BARVIKHA, July 4 (RIA Novosti) - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said Saturday the authorities will block attempts by gambling businesses to go into the underground or operate under the disguise of other activities.
"Legally, all gambling establishments have been shut down," he said during a video conference with participants of the Seliger 2009 youth forum.
"If underground establishments are reported to be operating in this or that town, we need to close, swat them," he said.
Casinos in Moscow and across Russia closed down in accordance with the government's July 1 deadline.
The closures went ahead despite a strong lobby against the Kremlin campaign to curb gambling as a breeding ground for money laundering and organized crime.
Under a 2007 law, casinos and other gaming parlors are to be relocated to four far-flung designated areas - in the Baltic exclave Kaliningrad, south Siberia's Altai territory, Primorye in the Far East, and in southern Russia.
Gaming companies have warned that illegal gambling will flourish, depriving state coffers of a considerable revenue source, and unemployment will grow as casinos close down in the country amid the economic crisis.
The industry had asked for a delay to the casino closures and their relocation, saying the zones situated in remote poorer regions would not attract many visitors, and the designated areas needed several more years of development.
Medvedev rejected a delay in May although officials had admitted that it would take four or five years to launch the zones.
The Finance Ministry calculated Russian regions would lose an average of 5-6 billion rubles ($160-$190 million) in annual tax revenues from the closures, but added that people could spend more on quality medical services, vacations and education instead.
The gambling business is concentrated in Moscow, St. Petersburg and some other large cities in Russia. By moving casinos, the Kremlin also sought to boost economic growth in poorer regions.
