Johnson’s Russia List :: 2014-#26 :: Friday, 7 February 2014

Johnson’s Russia List :: 2014-#26 :: 7 February 2013
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POLITICS

1. Reuters: Winter Games to open, Putin keen to prove doubters wrong.
2. Business New Europe: Ben Aris, Moscow blog: Sochi Winter Olympic kick off as the Games of Hate.
3. The National Interest: Nikolas Gvosdev, Sochi: Putin Still on Track for Gold.
4. Wall Street Journal: As the Winter Olympics Open, Putin Showcases a Defiant Russia. Games Highlight Hostility to Russian President’s New Political Creed.
5. New York Times: As Olympics Arrive, Russia Experiences a Downturn.
6. Moscow Times: What the Papers Say, Feb. 7.
7. New York Times: Legislation Merging Russia’s 2 Top Courts Stokes Worries.
8. www.russiatoday.com: Pussy Riot ‘principles violated’: Former band members back off from released pair.
9. The International New York Times: Maxim Trudolyubov, Russia’s Culture Wars.
10. New York Times editorial: A Spotlight on Mr. Putin’s Russia.
11. Wall Streeet Journal editorial: The Putin Games. Peter the Great opens the Sochi ‘Korumpiad.’
12. Washington Post editorial: Autocratic regimes don’t make good Olympic hosts.
13. The New Republic: Julia Ioffe, Russians Think We’re Engaging in Olympic Schadenfreude. They’re Right.
14. Russia Beyond the Headlines: Sochi: Myths and reality. Contrary to popular believe, foreign visitors to the Olympic Games have no need to fear terrorism, weather and the persecution of gays and lesbians.
15. Business New Europe: Lilit Gevorgyan, Russia’s costly public relations exercise.
16. Russia Direct: Sochi: Will Russia benefit from the 2014 Winter Olympics?

ECONOMY

17. Russia Beyond the Headlines: Russian oil major Rosneft extends U.S. embrace. Russia’s biggest crude producer agrees to buy Morgan Stanley’s oil merchanting assets as it ramps up cooperation on new fields with U.S. major ExxonMobil.
18. Moscow Times: Q&A: Horses, History Bind AmCham Chief to Russia. (Alexis Rodzianko)

FOREIGN AFFAIRS

19. Russia Direct: Professionalism, bias and information wars in international journalism. As reporting about the Sochi Olympic and the crisis in Ukraine dominate the international press, Russian International Affairs Council addresses the problem of objectivity of international journalism and its role in shaping a country’s image.
20. Reuters: Obama says relationship with Putin not icy despite ‘tough guy’ stance.
21. Valdai Discussion Club/Izvestia: Farewell, Michael! Political analyst Boris Mezhuev on the proper way to bid good-bye to Michael McFaul.
22. Russia Beyond the Headlines/Kommersant: Record sales for Russian arms in 2013. Anatoly Isaykin, director general of Russian arms exporter Rosoboronexport, on Afghanistan, Syria, deals with the U.S. and why the company’s revenues will not grow much higher.
23. AFP: Putin aide accuses US of funding Ukraine rebels.
24. RFE/RL: Nuland Denies U.S. Training Ukraine Militants, Suggests Aid Possible.
25. The National Interest: Jacob Heilbrunn, Victoria Nuland’s Plan For Ukraine.
26. Reuters: U.S. diplomat plays down leaked call; Germany’s Merkel angry.
27. Business New Europe: Graham Stack, Tape implies US leaning toward backing Poroschenko for Ukraine PM.
28. Reuters: Ukraine’s Yanukovich backs ‘compromise’ as sole way out of crisis.
29. The National Interest: Nicolai Petro, Ukraine’s Culture War.
30 Rossiyskaya Gazeta February 4, 2014 Leonid Radzikhovsky, Ukrainian Federation
31. Moscow Times: Michael Bohm, Arab Spring in Russia’s Backyard.
32. The Voice of Russia: Dmitry Babich, Oleg Tyagnybok: neo-nazist, anti-Semite and one of the Maidan leaders.