Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/530451
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 21 JUNE 2015 10 News MATTHEW VELLA ONE of Russia's foremost aero- space defence entrepreneurs and philanthropists, Igor Ashurbeyli, has set up a Maltese base for his Russian holding company Socium, which has on its payroll over 10,000 employees worldwide. Ashurbeyli's new companies, So- cium-Malta and Socium-A, were set up with one of the Individual Investor Programme's accredited agencies, although there is no indi- cation that he will be applying for Maltese citizenship under the IIP's €1.15 million scheme. Ashurbeyli was until 2011 head of Russia's military-industrial cor- poration Almaz-Antey, a conglom- erate of some 46 national military enterprises and the world's 12th largest defence contractor – in 2013 it had arms sales of $8.3 bil- lion. Perhaps his greatest claim to fame is spearheading the design of Rus- sia's most advanced surface-to-air missiles – the S-500 Samoderzhets ('autocrat'), also known as the Tri- umfator-M. The S-500 is a new generation missile intended at intercepting intercontinental ballistic missiles, supplanting the S-400 once it goes out of service in 2016. With a range of 400km, the S-500 can destroy up to 10 ballistic mis- siles at 18,000km per hour – char- acteristics similar to the United States' Patriot Advanced Capabil- ity 3 complex. Ashurbeyli has been described as a "true patriot and believer in the strong state" by Duma deputy Sergei Sobko from the Communist Party. Ashurbeyli was born in Baku, Azerbaijan. A systems engineering graduate of the Azerbaijan Insti- tute of Oil and Chemistry, in 1988 he created Socium, a computer software firm. He moved the com- pany to Moscow in 1990 to develop marketing information databases. By 1994, Ashurbeyli was working his way up to the board of directors at Almaz before being appointed general director in 2000, becoming one of the most prominent figures in the Russian military-industrial complex. There he led modifica- tions on the S-300 missile and de- veloped the S-400. He is credited with having reor- ganised the structure and finances of Almaz at a time when the cor- poration suffered from a funding shortfall. Since 2011, he has chaired the Russian Federation's advisory board on aerospace defence. JAMES DEBONO WHILE more than a quarter of Maltese smokers have tried electronic cigarettes, very few have kept on using them, a survey by Eurobarometer shows. Only 1% of current Maltese smokers use e-cigarettes al- though 27% have tried them once while 15% have used them for a time. Consumption of e-cigarettes in Malta is largely limited to smokers. Electronic cigarettes – which consist of battery-powered devices which produce vapour that is then inhaled by the smoker – contain no tobacco and leave behind no tar, but do not cure smokers' addiction to nicotine. While 57% of current smokers have used them at least once, 92% of ex-smokers and 94% of non-smokers have never used electronic cigarettes. Only 1% of ex-smokers have used e-cigarettes regularly for a time. In all EU countries 4% of current smokers are using e- cigarettes, whose consumption is highest in the UK (11% of current smokers) and France (8% of current smokers) and is lowest in Malta, Spain, Sweden and Romania, where only 1% of smokers use e-cigarettes. The survey shows the Maltese as being among the least likely to smoke in Europe. Just 20% are current smokers. Only the Finns and the Swedes smoke less than the Mal- tese. The Greeks (38%) and the Bulgarians (35%) are the most likely smokers. 19% of the Maltese are ex-smokers. On average Maltese smokers smoke 15 cigarettes a day. Malta has the highest proportion of respondents who tried to quit using support from a doctor or health pro- fessional (10%). On average in Europe as a whole only 5% have sought support from health professionals. Ireland (74%), Cyprus (73%) and Malta (69%) have the largest proportions of respondents who are in favour of banning colours, logos and promotional elements from tobacco product packaging, particularly compared with the Netherlands (43%) and Bulgaria (45%). Sweden (70%), Finland (68%) and Malta (67%) have the largest propor- tions of respondents in favour of increasing taxes on to- bacco products, particularly compared with France (39%), Greece (41%) and Bulgaria (43%). These results are not surprising considering that Swe- den, Finland and Malta have the lowest proportions of current smokers, while France, Greece and Bulgaria have three of the four highest proportions of current smokers. jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt Just 1% of Maltese are vaping Russian military entrepreneur sets up Malta base Mind behind Russia's next generation S-500 missile defence system, sets up Maltese firms Igor Ashurbeyli today presides Russia's advisory board on aerospace defence. Inset: The S-400 missile defence system