Month: May 2017

The Economic Plan for Putin’s Next Term Is Already Set; Former Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin claims he knows how to boost economic growth. But analysts are skeptical.

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Alexei Kudrin file photo

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Mikhail Fishman – May 4, 2017) When Vladimir Putin inevitably prevails in the March 2018 presidential elections, he is expected to have a readymade plan for improving Russia’s economy. This month, former Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin will unveil a new “Strategy for Modernizing the Economy and Social Institutions” in a meeting with President Putin. The […]

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Intefax: Differences in views, positions should be no impediment to protecting Russia in name of its people’s future – Putin

History, Soviet Union
File Photo of Kremlin Aerial View, adapted from .gov source

MOSCOW. May 4 (Interfax) – Russian president Vladimir Putin has urged to safeguard and protect Russia for its future regardless of differences in views and positions. “Today I want to say once again: we have just one Russia, and all of us, whatever our views and positions, must safeguard and protect it, make it our cornerstone the future of our […]

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TRANSCRIPT: [Putin at] Meeting with Human Rights Commissioner Tatiana Moskalkova

Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Kremlin and Saint Basil's File Photo

(Kremlin.ru – May 5, 2017) Tatiana Moskalkova presented to the President the annual report on the human rights situation. President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon. You are here to present the annual report. Human Rights Commissioner Tatiana Moskalkova: Mr President, in accordance with Federal Constitutional Law, I would like to present the annual report of the Human Rights Commissioner. […]

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RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents :: JRL 2017-87 :: Friday, 5 May 2017

JRL Tables of Contents, Russian News, Ukraine, Russo-Ukrainian War
St. Basil's Domes

To inquire about a subscription to the full Johnson’s Russia List e-mail newsletter, e-mail David Johnson at davidjohnson@starpower.net [check back for updates, including more links; links also posted to facebook and twitter] Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2017-#87 Friday, 5 May 2017 A project sponsored through the Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies (IERES) at The George Washington University’s Elliott School […]

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NEWSLINK: “Dirty Jobs: Being a Governor in Russia is Proving Tough” – BearMarketBrief/ Fabrice Deprez

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Newslinks, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections, Regions, Cities, Municipalities
Russia Regions Map

“It’s a rough time to be a regional governor in Russia. Since last year, arrests and resignations of local leaders have piled up and accelerated in the last few weeks, with five governors gone since February. Described by some as a way for the Kremlin to prepare the presidential elections, whether by pumping ‘new blood’ into Russia’s political system or […]

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Russia Gives Putin Critic Navalny Passport to Travel Abroad

Assassinations, Beatings, Threats, Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Foreign Policy, Security, Visas, Health, Epidemics, Substance Abuse, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Alexei Navalny file photo

(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Ilya Arkhipov – May 4, 2017) #Russian opposition leader Alexey #Navalny said he’s been issued with a passport that would allow him to seek treatment abroad for eye damage suffered when an assailant threw a chemical in his face. The Federal Migration Service notified him that he can collect the passport after a five-year struggle to […]

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TRANSCRIPT: [Putin at] Unveiling of monument to Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich

Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Kremlin and Environs Aerial View

(Kremlin.ru – May 4, 2017) Vladimir Putin took part in a ceremony unveiling a monument to Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich on the site of his assassination in the park by the Kremlin’s Nikolskaya Tower. Acting on Mr Putin’s instruction, the Russian Military Historical Society and the Foundation for Revival of Traditions of Compassion and Charity St Elizabeth – St Sergius […]

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TRANSCRIPT: [Putin at] Joint meeting of the State Council and the Commission for Monitoring Targeted Socioeconomic Development Indicators

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections, Regions, Cities, Municipalities
Russia Regions Map

(Kremlin.ru – May 4, 2017) Vladimir Putin chaired a joint meeting of the State Council and the Commission for Monitoring Targeted Socioeconomic Development Indicators in the Kremlin. The agenda focused on three main sets of issues: Provision of state and municipal services through the network of multifunctional centres, independent evaluation of social sector service quality, and relocating people from dilapidated […]

