JRL Table of Contents :: Johnson’s Russia List 2012-#168 – 24 September 2012

Map of Russia

Johnson’s Russia List
2012-#168
24 September 2012
davidjohnson@starpower.net
A World Security Institute Project
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In this issue

POLITICS

1. Moscow Times/AP: Deadly Hobby of Dog Hunting Gains Popularity.
2. Moscow News: Drunk driver kills 7 when he hits a bus stop at 190 kph.
3. The Vancouver Sun (Canada): Matthew Fisher, West’s depiction of Putin’s woes is nothing more than wishful thinking. While criticisms of Russian President Vladimir Putin are heavily covered in the western media, it would be a mistake to think the Russian public at large is hankering for change.
4. Moscow Times/BBC Monitoring. What the Papers Say, Sept. 24, 2012.
5. AFP: Russia quietly marks anniversary of Putin ‘job swap’
6. Interfax: Protest sentiment abating over restructuring in civil society. (Kudrin)
7. Interfax: Russian Opposition Leaders See Their Name Recognition, Disapproval Ratings Go Up.
8. Vedomosti: CANDIDATES. An update on election of the opposition’s Coordinating Council.
9. Los Angeles Times: Russian opposition figure takes dim view of anti-Putin movement. (Vladimir Milov)
10. Interfax: Kremlin considering resumption of election bloc practice.
11. Moskovskiye Novosti: United Russia Deputies Reluctant to Divest Foreign Property.
12. Moscow Times: Treason Bill Gains Momentum.
13. ITAR-TASS: RUSSIAN PRESS REVIEW. The State Duma voted for amendments in the articles of the Criminal Code over high treason and espionage.
14. BBC Monitoring: Outspoken tycoon says Putin not corrupt but victim of system. (Aleksandr Lebedev)
15. Moscow Times: Vladimir Frolov, On Pension Plan, Putin Shows He’s Not a Leader.
16. AFP: Russia’s Chechen war mastermind Grachev dies at 64.
17. Financial TImes editorial: Uncivil society.
18. www.russiatoday.com: Russian consumer rights watchdog seeks to defrock Orthodox Patriarch.
19. Moscow TImes: Politics, Orthodoxy a Potent Mix at Winzavod.
20. Eliot Borenstein: Blog “All the Russias,” http://jordanrussiacenter.org/all-the-russias/

ECONOMY

21. Forbes.com: Mark Adomanis, With Continued Economic Growth, Russia’s Unemployment Rate Hit an All-Time Low in August.
22. Forbes.com: Mark Adomanis, Jim Rogers’ Newfound Love For Russia And The Gradual Improvement In Its Image Among Investors.
23. www.russiatoday.com: Too much of Government is bad enough – Sochi Forum.
24. Washington Post: Cumbersome Gazprom losing its clout.
25. Moscow Times: Gazprom Neft Delays Arctic Drilling for Safety Reasons.
26. www.imassera.com: Tourism Biggest Industry In Russia.
27. Bloomberg: Russian Food-Store Tsar Rings Up Billions as Wal-Mart Wavers.

FOREIGN AFFAIRS

28. www.russiatoday.com: Fyodor Lukyanov, Responsibility versus liberty.
29. Asia Times: Yong Kwon, Siberia placed to be the new Middle East.
30. Russia Beyond the Headlines: Straddling between Asia and Europe. Historian and scholar Yakov Berger talks about misconceptions of Russia’s plans for development in the Far East, and discusses the benefits of Russia’s presence and relationships in Asia.
31. Cesran International: Richard Rousseau, The Cracks in the Russia-China Tandem.
32. Valdai Discussion Club: Stephen Pifer, Geopolitical reality makes US seek Russian cooperation.
33. www.policymic.com: Georgi Ivanov, Russia Strategic Review: With NATO Expansion, New Ballistic Missiles Signal Shift in Moscow.
34. Moscow Times: Georgy Bovt, A Pyrrhic Victory Over USAID.
35. www.russiatoday.com: Veronika Krasheninnikova, USAID looks for ways around Russian ban.
36. www.buzzfeed.com: Romney Invests In “Number One Geopolitical Foe” Russia.
37. DPA: Latvian memorial to Waffen SS sparks tension with Russia.
38. Reuters: OSCE gives thumbs-down to Belarus poll.
39. www.russiatoday.com: Georgian prison tortures demand inquiry – Moscow.
40. Civil Georegia: Saakashvili: Those Who Want to Bring in ‘Putinist Rules’ will be Disappointed.
41. The Atlantic: Charles H. Fairbanks, Jr., Georgia’s Prison Rape Scandal­and What It Says About the Rose Revolution. The tragedy of Mikheil Saakashvili.

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