American auto concern Ford, the only one of the Detroit three which was able to avoid bankruptcy, will still receive almost 6 billion U.S. dollars from the government. That, however, is not for the purpose of saving the company from bankruptcy: Ford will receive funding for the development of «green» technology. Analysts, however, note that any credit from the government will support the auto company during the crisis.

The money will be allocated by the Ministry of Energy in accordance with the Energy Bill, adopted back in 2007, by which auto concerns are required to increase the fuel efficiency of their cars by 40 per cent by 2016. For this purpose concessional loans of U.S. 25 billion dollars are allocated; in addition to Ford other auto companies of the United States will also receive government support – Nissan will receive U.S. $ 1.6 billion under the organization of the release of electric vehicles in the country. Tesla will receive a further U.S. $ 465 million for manufacturing electric sport cars. As for Ford, it will be provideded 5.9 billion U.S. dollars for the purpose of modernization of 11 of its plants in five states, that according to the company, will increase the efficiency of 2 million cars a year, as well as for developing its own electric cars.

Representatives of the American Ministry of Energy also said that they are conducting negotiations in order to provide loans from the Chrysler eco-funds, and they intend to begin negotiations with GM, when the company emerges from bankruptcy procedures.

The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) signed a Memorandum of Understanding. It is aimed at protecting the environment during the preparations for the Olympics and its implementation with the Russian National Committee for the Olympic Games.

Under this Memorandum, UNEP will provide technical support for Russia in its efforts to organize «environmentally friendly» Olympics.

At the signing ceremony the representative of UNEP Teodore Aubin stated that he hoped that the new arrangements would be a sort of guarantee that during preparation and holding of competitions measures will be taken to protect nature in Sochi and the whole Krasnodar region as well.

Organizers of the Olympic Games in Sochi plan to invest 1.75 billion dollars in projects on energy saving and renewable energy. So they want to offset the greenhouse gas emissions from energy use, air travel and other modes of transport. Other environmental initiatives include the development of «green belt» around town and reforestation in the Sochi National Park.

UNEP recalled that in 2008 Russia on the advice of international experts decided to postpone a number of Olympic facilities. In particular, it was decided to find alternative places for the sledge, bobsled track, Olympic Village and the water intake, which were previously planned to be built on the outskirts of the fragile natural Caucasus Reserve.

Then, in 2008, Prime Minister of Russia Vladimir Putin proposed to build «disputed objects» in other places at the meeting on the problems of compliance with environmental requirements in preparation for the Olympic Games in 2014, saying that if their construction violated the environmental system, it could not be restored. «In determining priorities – money or ecology – we choose ecology. If the balance of nature is broken, it can lead to a situation that would be impossible to correct for any money », – said Vladimir Putin.

The head of the UN Environment Program Achim Steiner welcomed the Russian Government’s commitment to environmental sustainability in preparation for the Olympic Games in Sochi. He called the decision of Russia an important step towards the «green» Olympics-2014.

Theodore Aubin stressed that the obligations, enshrined in the new memorandum, would not remain only on paper, because the organizing committee «Sochi-2014» joined UNEP «plant billion trees» project on the day of the signing.

Leaders from 16 major economies have been invited to a “preparatory session” on April 27-28 in Washington to “help generate the political leadership necessary” to achieve an international pact to cut greenhouse gas emissions later this year, it said in a statement.

It said the meeting would spur dialogue among developed and developing countries about the issue, “and advance the exploration of concrete initiatives and joint ventures that increase the supply of clean energy while cutting greenhouse gas emissions.”

The major economies include: Australia, Brazil, Britain, Canada, China, the European Union, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Russia, South Africa and the United States.

Denmark, which is hosting a U.N. meeting at the end of this year to forge a pact that would take over from the Kyoto Protocol, and the United Nations were also invited.

The group’s preparatory sessions would culminate with a major meeting on the subject in Italy in July.