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RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents :: JRL 2017-86 :: Thursday, 4 May 2017

JRL Tables of Contents, Russian News, Ukraine, Russo-Ukrainian War
St. Basil's Domes

To inquire about a subscription to the full Johnson’s Russia List e-mail newsletter, e-mail David Johnson at davidjohnson@starpower.net [check back for updates, including more links; links also posted to facebook and twitter] Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2017-#86 Thursday, 4 May 2017 A project sponsored through the Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies (IERES) at The George Washington University’s Elliott School […]

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NEWSLINK: “FBI’s Comey: Russia is ‘greatest threat of any nation on Earth’ to U.S. democratic process” – CNBC/ Jacob Pramuk

Cybersecurity, Media, Internet, Social Media, Television, Newslinks, Science, Technology, Engineering, Spies, Spy Allegations, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
FBI Headquarters File Photo

“#FBI Director James #Comey told senators Wednesday that #Russia remains involved in American politics, saying he thinks the country poses the ‘greatest threat’ to the U.S. political process of any in the world. During a Senate Judiciary Committee oversight hearing, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham – a foreign policy hawk – asked Comey ‘what kind of threat’ Russia presents ‘to the […]

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Putin Meets Erdogan as Russia Pursues Syria Diplomacy Blitz

Syria, Turkey
Turkey and Environs Satellite Image

(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Henry Meyer, Ilya Arkhipov – May 3, 2017) Russian President Vladimir Putin continued his diplomatic push for a plan to establish safe zones in Syria backed by peacekeepers as he began talks with Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the Black Sea resort of Sochi on Wednesday. Russia and Turkey can “change the destiny of the […]

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Pavel Koshkin: “Why the revival of the commodity market is not good for the Kremlin”

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Oil, Gas, Energy
Oil Well file photo

Subject: Why the revival of the commodity market is not good for the Kremlin Date: Tue, 2 May 2017 From: Pavel Koshkin <pkoshkin.russia.direct@gmail.com> Title: Why the revival of the commodity market is not good for the #Kremlin Pavel Koshkin is a contributor for Forbes-#Russia magazine and the deputy editor of International Desk at RBC Daily, a Russian independent newspaper. He […]

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Russians Remain Too Atomized and Lacking in Empathy to Make a Revolution, Kirillova Says

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photo of Revolutionaries Marching in Moscow in 1917, adapted from image at state.gov

(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, May 2, 2017) Many nations facing the difficulties #Russians now are would #revolutionary change [sic], but Russians are unlikely to do so, Kseniya Kirillova says, because they remain far too atomized and far too lacking in empathy to look beyond their immediate personal problems and identify with the problems of others. The […]

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RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents :: JRL 2017-85 :: Wednesday, 3 May 2017

JRL Tables of Contents, Russian News, Ukraine, Russo-Ukrainian War
St. Basil's Domes

To inquire about a subscription to the full Johnson’s Russia List e-mail newsletter, e-mail David Johnson at davidjohnson@starpower.net [check back for updates, including more links; links also posted to facebook and twitter] Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2017-#85 Wednesday, 3 May 2017 A project sponsored through the Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies (IERES) at The George Washington University’s Elliott School […]

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NEWSWATCH: “Western sanctions and languid Russian economy; Stringent international sanctions imposed on Russia for its role in the Ukraine conflict have sucked the momentum out of the Russian economy over the past couple of years. The nation’s growth prospects remain lethargic.” – Deutsche Welle/ Srinivas Mazumdaru

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Europe, EU, Germany, JRL NewsBlog, Sanctions, Ukraine, Russo-Ukrainian War
EU Map

