Almaz-Antei, created by presidential decree last year, produces air defence systems based on S-300 medium-range surface-to-air missiles -- the equivalent of the US Patriot missiles -- and the Buk-M1-2, Tor-M1 and Pechora short-range surface-to-air missiles. The company's S-300 missile sales are said to be worth up to four billion dollars (euros) over the next four years. Russian media believe Almaz-Antei's prospects for further sales have placed it at the centre of a sharp battle for influence, particularly with a major structural overhaul in the offing. Last week the Nezavisimaya Gazeta daily said Menshchikov's candidacy for the top post was suggested by a top Kremlin aide, Viktor Ivanov, a former FSB officer who is also an Almaz-Antei director. Ivanov firmly opposed other suggested candidates, most of whom were officers attached to the military-industrial complex, the paper said. All rights reserved. Copyright 2003 Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse. Quick Links
|
|
| The contents herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2002 - SpaceDaily. AFP Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement |