(Interfax – Moscow, 26 November) Most Russians believe that the head of the State Duma Committee for Defence’s initiative to increase the duration of army service to 18 months is unjustified, an opinion poll conducted by Superjob.ru portal has shown. According to the study, which was carried out among 1,600 respondents on 22-25 November, 44 per cent of Russian citizens […]
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(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Anastasia Matveyeva, Moskovskiye Novosti – November 26, 2012) Over the 2000-2012 period, the income of Russians has grown by 2.5 times. This has radically changed the country’s social structure, say two academics who presented a report at a Gaidar Readings conference in Moscow on Nov. 13: such conditions as poverty have practically disappeared and the […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Nikolaus von Twickel – November 27, 2012) Kommersant has fired opposition-minded journalist Oleg Kashin for writing too much for other media and too little for his employer, the leading daily’s editor said Monday. “An agreement has been reached with Kashin [to terminate his employment] because he practically has not worked for Kommersant for one year,” […]
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(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Anna Arutunyan – November 26, 2012 – Anna Arutunyan is the politics editor of The Moscow News) I’m going to tell you a story about three pretty girls who defied the patriarchy no, wait, scratch that. This is a story of deceit, betrayal and revolution. No, scratch that, too. Here’s a tale of greed, […]
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NEW YORK, November 27 (RIA Novosti) – Members of the Russian punk band Pussy Riot were nominated by influential magazine Time for the 2012 Person of the Year. The punk band is among 40 candidates, who influenced news this year for better or worse. The list also includes US President Barack Obama, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Syrian leader […]
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(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Alex Morales – November 27, 2012) Thawing permafrost threatens to intensify global warming, sending the planet beyond the 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) of increases that envoys at United Nations climate talks have set as a maximum. Frozen soils that cover a quarter of the land area in the northern hemisphere contain 1,700 gigatons […]
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(Ben Aris in Moscow – Business New Europe – www.bne.eu – November 27, 2012 – Ben Aris is the editor/publisher of Business New Europe) The Kremlin is scared. As the Russian economy emerges from the 2008 crisis, it is sliding smoothly and quickly into stagnation. In response, President Vladimir Putin challenged his government to implement 22 roadmaps to finally address […]
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(Freed scientist finds little change or hope in Russia – Reuters – Gabriela Baczynska – November 25, 2012 – http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/11/25/us-russia-scientist-idUSBRE8AO02V20121125) Reuters interviews Russian physicist Valentin Danilov after his release from a Siberian penal colony, where he was previously jailed on allegations of espionage. Danilov sees little change in Russia’s political or ethical climate, blaming Russian voters at least in part: […]
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[Opposition will have its protest march on December 15 – RUSSIAN PRESS REVIEW – ITAR-TASS – November 26, 2012 – http://www.itar-tass.com/en/c142/581381.html] ITAR-TASS covers Russian opposition plans to hold a combined protest march in mid-December, as well as a split in alleged opposition goals: The opposition’s second meeting of the Coordinating Council managed to agree on a date of a new […]
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[Medvedev wants to sharply toughen responsibility for violation of traffic rules – RUSSIAN PRESS REVIEW – ITAR-TASS – November 26, 2012 – http://www.itar-tass.com/c142/581401.html] ITAR-TASS covers Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev’s apparently controversial proposal to change the penalties for drunk driving in various locales: Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has proposed to introduce differentiated penalties for drunk driving: for Moscow and […]
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[Medvedev won’t rule out second term as Russian president – Russia Today – http://rt.com/politics/medvedev-kremlin-presidency-law-569/ – November 26, 2012] Pro-Kremlin news source RussiaToday.com covers Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev’s wide-ranging interview with French media, including talk of his possible return to the Kremlin, his tandem with Vladimir Putin, “tougher laws,” Pussy Riot and Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Click here for the full article: […]
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[Medvedev says ‘does not rule out’ Kremlin comeback – AFP – Nicolas Miletitch and Stuart Williams – November 26, 2012 – click here for full article] AFP covers Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev’s declaration that he might seek a return to the Russian presidency: Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said he is not ruling out a return to the Kremlin after his […]
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MOSCOW, November 26 (Dan Peleschuk, RIA Novosti) Despite President Vladimir Putin’s newfound appreciation of the internet as a useful tool to fight Russia’s “brain drain,” experts question how fair his proposed funding scheme will actually be. They argue his new proposal to help finance online start-ups may be little more than a cash cow for government-friendly initiatives, as well […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Nikolaus von Twickel – November 26, 2012) A recent Supreme Court decision increases pressure on Internet providers to block websites without direct state interference, lawyers said Friday. The Supreme Courtsaidin a ruling published earlier this month in Rossiiskaya Gazeta that Web providers risk losing their licenses if they fail to block access to sites with […]
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(Interfax – Moscow, 25 November) Russia’s oldest NGO, the Moscow Helsinki Group (MHG), has called upon Russians to make donations for human rights projects as the law on “foreign agents” came into force (on 21 November). “Dear fellow citizens! The Moscow Helsinki Group is calling on all individuals and legal entities to participate in raising funds in order for MHG […]
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(Voice of America – James Brooke – November 24, 2012 – James Brooke is VOA Moscow bureau chief, covering Russia and the former USSR) The U.S. Ambassador labored to get Congress to ratify a trade treaty that would grant “favored nation” status to Russia. Washington’s leading newspaper harshly criticized Russia for human rights violations. Russia’s secret police were reading all […]
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(premier.gov.ru – November 26, 2012) Dmitry Medvedev: Good afternoon. Question: Good afternoon. Mr Prime Minister, you plan to visit France soon, next week. We know that you had good relations with Nicolas Sarkozy. How would you assess your cooperation with the new President of France, Francois Hollande? Do you expect any changes? Dmitry Medvedev: I believe that our relations with […]
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(RFE/RL – November 25, 2012) Following his reelection, U.S. President Barack Obama now faces the task of revitalizing U.S.-Russian relations. Ties between Washington and Moscow have seemed to stagnate somewhat following the reset of 2009-2010 and the return to the Kremlin of Vladimir Putin. RFE/RL correspondent Robert Coalson spoke recently with Ariel Cohen, a senior research fellow at The Heritage […]
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(Russia airs concern over Turkey’s request for NATO missiles – Reuters – Steve Gutterman – November 23 – http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/11/23/syria-crisis-russia-nato-idUSL5E8MN5EV20121123) Amidst the ongoing Syrian conflict, Reuters covers Russia’s reaction to the prospect of NATO deploying Patriot missile defense systems to Turkey near the border with Syria: Russia emphasised its opposition on Friday to NATO’s potential deployment of Patriot missiles in Turkey […]
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[As ‘Foreign Agent’ Law Takes Effect in Russia, Human Rights Groups Vow to Defy It – Ellen Barry – New York Times- November 22, 2012 – http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/22/world/europe/rights-groups-in-russia-reject-foreign-agent-label.html?_r=0] Ellen Barry and the New York Times cover Russia’s adoption of its “Foreign Agent Law” impacting nonprofits: Workers at the human rights organization Memorial arrived at work on Wednesday morning to see a […]
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[Scientists say new signs of global warming in Russian Arctic – AFP – November 22, 2012 – click here for full article] AFP covers warming in the Russian Arctic: The Russian Arctic is losing ice cover and being inhabited by species from the south in the latest sign of climate change, according to a group of Russian scientists. * * […]
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MOSCOW. Nov 22 (Interfax) – Nongovernmental organizations (NGO) using the words “Russia” or “Russian Federation” in their names will not need to re-register due to the new rules governing the use of these words, the Justice Ministry press service has reported. “According to Article 4 of the Russian Civil Code, civil legislation has no retroactive force and applies to relations […]
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TBILISI. Nov 23 (Interfax) – Another holiday will be marked in Georgia this year instead of the Rose Revolution anniversary for the first time since 2003. The government led by Mikheil Saakashvili came to power in Georgia following the resignation of President Eduard Shevardnadze on November 23, 2003. This date has been marked officially as the Rose Revolution anniversary, but […]
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(Interfax – November 22, 2012) MOSCOW – The street protests that erupted in December 2011 had tapped their potential by the beginning of the autumn, said Civil Society Development Foundation Chairman Konstantin Kostin. “The story that started back in December ended in September 2012. I think the reason is obvious. The motives that encouraged people to fill the streets in […]
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MOSCOW, November 23 (RIA Novosti) A growing number of Russians consider the Russian Orthodox Church to be a necessary feature of their national identity, a recent public opinion poll showed. Some 38 percent of survey respondents said it was “very important” to be an Orthodox believer if one wants to be considered “an authentic Russian,” according to a report […]