Talks between … #Merkel and … #Putin … focused mainly on geopolitical and security problems, such as … #Ukraine and #Syria. … [they] did not explicitly bring up … #sanctions at the press conference … with the #German chancellor simply saying she hoped some of the sanctions could be lifted if Moscow helped make significant progress in implementing the Minsk peace plan. * * * The sanctions […]

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TRANSCRIPT: [Putin and Merkel] Press statements and answers to media questions following meeting with Federal Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel

Europe, EU, Germany, Sanctions, Ukraine, Russo-Ukrainian War
Map of Germany

(Kremlin.ru – Sochi, May 2, 2017) President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, I would like to begin by thanking the Federal Chancellor for coming to Sochi and for the opportunity to have a meaningful conversation on preparations for the upcoming July G20 meeting in Hamburg, and review urgent matters on the bilateral agenda, as well as […]

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Interfax: “Conflict in Ukraine cannot be settled without direct talks between parties to it – Putin”

Ukraine, Russo-Ukrainian War
Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

SOCHI. May 2 (Interfax) – It is impossible to settle the conflict in southeastern Ukraine without a direct dialogue between Kyiv and Donbas, Russian President Vladimir Putin said. “It’s necessary to finally make representatives of the Kyiv authorities and representatives of these unrecognized republics sit down at the same negotiating table. It’s impossible to achieve the conflict’s settlement without a […]

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NEWSWATCH: “Hardliners urge Kremlin crackdown on social media; Russia has introduced increasingly draconian web laws but some are pushing for more” – Financial Times/ Max Seddon

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, JRL NewsBlog, Media, Internet, Social Media, Television, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Image of Laptop Computer, Tables and Mobile Device, adapted from image at energy.gov

“… success in using social media to mobilise youthful anti-corruption protesters has sparked calls for the Kremlin to step up internet censorship. … [A]t a censorship conference … Oscar-winning film director Nikita Mikhalkov … showed a documentary that accused … Navalny of luring children to violent protests against … Putin. ‘… [Young people] don’t know any history and they won’t until they get a rubber […]

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By Focusing on Corruption Alone, Opposition Unwittingly Helping Kremlin, Pavlova Says

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections

(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, May 1, 2017) Aleksey Navalny and the liberals who support him have focused almost exclusively on the issue of corruption, a stance that reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of Russia’s largest problem and in fact distracts attention from it, according to US-based Russian historian Irina Pavlova. “The liberal intelligentsia practically unanimously supports Navalny […]

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NEWSWATCH: “Kremlin propaganda comes to Showtime. Putin smirks in this trailer when Oliver Stone asks him ‘Why did Russia hack the election?'” – Andrew S. Weiss @andrewsweiss

Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photo of Screenshot of Vladimir Putin in Twitter Video of Trailer of Oliver Stone TV Film Regarding Russia

(Andrew S. Weiss – @andrewsweiss – Twitter – May 1, 2017) [Vice President for Studies, Carnegie Endowment. Russia and Eurasia Program] Kremlin propaganda comes to Showtime. Putin smirks in this trailer when Oliver Stone asks him “Why did Russia hack the election?” Showtime Doc Films @SHO_Docs No topic is off limits. The Putin Interviews, a revealing series of interviews between […]

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Interfax: “Russian police act with far more restraint than some of their European counterparts – Putin”

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime
Vladimir Putin file photo with VOA logo; screen shot from video still

SOCHI. May 2 (Interfax) – Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed accusations that police in Russia tend to use excessive force in curbing protests, saying that they have acted and will continue to act in line with the law. When asked by some Western reporters to comment on the way Russian authorities deal with opposition groups and protests at a news […]

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RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents :: JRL 2017-84 :: Tuesday, 2 May 2017

JRL Tables of Contents, Russian News, Ukraine, Russo-Ukrainian War
St. Basil's Domes

