COOK Report Study Finds Soros ISF Embroiled in Russian Networking Controversy

[David Farber <farber () central cis upenn edu>]

The COOK Report on Internet -> NREN announces the publication of a Special
Report on the Russian Internet, based on a three week visit to Moscow last
month.


Findings:  Compared to our visits in April and October of 1992 we noted broad
progress on every technology and economic front both within Moscow and - from
what we were told by numerous people, -across Russia.  Russian life is still
difficult and there may be more nasty surprises ahead, but no one two whom we
talked any longer expects any great catastrophe.


The number of network users and the amount of infrastructure behind Russian
data networks has grown by more than 300% since the end of 1992.  We present
interviews with network users whose applications range from libraries, to
trade unions, to k-12 schools, to dissemination of scientific literature, to
basing individual businesses on the network.


However the major story that we uncovered focuses on the widespread dismay
within Russian networking circles about the role of the International Science
Foundation (ISF) - the entity created by financier George Soros to pour up to
several hundred million dollars into alleviating the very serious plight of
Russian scientists that we chronicled in our reports written in 1992.  While
Soros has done much good with grants to Russian scientists, his investment of
up to 50 million dollars in Russian and Eastern European networking began with
the subsidy of a  satellite link from Moscow to Washington last summer.  The
second high point was to have been the completion of a fiber optic backbone
linking the Kurchatov Institute of Atomic Energy in northwestern Moscow with
the M9 telephone station in the southern part of the city.  The backbone would
connect the most important research institutes in Moscow with all the major
computer networks and create - depending on the quality of the Russian fiber -
the possibility of an ATM based MAN for Moscow.


The backbone was supposed to finished well before the end of the spring.
Instead disputes broke out among the parties involved:  first - Relcom the
largest Russian network, second - RELARN the body charged with building the
backbone and looking after the interests of Russian academic network users -
and third - Soros' ISF which had committed significant financial resources
toward the completion of the backbone and now does not deliver what had been
promised.


As readers can well imagine the situation is complex.  We had five hours of
taped interviews with the people responsible for Relcom's and RELARN's role.
We were able to interview ISF's Ilya Mafter for 15 minutes by telephone the
last day in the city.  We have however collected extensive data from other key
players.  We gave Mafter our draft text to comment on on June 14.  On June
25th we heard from Alex Goldfarb, Mafter's boss and the Director of all ISF
activity for Russia, stating his general displeasure.  We have promised to
publish the views of Mafter and Goldfarb if and when they deliver something
specific to us.


In the meantime we note that Steve Goldstein, the International Internet
"Ambassador" for the National Science Foundation had been spending a
considerable portion of his time as an advisor to ISF and those working on
Russian networking.  We believe that we understand what Goldstein was trying
to do and we thoroughly applaud and support his efforts.  We are told however
that toward the beginning of this year Goldstein was so dismayed by the
actions of the ISF that he publicly dissociated both himself and the NSF from
their activities and ended his role as advisor.  When a program director for
the National Science Foundation takes such an action, something is clearly
amiss.


While the details of this story are not even clearly known within high network
circles within Moscow, it is one considerable significance.  Why?  Because
tremendous power and potentially wealth are at stake.  If the ISF finishes the
Moscow backbone under terms where it controls it,  Relcom may be unable to go
out very quickly and build a competing back bone (something very unlikely if
ISF reaches the finish line first).  This would leave the ISF, the Ministry of
Science, and the Russian Fund for Basic Research in control of what may be the
most critical telecommunications infrastructure for all of Moscow.  If ISF
then spends upwards for $50 million over the next several years for an
extension of the Moscow infrastructure via satellite, and terrestrial fiber
links into other major Russian cities, Soros through ISF could exert a major
influence on telecom throughout the huge Russian nation.  Certainly such a
network would far outclass Relcom's so far impressive achievements.


We have the strong impression that the reaction of some circles to what is
going on is about the same as it would be in this country if the three largest
Japanese banks were to sign a deal with the NSF where **they** and not
Congress would provide the money for the completion of NREN and National
information infrastructure.  We are confident that we have the most thorough
and carefully researched compilation and analysis yet made of this important
story.


We are also told by knowlegable sources that so far Soros has been reluctant
to invest in infrastructure - citing a preference for training of end users
and putting email in the hands of as many people as possible.  Such intentions
are entirely praise worthy.  We hope that the current ISF leadership will be
more open about their intentions.  Such openess will go a long way towards
preventing any misunderstanding of what they are doing.


Our report is 29,000 words and 34 pages long.  It contains 8 photographs and
two maps.


Contents:
Introduction                                    p.1


Part One - The Networks
Relcom (and Demos) - the largest Russian
                        Network                 p. 3
RELARN and the Moscow backbone                  p. 6
The ISF Equation                                p. 9
Sovam Teleport                                  p. 12
Sprint networks                                 p. 13
Glasnet                                         p. 14
Radio MSU                                       p. 15


Part Two - the Users
IREX                                            p. 16
Sun Microsystems                                p. 17
REDlab                                          p. 18
ELVIS+                                          p. 19
Arcady Khotin - Internet Entrepreneur           p. 22
Larrisa Tarkhova, Guide                         p. 23
Victor Veselago Physicist                       p. 24
Andrei Sebrant Physicist                        p. 25
Vasili Balog, Trade Unionist                    p. 26
Compact Book publishing                         p. 27


Conclusion


What is at Stake                                p. 29


Appendix


Platonov - Soldatov Agreements of May 10        p. 31


Sidebars:  Stability of Concerns about Social Issues    p. 2
                ISF Objects to our Coverage             p. 11
                Elvis+ Spread Spectrum Modem Plan       p. 20
                List of Russian Web Servers             p. 21
                Moscow City Telephone Company Revives
                Modem Tax                               p. 28


This report is available now at an invoiced price of $200
or by check for $150.  Contact us at cook () path net for ordering details, or at
609 882-2572.


The report will be also be serialized over the next 4 or 5 months in the
regular monthly issues of the COOK Report on Internet -> NREN and beginning in
about one week with the July issue which will tell part of but not the
complete ISF story.  Current subscribers to the COOK Report may order the full
report now at a discount.




______________________________________________________________________
Gordon Cook, Editor Publisher:  COOK Report on Internet -> NREN
431 Greenway Ave, Ewing, NJ 08618
cook () path net                                   (609) 882-2572
Subscriptions: $500 corporate site license; $175 educational & non prof., $85
individ.
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