Author: JRL Russia List

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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Putin and Poroshenko Still Talk Regularly, But Kiev Would Rather Ukrainians Didn’t Know

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

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – April 28, 2017) Sources in Moscow and Kiev tell the Russian newspaper Kommersant that Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko continue to speak on the phone, though both leaders regularly trade harsh accusations in public. According to Kommersant, the latest conversation between Putin and Poroshenko took place in early April. The two […]

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TRANSCRIPT: [Putin at] Meeting with Minister of Labour and Social Protection Maxim Topilin

Politics, Government, Protests, Elections, Population Disaster, Demographics
Kremlin and River

(Kremlin.ru – April 26, 2017) Vladimir Putin held a working meeting with Minister of Labour and Social Protection Maxim Topilin. President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Mr Topilin, I would like to discuss with you not only current social policy issues but also the upcoming trends that we will definitely encounter due to a number of objective circumstances. We are certainly […]

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TRANSCRIPT: [Putin at] Meeting with Government members

Agriculture, Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Aerial View of Kremlin and Environs

(Kremlin.ru – April 26, 2017) Vladimir Putin held a meeting with Government members to discuss import substitution in industry and agriculture. Other subjects of discussion included preparations for children’s summer holidays, work on the draft law on responsible treatment of animals, and the programme to build or reconstruct village cultural centres. President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon colleagues. Today, […]

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RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents :: JRL 2017-82 :: Saturday, 29 April 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-#82 Saturday, 29 April 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: “Have we forgotten the Cold War? Nuclear threat more real than ever” – The Hill/ William Perry

JRL NewsBlog, North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation, Nuclear, Missile Defense, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Russian Mobile ICBM Parade File Photo

“… relations between the United States and #Russia are as hostile as they were during the #ColdWar. Russia has dropped its long-term policy of ‘No First Use’ of #nuclear weapons and is rebuilding its nuclear arsenal. It is threatening its neighbors with these deadly weapons and indirectly threatening the U.S. Responding to this challenge, the U.S. has begun rebuilding its […]

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NEWSWATCH: “A shortage of women in technology? Not in Russia” – Washington Post/ Gene Marks

Children, Adoptions, Orphans, Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Education, Academia, JRL NewsBlog, Media, Internet, Social Media, Television, Science, Technology, Engineering
File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

If you’re part of the #technology industry in the United States, then you’ll no doubt agree it’s a man’s world. TechCrunch reported … on the ‘pipeline problem’ … 18 percent of undergraduate computer science degrees and 26 percent of computing jobs are … held by #women. … [and] five percent of leadership positions in the technology industry …. the share of women in […]

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NEWSLINK: “Russia and the “Resource Curse”: When the Kremlin’s Policy is Counterproductive for the Economy” – Carnegie Moscow Center/Forbes.ru/ ANDREY MOVCHAN, PAVEL KOSHKIN)

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Newslinks, Oil, Gas, Energy, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Oil Well file photo

“How can Russia overcome the “resource curse”? What countries should be an example for Moscow? What consequences can the Russian flawed economic policy lead to? Why could the authorities’ attempts to save their power by any means be dangerous for economic growth? Andrey Movchan, the director of the Economic Policy Pogram at the Carnegie Moscow Center, sheds light on these […]

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Should Medvedev Resign? Almost Half of Russians Questioned in Poll Think So

Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photo of Dmitry Medvedev with United Russia Logos Behind Him

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – April 26, 2017) [http://www.rbc.ru/politics/26/04/2017/58ff7f609a7947259b93a000?from=main] A corruption investigation and a sluggish economy have not left Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev untouched – almost half of those questioned in a new poll think he should resign. The survey, carried out this earlier month by the independent #Levada Center pollster, showed that 45 percent of Russians think Medvedev […]

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NEWSLINK: “Russia and the “Resource Curse”: When the Kremlin’s Policy is Counterproductive for the Economy” – Carnegie Moscow Center/ Forbes.ru/ ANDREY MOVCHAN, PAVEL KOSHKIN)

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

“How can Russia overcome the ‘resource curse’? What countries should be an example for Moscow? What consequences can the Russian flawed economic policy lead to? Why could the authorities’ attempts to save their power by any means be dangerous for economic growth? Andrey Movchan, the director of the Economic Policy Pogram at the Carnegie Moscow Center, sheds light on these […]

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Putin’s Arms Bazaar Is in a Serious Sales Slump