To inquire about a subscription to the full Johnson’s Russia List e-mail newsletter, e-mail David Johnson at davidjohnson@starpower.net [check back for updates, including more links; links also posted to facebook and twitter] Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2017-#84 Tuesday, 2 May 2017 A project sponsored through the Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies (IERES) at The George Washington University’s Elliott School […]

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Ten Percent Decline in Number of Births in Russia over Last Year Frightens Economists

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photo of Crowd in Russia Including Person Waving Russian Flag with Eagle

(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, April 29, 2017) Just before the May holidays, Russia’s state statistical agency released figures on births, deaths and marriages that Moscow may hope no one will notice because they are so bad; but Russian economists have sounded the alarm that the population decline they point to may make impossible for the Russian […]

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Behind the Russian mirror; For Russia’s media, social inequality has never been a hot topic. Meet the people behind a new media organisation trying put injustice on Russia’s political agenda.

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Human Rights, Media, Internet, Social Media, Television, Nonprofits, Activists, NGO's, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Map of Russia and Russian Flag adapted from images at state.gov

(opendemocracy.net – Maxim Edwards – April 15, 2017) Maxim Edwards is Commissioning Editor at oDR. He writes on nationalism, migration, minorities and memory, with a focus on post-Soviet countries. His articles have appeared in Al-Jazeera, Al Monitor, Souciant and the Forward among other publications. Read the latest in our ongoing Unlikely Media series. As part of this series, oDR profiles […]

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CALL FOR PROPOSALS: Aleksanteri Conference 2017 “Russia’s Choices for 2030”, University of Helsinki, Finland, 25-27 October 2017

Calls for Papers, Calls for Proposals, Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Education, Academia, Events, Finland, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photo of the Aleksanteri Institute, University of Helsinki, adapted from an image at the Wikimedia Creative Commons, attributed to John Welsh/Welshentag, with conditions on reuse, declaring "This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license. You are free: to share – to copy, distribute and transmit the work to remix – to adapt the work Under the following conditions: attribution – You must attribute the work in the manner specified by the author or licensor (but not in any way that suggests that they endorse you or your use of the work). share alike – If you alter, transform, or build upon this work, you may distribute the resulting work only under the same or similar license to this one."

From: Korteniemi, Eeva L [eeva.korteniemi@helsinki.fi] Sent: Friday, April 28, 2017 Subject: Call for proposals: Aleksanteri Conference2017 “Russia’s Choices for 2030”, University of Helsinki, Finland, 25-27 October 2017 Call for paper, panel, and roundtable proposals 17th Annual Aleksanteri Conference RUSSIA’S CHOICES FOR 2030 Time and venue: 25-27 October 2017, University of Helsinki, Finland Organiser: Aleksanteri Institute, University of Helsinki and Finnish […]

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Does Putin Still Favor Sidekick Medvedev? After graft allegations sparked anti-Kremlin protests, the political future of Russia’s prime minister is cloudy at best.

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photo of Dmitry Medvedev and Vladimir Putin with Heads Bowed Over Microphone

(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Henry Meyer, Ilya Arkhipov, Evgenia Pismennaya, Irina Reznik – April 26, 2017) In past presidential elections, Russia’s Vladimir Putin has twice resorted to a sudden ouster of his prime minister to bolster results at the ballot box. Dmitry Medvedev, the longest-serving premier since Putin came to power in 2000, seemed likely to be an exception, even […]

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RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents :: JRL 2017-83 :: Monday, 1 May 2017

JRL Tables of Contents, Russian News, Ukraine, Russo-Ukrainian War
St. Basil's Domes

To inquire about a subscription to the full Johnson’s Russia List e-mail newsletter, e-mail David Johnson at davidjohnson@starpower.net [check back for updates, including more links; links also posted to facebook and twitter] Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2017-#83 Monday, 1 May 2017 A project sponsored through the Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies (IERES) at The George Washington University’s Elliott School […]

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NEWSLINK: “ExxonMobil Just Challenged Trump to Get Serious With Russia Policy” – Fortune/ Richard Nephew, Colin Rowat