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MOSCOW. Nov 22 (Interfax) – The Oboronservice case and the consequent dismissal of Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov are the most high-profile corruption scandals Russia has had lately, sociologists told Interfax on Thursday. Seventy-two percent of Russians know about it, they said. Thirty-three percent of the respondents paid attention to corruptive practices at the Russian Regional Development Ministry and theft of […]
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(Interfax – Moscow, 21 November) Russian Prime Minister Dmitriy Medvedev believes that the public should learn to use the internet to monitor the activities of the authorities. “The internet gives us the opportunity to express our views of various issues, to take part in discussions and the monitor the work of the authorities. It is important to learn to use […]
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ASTANA. Nov 21 (Interfax) – A Siberian white crane from the project backed by President Vladimir Putin has been sent from Borovoye in the Kazakh northern Akmola region to Russia, the Kazakh Agriculture Ministry reported on Wednesday. Russian ornithologists will bring the crane back home. “An Akmola regional forestry and hunting inspection officer kept the crane at his Borovoye home […]
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MOSCOW. Nov 21 (Interfax) The likelihood of external shocks, which would threaten the Russian economy with a crisis similar to that of 2008 is low but Russia cannot control such risks and needs to be prepared for this possibility, Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseev told journalists on Wednesday. “We believe that the likelihood of such an external shock is very […]
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MOSCOW. Nov 22 (Interfax) – The Russian Energy Ministry proposes taking the first steps towards developing the country’s shale gas resources, staring with licensing and incentives to produce this sort of gas. The proposals are in a protocol resolution for a meeting to be chaired by Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and planned for Thursday, but which has been put […]
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(Interfax – November 23, 2012) Russian Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky said there is no censorship in Russia. “There are no restrictions. There is no censorship in any form. And you won’t believe it, this outraged many people,” Medinsky told a briefing held in the Russian Foreign Ministry, a video of which has been posted on YouTube. “Three of every four […]
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(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Evgeniya Chaykovskaya – November 22, 2012) Russian President Vladimir Putin is unhappy with a development roadmap created by experts from the Agency for Strategic Initiatives (ASI), particularly on improving effectiveness of customs supervision, RIA Novosti reported. “The practice of implementing roadmaps shows that not everything is going as smoothly as we would like,” Putin said. […]
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MOSCOW, November 23 (RIA Novosti) – Russia’s insistence that NGOs of a “political” nature funded from abroad register as “foreign agents” has been tied down in paperwork – or, rather, the lack of it. The NGOS affected by the controversial law were required by law to register their new legal status with the Justice Ministry by November 21, but the […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Nikolaus von Twickel – November 23, 2012) The Investigative Committee won’t open a criminal case into claims by detained opposition activist Leonid Razvozzhayev that he was kidnapped and tortured by security services. Instead, investigators launched an inquiry into the activist’s allegedly illegal entry into Ukraine, from where he mysteriously vanished last month. The decision was […]
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(Voice of America – Andre de Nesnera – November 21, 2012) Relations between the United States and Russia are at the moment on the back burner, given the current crisis in the Middle East. VOA looks at the state of relations between Washington and Moscow as President Barack Obama prepares for his second term in office. Obama has made better […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Jonathan Earle – November 23, 2012) The National Democratic Institute, or NDI, a U.S. based nonprofit that promotes democratic development, has moved its Russia country director and other senior staff to Lithuania, amid an unpredictable and increasingly hostile climate for NGO workers in Russia. The organization, which is partly funded by the U.S. government, fired […]
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(Voice of America – James Brooke – November 21, 2012 – James Brooke is VOA Moscow bureau chief, covering Russia and the former USSR) MOSCOW Next week, the United States Senate is to take up the Magnitsky Act, a bill that would ban visas for, and freeze the bank accounts of, about 60 Russian officials believed to have been […]
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(Howard Amos – Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – November 21, 2012) Despite the establishment of a Far East Development Ministry in May, the area from Siberia to the Pacific coast lacks an effective administrative body to coordinate investment projects, according to Alexander Bazhenov, head of the Far East Development Fund. Decaying infrastructure, extreme weather conditions, a decreasing population and the […]