Arms Trade, Military Aid, Foreign Policy, Security, Visas, Military
File Photo of Buk-1 SAM

(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Tobin Harshaw – April 25, 2017) Tobin Harshaw writes editorials on national security, education and food for Bloomberg View. He was an editor with the op-ed page of the New York Times and the paper’s letters editor. Russian President Vladimir #Putin is mighty proud of his #military’s performance in #Syria. And, as I have written, it’s […]

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NEWSWATCH: “Who Really Influences Policy in Moscow? With thousands of Russians being branded as close associates of Vladimir Putin, it is difficult to tell who actually has a voice in the Kremlin.” -The National Interest/ Nikolas Gvosde

JRL NewsBlog, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of Kremlin Tower, St. Basil's, Red Square at Night

… whether the institute’s [a Russian think tank, the Institute of Strategic Studies] memos advised the Kremlin to undertake these actions or whether they were simply piggybacking on a course of action already decided, the 2016 elections should have started a much more robust conversation about the vitality and resilience of American institutions. Very few people have wanted to tackle the unpleasant […]

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RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents :: JRL 2017-81 :: Wednesday, 26 April 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-#81 Wednesday, 26 April 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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TRANSCRIPT: [Putin at] Meeting of the Russian Geographical Society Board of Trustees

Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Russia Regions Map

(Kremlin.ru – April 24, 2017) Vladimir Putin chaired a meeting of the Russian Geographical Society (RGO) Board of Trustees. The meeting reviewed the Society’s work over the last year and the most important projects planned for 2017. It was attended by members of the Society’s Board of Trustees, media and managing councils, as well as top scholars. President of Russia […]

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RUSSIALINK Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs: “Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov’s interview with Kommersant newspaper, published 19 April 2017”

Foreign Policy, Security, Visas, Newslinks, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Sergei Ryabkov file photo

“Question: Do you know when and where President of Russia Vladimir Putin will meet with US President Donald Trump? Sergey Ryabkov: We have reaffirmed our readiness for such a meeting several times. We understand that contacts at the highest level are crucial for adjusting the agenda, areas of focus and the direction we are moving in. We confirmed our willingness […]

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New Poll Says Putin’s ‘Crimean Consensus’ Is Fading

Politics, Government, Protests, Elections, Ukraine, Russo-Ukrainian War
Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – April 24, 2017) Most Russians still support Vladimir Putin’s presidency, but the surge in popularity Putin has enjoyed since the annexation of Crimea in March 2014 is beginning to fade, according to the latest poll by the independent Levada Center. The president’s approval ratings remain high: 22 percent of Russians say they fully trust Putin, […]

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NEWSLINK: “Unequal Russia: is anger stirring in the global capital of inequality?” – The Guardian (UK)  

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Newslinks, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Cash, Calculator, Pen

“With the richest 10% owning 87% of all the country’s wealth, Russia is rated the most unequal of the world’s major economies. Amid falling oil prices and a wave of protests, Shaun Walker asks how Russians really feel about life’s inequalities. …”

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TRANSCRIPT: [Putin at] Meeting with Council of Legislators

Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Tauride Palace file photo - adapted from image © A.Savin, Wikimedia Commons

(Kremlin.ru – April 24, 2017) Vladimir Putin met with members of the Council of Legislators of the Russian Federation Federal Assembly. By tradition, the meeting took place at the Tauride Palace and was timed to coincide with Russian Parliamentarianism Day, marked on April 27. Improving legislation for countering corruption, regulating trade and import replacement, and parliamentary oversight of regional policy […]

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Interfax: Some 37% of Russians believe state fails to meet obligations to people – poll

Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Kremlin and River

MOSCOW. April 25 (Interfax) – Fifty-three percent of Russians believe that this country’s citizens meet their obligations to the state either for the most part or to the fullest extent, while 12% maintain the opposite, the Yuri Levada Analytical Center told Interfax. Less than a third of respondents (29%) argue that “citizens are both meeting and defying their obligations to […]

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NEWSWATCH: Transcript of AP interview with Trump (excerpt re: CrowdStrike)

Cybersecurity, JRL NewsBlog, Media, Internet, Social Media, Television, Science, Technology, Engineering, Spies, Spy Allegations, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of White House with South Lawn and Fountain

[In an interview with AP, dated April 24, 2017, with an indication that it apparently took place Friday, April 21, 2017, President Donald Trump commented on Democratic National Committee cybersecurity problems and computer contractor CrowdStrike.] TRUMP: They [Democratic National Committee] shouldn’t have allowed it to get out. If they had the proper defensive devices on their internet, you know, equipment, they wouldn’t […]

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RUSSIALINK RBTH: “Why does ExxonMobil need Russia’s Arctic region? Even though the price of extracting oil in the Arctic is very expensive, ExxonMobil still wants to strengthen its position in the Russian market.”

