Khodorkovsky & Lebedev Communications Center

Today in the Khamovnichesky Court, German Gref, the Head of Sberbank and the former Economics and Trade Minister, is giving his testimony. So far, after being questioned by Mikhail Khodorkovsky himself, Gref confirmed several of the defense team's arguments, countering the prosecution's indictment:

• Gref has confirmed that YUKOS's purchases of oil from its subsidiaries at prices lower than those at European ports were completely legal. The difference in price could be explained by a number of factors, including export tax regulations. He noted: "They purchased oil from their subsidiaries legally, at the prices lower than European [prices]. This can be explained by the specifics of the export taxation [laws] at those times."
• Gref said that - if all of YUKOS's oil output (and 20% of Russia's total oil output) had been embezzled at any time between 2000 and 2007 - he would have been learnt about it in one way or another.

Bloomberg adds that Gref backed up the defence's claim that YUKOS was not alone among Russian oil companies in selling crude to its units at discounted prices. Gref also testified he had been unaware of any large-scale theft of oil while serving in the government of then-President Vladimir Putin.

RIA Novosti adds that yesterday Russia's Minister of Trade and Industry Viktor Khristenko said he would testify as witness in the trial. The Moscow Times reports that Khristenko said: "In this case I am not just a minister, but a citizen. I should follow the summons I received. I am not going to shrink my responsibilities."

RIA Novosti notes that other high profile witnesses could include former prime ministers Viktor Chernomyrdin and Yevgeny Primakov, as well as State Duma Speaker Boris Gryzlov and former deputy prime minister Boris Nemtsov. The Moscow Times notes that Khodorkovsky's efforts to bring Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin to the witness box were rejected by the court.