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Newslinks, Oil, Gas, Energy, Sanctions, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Portion of U.S. Treasury Department Building Facade, North Side, with Sculpture of Alexander Hamilton

“Earlier this month, news leaked that ExxonMobil was pushing the Treasury Department to grant it a sanctions waiver, which would allow the company to resume its joint venture Black Sea drilling operations with Russian oil giant Rosneft. The Treasury Department has since denied the waiver application, as waivers are granted for humanitarian and policy reasons, not for business reasons—which was […]

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NEWSLINK: “Director Oliver Stone on his new film subject: Russian President Vladimir Putin” – Brisbane Times

Life in Russia, Culture, Arts, Middle East, North Africa
File Photo of Screenshot of Vladimir Putin in Twitter Video of Trailer of Oliver Stone TV Film Regarding Russia

“American director Oliver Stone’s latest film promises to be a revealing close-up of Russian president Vladimir Putin, including his views on relations with the US and allegations of meddling in the presidential election last year. …”

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NEWSLINK: “Stanford professor analyzes Russian Empire’s history in new book; Stanford history professor Nancy Kollmann discusses the establishment of the Russian Empire and how Russia’s past shapes its present” – Stanford News/ ALEX SHASHKEVICH

History, Soviet Union, Newslinks, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Kremlin and River

“The spotlight on United States-Russia relations has intensified over the past year to levels not seen since the Cold War, according to experts.  To understand Russia, it’s important to understand the course of its history.  Stanford history professor Nancy Kollmann provides insight into the rise of the Russian Empire in her recently published book, The Russian Empire 1450-1801. Stanford News […]

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Young, Hipster and Red: Meet Russia’s New Generation of Communists; The crusty shell of Russia’s Communist Party may be associated with pensioners, but the movement is undergoing a face-lift

History, Soviet Union, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Kremlin and Saint Basil's File Photo

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Bradley Jardine, Ola Cichowlas – May 1, 2017) When the creaking, bureaucratic Soviet state suddenly collapsed in 1991, Andrei Klychkov was just a schoolboy in Kaliningrad, Russia’s exclave in north west Europe. Now, twenty-six years on, Klychkov is a lawyer – with crisp presentation and sharp suits. He’s also the communist candidate in Moscow’s mayoral […]

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NEWSLINK: “How the Russia Spin Got So Much Torque” – Common Dreams/ Norman Solomon

Cybersecurity, JRL NewsBlog, Newslinks, Spies, Spy Allegations, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations

“… Soon after #Clinton’s defeat, top strategists decided where to place the blame. ‘Within 24 hours of her concession speech,’ the authors report, campaign manager Robby Mook and campaign chair John Podesta ‘assembled her communications team at the Brooklyn headquarters to engineer the case that the election wasn’t entirely on the up-and-up. For a couple of hours, with Shake Shack […]

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RUSSIALINK RBTH: “Informal economy in Russia grows to record levels. The informal economy is being helped by economic decline, on the one hand, and the growth of technologies and Internet-markets for work and part-time work, on the other.”

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Newslinks
Russian Migrant Workers file photo

“In 2016, employment in the informal sector of Russia’s economy set a record level for the last 10 years, reports Rosstat, the Russian Statistics Agency (the information was published (in Russian) by the RBC business daily in mid-April).  Rosstat believes that the informal employment category consists of those people who work in enterprises that are not registered as a legal entity, that […]

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NEWSLINK: “The Kremlin turns its electoral meddling to Western Europe; Russia’s next targets are moderates in France and Germany” – Washington Post editorial

Europe, EU, Newslinks, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Vladimir Putin file photo with VOA logo; screen shot from video still

“… it should be clear that the new normal of Russian conduct on the international stage includes tampering with elections in Western democracies to boost candidates the Kremlin believes likely to do its bidding and to harass those who won’t …”

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