Arctic, Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Newslinks, Oil, Gas, Energy, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Arctic Map

“The U.S. Government will not give the green light to oil major ExxonMobil Corporation and other American companies that seek to drill in areas covered by U.S. sanctions against Russia, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on April 21. …”

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NEWSLINK: “A New Organization Is Battling Russia’s Culture of Impunity. To end the attacks on journalists, activists, and writers, Freedom of Speech is standing for the best traditions of Russian civil society.” – The Nation/ Nadezda Azhgikhina

Assassinations, Beatings, Threats, 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

“… the declaration of the new association, Freedom of Speech, appeared on the website of Ekho and other media, demanding that the perpetrators of the threats be held responsible and also that there be an end to the culture of impunity in general. …”

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RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents :: JRL 2017-80 :: Tuesday, 25 April 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-#80 Tuesday, 25 April 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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RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents :: JRL 2017-79 :: Monday, 24 April 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-#79 Monday, 24 April 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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“Crises in the Second Nuclear Age” – Stephen J. Cimbala, Paul Bracken

Middle East, North Africa, North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation, Nuclear, Missile Defense, Syria, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations, WMD Proliferation
Russian Mobile ICBM Parade File Photo

Subject: Crises in the Second Nuclear Age Date: Fri, 21 Apr 2017 From: STEPHEN CIMBALA <sjc2@psu.edu> Crises in the Second Nuclear Age By Stephen J. Cimbala and Paul Bracken Stephen J. Cimbala is Professor of Political Science at Penn State Brandywine. Paul Bracken is Professor of Management and Professor of Political Science at Yale University. Nuclear weapons coincided with the […]

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YouTube Removes Video Comparing Kremlin Opponent Navalny To Hitler

Media, Internet, Social Media, Television, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections, Race, Ethnic, Extremism, Xenophobia
Youtube(TM) Logo, adapted from image at oakridge.doe.gov

(RFE/RL– rferl.org – April 22, 2017) YouTube has removed a video likening Russian opposition leader Aleksei Navalny to Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler, citing a copyright claim. The slickly produced video, titled Hitler 1945/Navalny 2018, had garnered more than 2 million views after it was posted anonymously on the popular website on April 19. But it was unavailable at its original […]

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‘Russia is the Only Country Dying Out in Peacetime,’ Villager Responds to Medvedev

Politics, Government, Protests, Elections, Population Disaster, Demographics, Regions, Cities, Municipalities
Russia Regions Map

(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, April 19, 2017) After Dmitry Medvedev can’t answer whether there will be work for villagers, one of their number observes that “Russia is the only country dying out in peacetime, where residents of rural areas and small towns are joining the ranks of the poor … and where 70 percent of the […]

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Punishment for petty crimes excessive, decriminalization needed – Kudrin

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Alexei Kudrin file photo

KRASNOYARSK. April 21 (Interfax) – The system penalizing for misdemeanors in Russia is too harsh, with its shortages of workforce the country needs to decriminalize its laws, Alexei Kudrin, Chairman of the Board at the Center for Strategic Research. “We need decriminalization, the punishment for petty, insignificant crimes should be reduced, [imprisonment] up to two to three years for insignificant […]

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NEWSLINK: “Kremlin Stringing Kadyrov Along on Oil” – Russian and Eurasian Politics/Gordon Hahn

Chechnya, Dagestan, North Caucasus, Newslinks, Oil, Gas, Energy
Ramzan Kadyrov file photo

“Chechen President and strongman Ramzan Kadyrov recently may have finally won long-sought concessions from Moscow in oil related industries, something he has been fighting to attain from RosNeft since he came to power in the once war-torn North Caucasus republic in early 2008. In November 2009, Kadyrov and Sergei Bogdanchikov, then head of RosNeft, Russia’s state oil giant, wrested from oligarch […]

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Interfax: OSCE vehicle blown up in Luhansk region by Three Ukrainian saboteurs – LPR

