RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2015-#172 :: Tuesday 1 September 2015

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Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2015-#172
Tuesday – 1 September 2015

A project sponsored through the Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies (IERES) at The George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs
The contents do not necessarily represent the views of IERES or the George Washington University.
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1. Moscow Times: Russian Schoolchildren to Learn Two Foreign Languages.
2. TASS: Turmoil lessons warn of devastating effect of society split for Russia – Putin.
3. www.rt.com: Russia-China relations at ‘historic peak’ despite ‘illegitimate Western restrictions’ – Putin.
4. The National Interest: Nikolas Gvosdev, Why Waiting for Russia to Collapse Is a Terrible Ukraine Policy. It seems dangerous to base policy towards Russia on assumptions of a forthcoming economic disaster.
5. The Unz Review: Anatoly Karlin, One Day in a BS-Life.
6. Paul Goble: Moscow Won’t Succeed in Using Ukrainian Radicals to Destabilize Kyiv, Portnikov Says.
7. http://gordonhahn.com: Gordon Hahn, Ukraine’s Neo-Fascist ‘Tea Party’ Throws Grenades, Shoots at Police, Attempts Storm of Rada.
8. Reuters: Big guns in east Ukraine fall silent, two more die from wounds in Kiev protests.
9. Interfax: Moscow aware of Ukraine massing heavy weaponry on dividing line in Donbas.
10. Christian Science Monitor: Fred Weir, Amid violence in Kiev, Ukraine tries to find a ‘decentralized’ peace. Ukraine’s parliament took a first step toward granting powers to rebel regions. But deadly clashes in the capital show the depth of resistance to such changes.
11. RIA Novosti: Ukraine draft law a potential “interim” step to constitutional reform – Pushylin.
12. Business New Europe: Ben Aris, KYIV BLOG: Damned if he does and damned if he doesn’t.
13. www.rt.com: ‘Victoria Nuland may be passing out virtual cookies outside Kiev’
14. Bloomberg: Leonid Bershidksy, The Radical Menace to Ukraine.
15. www.rt.com: ‘Right wing practicing violence in Ukraine no mystery to anyone’
16. Levada.ru: More than two thirds of Russians believe Ukraine conflict could escalate – poll.
17. Russia Direct: Alexey Fenenko, Why Germany and France are taking on new roles in the Ukraine crisis. Top leaders in France and Germany are making it clear that they are still determined to stick to the Minsk Agreements regardless of the fragile nature of these agreements and escalation in Donbas.
18. Valdai Discussion Club: Yevgeny Kopatko, What Awaits Donbass in Foreseeable Future?
19. Washington Post: Samuel Ramani, Three and a half reasons why Russia might be planning to withdraw from Ukraine (or some of it, anyway).
20. TASS: Housing capital repair fee angers Russians, opposition takes advantage of protests.
21. Josh Wilson: RE: 2015-#171-Johnson’s Russia List/Demography.
22. Interfax: 88 NGOs registered as ‘foreign agents’ in 2 years, 7 of them did it voluntarily – Justice Ministry.
23. Moscow Times/Vedomosti: Nikolai Epple, Will Russia Block Facebook?
24. Wall Street Journal: Russia Puts Off Data Showdown With Technology Firms. Facebook, Google and Twitter get more time to comply with law requiring Russian data centers.
25. Russia Direct: Dmitry Dokuchaev, Why it’s too early to worry about $40 oil. Tumbling oil prices could recover as soon as 2016, especially if OPEC decides to change its stance on oil production and global energy demand continues to pick up speed.
26. Russia Beyond the Headlines: Foreign investors may get access to major deposits in Russia. If a foreign company in Russia repeats the recent success of Italian energy company in Egypt and discovers a strategic deposit on Russian territory, it will be able to develop that deposit. Experts expect the relevant amendments to the Russian legislation to attract investment in exploration.
27. www.rt.com: Weak ruble reviving Russian exports.
28. www.rt.com: Putin says dump dollar.
29. Moscow Times: U.S. Is Immoral and Racist, Russians Say in Poll.
30. www.rt.com: Majority of Russians say US administration ‘extremely hostile toward us’ – poll.
31. Sputnik: US-Russia Standoff: ‘Moscow Feels Betrayed by Washington’
32. Interfax-Ukraine: Russia defined as aggressor, Ukraine’s enemy in draft military doctrine – Yatseniuk.
33. The Vineyard of the Saker: The Saker interviews Peter Koenig. Western Sanctions on Russia – Russia-China Cooperation and a Tectonic Shift of World Economics – World Power
34. Longreads: Back in the USSR: A Reading List. (re Svetlana Boym)

 

Map of Commonwealth of Independent States, European Portion

Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

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