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Russian Customs

Russia has had a Customs Service in some form for the past 1000 years.

Moreover, for almost all of that history, it has been much more than a force for

keeping out contraband. In fact, it has been a powerful, highly politicized

administrative organ, serving mainly protectionist leaders.

The Russian Federation is in a transition period now and the role of

Customs is to be a guide for the market reforms. The main task of Russian

Customs is the protection of the economic interests of the country, national

treasures and cultural and historical properties. Customs policy has a far greater

share and importance in Russia's regulation of economic activities than in

industrial countries with developed market economics.

The creation of Russian Customs was complicated by the fact that, after the

disintegration of the USSR, the best-equipped and best-staffed Customs

Services were outside Russia, which has acquired as a result 13,500 km of new

borders with former Soviet Republics. Moreover, the State Customs Committee

has seen a five-fold staff increase over the past five years. This has been

matched by growing organizational complexity. The ideological imperative has

been replaced.

Today the Russian Federation has a modern, multi-functioning Customs

Service which is able to take a deserving place in market economy regulation and

is competent to help in rapprochement between the Russian and world economies.

Everyone treats the Russian Customs Service as an equal and this means that the

Russian Federation is becoming a full and equal member of the world community.

(1300 symbols)

Grammar Assignments

3.5.1 Look at the headlines for the newspaper articles given below and guess

what they have in common:

SMILING IN YOUR

PASSPORT PHOTO WILL BE BANNED

TWO MAJOR TERRORIST SUSPECTS CAPTURED IN LONDON

SECOND MAJOR COCAINE CARGO SEIZED IN KENT

3.5.2 Match each article given below to the corresponding headline.

Complete

the articles by adding necessary auxiliaries and prepositions.

A. Special security measures .............. introduced......... the UK Passport Service to

help facial recognition scanners to function properly. Tinted glasses, head coverings

and even dummies in babies' mouths……banned. The new passport…..

fitted ……..a microchip containing all information about its holders. But only a

neutral expression …….detected the scanning machines. Existing passport pictures

which do not meet the rules….. accepted until the document expires.

B. A second major seizure of cocaine …… made by Custom officers in a week

from a ship at Dover cargo port. Three plastics bags containing 3kg of the Class

A drug worth around Ј1.6m ……. found in the hold of a ship loaded

…….bananas. Officers seized the Liberian-registered Horncliff when it arrived

in Kent from Colombia on Wednesday. No arrest …….

yet………. made.

The find follows the discovery of 120kg of cocaine worth Ј7.2m on Monday.

C. Two of the world's most important terror suspects ….. seized ………

Scotland Yard. One……..said to be a senior al Qaeda operative while the

other…….........................................................................accused of being a major

fundraiser for terrorism around the world. Ali Abu Abec…. arrested in Willesden

yesterday: he …… believed …… US intelligence to be trusted aides of Osama bin

Laden and to have plotted to blow up Jewish target and financial institutions. The

other man, Mohammed Ali Khan, 30, lived in Chelsea: he……... accused of using

websites and emails to supply money and property for acts of terrorism. He

……said……New York Times to be a relative of Osama bin Laden.