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

LUHANSK. April 24 (Interfax) – The militia of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR) have determined the composition of a group of saboteurs suspected of blowing up a vehicle of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission on the outskirts of the village of Pryshyb on April 23, Alexander Alexandrov, the head of the LPR Prosecutor General’s Office investigations department, told reporters […]

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NEWSWATCH: Re: Attack on Kyiv activist – Jeffrey Burds/ Facebook

Assassinations, Beatings, Threats, Human Rights, Race, Ethnic, Extremism, Xenophobia, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

[Jeffrey Burds reported on Facebook about the stabbing of university student and activist Stas Sergienko in Ukraine. An initial post is embedded below. Further information here: facebook.com/jeffrey.burds?hc_ref=NEWSFEED&fref=nf] “URGENT: I have very sad news to report. This afternoon, 20 April 2017, our friend and outspoken activist in Kyiv, a young university student Stas Sergienko was followed by a ‘Nazi gang’ and stabbed multiple times. Thankfully, Stas survived–after emergency […]

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Kudrin sees sanctions as primarily negative for Russian economy

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Sanctions
Alexei Kudrin file photo

KRASNOYARSK. April 21 (Interfax) – Sanctions are having a negative impact on the Russian economy, the chairman of the Center for Strategic Research (CSR), former Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin said. “We are sooner losing position on the global market. The problem is not only related to the drop in oil prices and sanctions. Sanctions are in general very sensitive and […]

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The Man Who Definitely Didn’t Kill Boris Nemtsov; As the murder trial comes to an end, Vladimir Putin seals his political pact with Chechnya’s Ramzan Kadyrov

Assassinations, Beatings, Threats, Chechnya, Dagestan, North Caucasus, Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Boris Nemtsov file photo

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Mikhail Fishman, Daria Litvinova – April 20, 2017) [Videos here themoscowtimes.com/articles/the-man-who-definitely-didnt-kill-boris-nemtsov-57779] There was something off about the latest meeting between Vladimir Putin and Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov. In footage released by the Kremlin on Thursday, neither man seemed at ease, with Kadyrov looking around confusedly, and Putin fidgeting slightly in his seat. Compare this scene […]

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Is the anti-corruption agenda all that it’s cracked up to be?

Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photo of Two Persons Shaking Hands and Exchanging Cash

The fight against corruption is often sold as the pill to end all postsocialist ills. Activists and researchers in Poland, Russia and Ukraine give their views on why we need to challenge it. (opendemocracy.net – Editors of Opendemocracy Russia – April 21, 2017) Recent years have seen a rise in anti-corruption protest movements across postsocialist states. In January, thousands took […]

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Interfax: Russians have started smoking less, dying of alcohol poisoning less – government report

Health, Epidemics, Substance Abuse

MOSCOW. April 20 (Interfax) – Russians have become less prone to bad habits. According to the materials prepared for the annual government report in the State Duma, thirty-one percent of the country’s adults said they smoked in 2016, against 41% in 2010. The data was provided citing the All-Russian Public Opinion Research Center. Alcohol consumption has decreased from 14.3 liters […]

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NEWSWATCH: “The Economic Ramifications of Conflict in Ukraine” – Stratfor

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, JRL NewsBlog, Sanctions, Ukraine, Russo-Ukrainian War
Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

The conflict in eastern Ukraine has dealt a particularly heavy blow to its economic relationship with Russia. Much of Ukraine’s industrial production was taken offline …. The country lost a sizable share of its exports … [and]  GDP saw a double-digit contraction. Kiev… [the EU] and [the] United States, slapped Russia with sanctions … [over] Crimea and Donbas; Moscow responded in kind …. […]

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RUSSIALINK TASS: “Putin’s spokesman dismisses rumors about plans to appoint Kudrin as prime minister”

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

“Rumors linking the activities of former Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin, Head of Russia’s Center for Strategic Research, with his possible appointment as prime minister are nothing more than political exercises, Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. The Kremlin spokesman pointed out that Kudrin was a broad-range expert ‘so it is only natural that he has an opinion on a […]

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Another Reason to Avoid Rushing on Russia’s Election Role

Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Stylized Artist's Depiction of Shadowy Figures in Dark Coats and Dark Hats, One Carrying a Briefcase

(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Leonid Bershidsky – April 20, 2017) Leonid Bershidsky is a Bloomberg View columnist. He was the founding editor of the Russian business daily Vedomosti and founded the opinion website Slon.ru. In January, the U.S. intelligence community accused the Kremlin of aiding Donald Trump’s presidential campaign and refused to reveal the evidence that led to the claim […]

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