PILING ON….

Moscow’s city government has joined other creditors calling in their loans to Media-Most, the independent news voice the government seems determined to silence. Media-Most’s chairman, Vladimir Gusinsky, was once a close ally of Moscow Mayor Yury Luzhkov, backing his presidential ambitions and profiting from handling the city’s accounts in his now defunct Most Bank. Gusinsky is now under house arrest in Spain; Russia seeks his extradition to face charges of fraud and embezzlement. Moscow claims Media-Most owes the city $232 million. Gas monopoly Gazprom has already gone to court demanding repayment of $262 million, and another lender, Yukos Oil, says it is owed $200 million. Most analysts believe the company’s assets are not worth more than around $300 million.