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MOSCOW, November 21 (Dan Peleschuk, RIA Novosti) The Moscow headquarters of two influential human rights groups were vandalized on Wednesday, the first day a controversial new law on non-governmental organizations (NGO) took effect. The entrances to the offices of Memorial and For Human Rights, two prominent civil rights groups headed by veteran activists, were spray-painted with the words “Foreign […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Natalya Krainova – November 21, 2012) Yekaterina Samutsevich, the Pussy Riot rocker released from jail last month, is thinking about requesting that three of the band’s former lawyers be stripped of their licenses, her new lawyer told Kommersant. Sergei Badamshin said in an interview published Tuesday that the past lawyers Violeta Volkova, Mark Feigin […]
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(Interfax – November 20, 2012) Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia is known to most Russians, and 62 percent of citizens polled recently know his name, the VTSIOM pollster told Interfax. Most respondents best informed about the Russian patriarch are pensioners or citizens of pre-pension age (respectively 72 percent and 71 percent), and also citizens with a higher education […]
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(Irina Borogan – www.opendemocracy.net – November 20, 2012) Irina Borogan is a Russian investigative journalist who covers the operations of Russian security services. She is co-founder of the web site Agentura.Ru, which chronicles the services’ activities. Last year, Borogan and Andrei Soldatov co-authored The New Nobility: The Restoration of Russia’s Security State and the Enduring Legacy of the KGB (PublicAffairs). […]
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(RIA Novosti – November 20, 2012) Russian MPs have put forward various proposals for how Russia should respond to the USA’s “Magnitskiy list”, such as compiling a similar list of US officials or stepping up cooperation with the USA’s opponents, state news agency RIA Novosti reported on 20 November. The House of Representatives of the US Congress approved the “Magnitskiy […]
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WASHINGTON, November 21 (By Carl Schreck for RIA Novosti) – With the Magnitsky Act moving through the US Congress, American lawmakers are making clear their intent to punish Russian officials deemed by Washington to be responsible for human rights abuses. Less clear is who will end up on this blacklistand how. The Magnitsky bill passed Friday by the US House […]
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BEIJING, November 21 (RIA Novosti) Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu on Wednesday indicated Russia’s continuing interest in cooperation with China on defence sector issues. Shoigu told top Chinese officials during a visit to Beijing for the 17th Sino-Russian Intergovernmental Commission on Military and Technological Cooperation that joint work between the two powers would enhance stability across the region. “The […]
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(Jamestown Foundation – jamestown.org – Eurasia Daily Monitor: Volume 9, Issue 213 – Roger McDermott – November 20, 2012) A near catatonic trance descended upon the Russian media in the aftermath of President Vladimir Putin sacking his controversial Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov on November 6, with a preoccupation on issues of corruption and speculation on the fallen minister’s private life. […]
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(Interfax – Moscow, 20 November) The European Commission’s investigation makes one wonder whether Brussels wants to be receiving Russian gas in increasing amounts, the deputy chairman of Gazprom’s board, Aleksandr Medvedev, told the Russia’s Gas forum. “The European Commission recently began an investigation in relation to Gazprom group (RTS: GAZP) and some of its partners, which makes one wonder whether […]
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MOSCOW. Nov 20 (Interfax) – Deputy Russian Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich said he saw no reasons for growth in state ownership of the Russian oil industry. “We see no reasons for the state’s ownership in the oil sector to increase. There’s good competition between companies, companies are working well, with good profitability and substantial investments,” Dvorkovich said at a conference […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – November 21, 2012) Jailed businessman Mikhail Khodorkovsky has criticized Rosneft’s deal to take over British-Russian joint venture TNK-BP, saying President Vladimir Putin is leading the country toward “state capitalism” in an interview published Wednesday. Commenting on the deal, which Putin approved Oct. 22, the former Yukos head told Forbes magazine that the deal raises concerns […]
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MOSCOW, November 20 (RIA Novosti) Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin warned on Tuesday of a new clean-out of corruption and crooked officials in the country’s arms industry, following a series of high-profile scandals in the sector. “A clean-out is inevitable,” the deputy prime minister, who is in charge of the defense industry, told Kommersant. “The pitcher goes often […]
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