Today in Russian Business – May 30, 2008

State nanotechnology corporation, Rosnanotech, will not have Vladimir Putin’s ally Mikhail Kovalchuk as its head, after his application to join the Russian Academy of Sciences was controversially rejected. First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov said the government would support a proposed deal between billionaires Vladimir Potanin and Alisher Usmanov aimed at creating a global mining giant. Russia is stepping up efforts to stop the illegal trade in wild sturgeon caviar.