But some notable smaller players, such as Russia's Yota, could grab a share of the limelight.
Some of the alternatives, such as Russia's Urals crude, are less transparent than Brent, brokers said.
Old communist apparatchiks-turned-tycoons, such as Russia's envoy for Kosovo, Viktor Chernomyrdin, are the sort of people he feels comfortable with.
The firms at the upstream end of those pipelines, such as Russia's Gazprom, which supplies a quarter of all western Europe's gas, thus have a strong hand in negotiations.
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Georgia's president, Mikheil Saakashvili, is toying with staying in power as prime minister once his term expires, dismaying some Western fans who saw in him a challenge to the eternal rule of ex-Soviet autocrats such as Russia's Vladimir Putin or Alyaksandr Lukashenka in Belarus.
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The EU and NATO are both deeply divided on Russia, with countries such as Italy loudly opposing sanctions of any kind, and others such as Germany highly mindful of Russia's role as an energy supplier.
The United States says a missile-defense system is aimed at preventing missile attacks from rogue states such as Iran, not at blunting Russia's nuclear deterrent.
The country imports about 70% of its defense equipment, such as fighter jets, warships, helicopters, missiles and radars, from countries such as Russia, Israel, the U.S. and France.
Even the pragmatists among Iran's friends, such as Russia and China, now fear their longer-term and potentially lucrative interests in Iran may be hurt by too close an embrace of the regime.
Unlike foreign firms such as Pepsi (see article), Russia's private firms are too nervous to invest in their own economy.
Despite Zentiva's small size and the full price proposed by Sanofi Aventis, the Czech firm's exposure to markets such as Russia, Eastern Europe and Turkey could offer Sanofi an attractive route for its own products.
Some of Russia's biggest firms, such as gas monopoly Gazprom, and oil firm Lukoil, are listed on the exchange.
They demand explicit mention of Russia's relations with such neighbours as Georgia, citing the Kremlin's increasingly strong support for the breakaway enclaves of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
The course commences at the Haas School's Berkeley campus, but includes segments at StatoilHydro's Norwegian headquarters and the company's holdings in emerging markets such as Russia and Libya.
Russia's bullying of small fry such as Georgia or Moldova continues apace.
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But the dispute raises interesting wider questions such as why Russia is still entitled to the Soviet Union's assets when it regards its liabilities so cavalierly.
Any successor may lack the clout to cope with a shock, such as a fall in the oil price, on which Russia's economy depends, or renewed mega-terrorism.
But while the enthusiasm for Chinese Communism is remarkably long-enduring (and seems willing to endure anything), such endorsements, just as in the case of Stalin's Russia, have borne little or no relation to the truth.
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That means having large reserves ready for fast call-up and plenty of defensive weapons -- in particular portable missile systems such as the Stinger and Javelin capable of inflicting great damage on Russia's lumbering air and armor forces.
George Soros, an American philanthropist who outspends most foreign governments in his do-gooding in Russia, supports 4, 000 of Russia's best teachers, as well as such things as book-buying by public libraries, stipends for scientists, public health, and retraining jobless army officers.
But as Vedomosti, Russia's business daily, wrote, such moves are too little and too late.
Democratization in countries such as Belarus, Georgia and Ukraine will almost certainly help to curb Russia's imperial appetite.
EU, or perhaps countries such as Russia and Egypt, should join the negotiating table to balance America's pro-Israeli tilt.
Other, less shady, companies simply need the most basic banking services such as payments and safe storage of cash that most of Russia's 1, 500-odd banks fail to provide reliably.
Trevisani doubts the rumors that either Home Depot or Lowe's might bid for the company, but she's focusing on Kingfisher's ability to grow in emerging markets such as China, Russia and Poland.
In Mr Putin's Russia it is informal arrangements, rather than such formalities as elections, that carry weight.
Yet at the least Britain's recalcitrance may give heart to less civilised countries, such as Russia, which are signatories to the convention but routinely flout it.
On the other hand, Russia's stockmarket regulations are American-inspired, emphasising such things as the separation of management from shareholders.
OPEC's moment of triumph could arrive sooner if it persuades producers such as Russia, Norway, and Mexico to continue to restrain their output.
Officially, spies from democratic countries concentrate on the world's dodgiest places, such as Iraq, Iran or (still) Russia, as well as terrorists and organised-crime gangs.
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