IRAQ CONFLICT ELICITS ANTI-U.S. SENTIMENT IN SOME RUSSIAN REGIONS... Rallies against a possible U.S.-led military action against Iraqi President Saddam Hussein were held in numerous locations across Russia last week. In Moscow on 14 March, more than 1,000 people took part in protests, according to ITAR-TASS. Greenpeace activists managed to hang large signs reading "Veto the War" and "Stop War" opposite the Kremlin in downtown Moscow. On the evening of 13 March, some unidentified young people threw red paint at the McDonald's restaurant on Moscow's Pushkin Square, newsru.com reported. On a building adjoining the restaurant, the slogan "Peace in Iraq, War with McDonald's" appeared in red paint. In Vladivostok, about 100 students and environmentalists staged a picket outside the U.S. Consulate, ITAR-TASS reported. A similar action was held outside the U.S. Consulate in Yekaterinburg earlier in the month. On 18 March, State Duma deputies from Rostov Oblast discussed the pending war with Ekho Rostova. Duma Deputy Vladimir Averchenko (People's Deputy) expressed the view that the war is essentially a large commercial venture on the part of the United States. Deputy Mikhail Yemelyanov (Yabloko) said Russia could sustain large economic losses in the event of war against Iraq. JAC
...AS 'YANKEES NOT WELCOME HERE' SIGNS APPEAR. In Chelyabinsk, the owners of a popular restaurant have stopped serving U.S. and British citizens to protest the policies of the governments of those countries vis-a-vis Iraq, RFE/RL's Russian Service reported on 15 March. The owners have posted a sign explaining the new policy on the door of the restaurant and have declared they are willing to suffer the consequent financial losses. Earlier in the month, the owners of a cafe in Taganrog in Rostov Oblast also announced they will not serve citizens of the United States or Great Britain in response to these countries' "aggressive policies" and "attempts to violate the UN Charter" (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 13 March 2003). On 18 March, the presidium of the Union of Entrepreneurs in Taganrog issued a statement denouncing "the aggressive policies of the United States," regions.ru reported. The entrepreneurs met to decide whether to support the anti-U.S. policy of the local cafe owners. JAC