RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents :: JRL 2016-94 :: Wednesday, 25 May 2016

File Photo of Kremlin Tower, St. Basil's, Red Square at Night

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Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2016-#94
Wednesday, 25 May 2016

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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RUSSIA

1. Russia Insider: Flashmob in Russia With Beautiful WWII Song ‘Smuglyanka Moldavanka’ (Video)
2. Russia Beyond the Headlines/RBK Daily: Dmitri Trenin, Why the standoff between the U.S. and Russia is here to stay. The arrival of a new U.S. president in the White House will not improve U.S.-Russian relations – Barack Obama’s successor is likely to act tougher toward Russia. The fundamentally differing views of their respective roles in global affairs mean that reconciliation between Moscow and Washington is unlikely in the medium term.
3. TASS: FM: Russian foreign policy rests on multi-vector nature and self-sufficiency.
4. Christian Science Monitor: Fred Weri, In post-Olympic Sochi, white elephants – and improved daily life. The Sochi Winter Olympics, the costliest in history, left behind a host of empty facilities and stadiums. But many locals say that the investment was worthwhile.
5. TASS: Putin: Russian economy will not recover without new growth points.
6. http://theduran.com: Alexander Mercouris, Putin’s Team is United: Talk of a Purge is Wrong. As the Russian government weathers a period of unpopularity caused by the recession, there is talk that Putin is about to purge his cabinet, but this is almost certainly wrong.
7. Russia Beyond the Headlines/Kommersant: Russians switch to cheaper food as incomes shrink. A new report by government analysts studies the impact of Russia’s embargo on Western food imports and decreasing incomes, and shows the changes in consumer spending patterns.
8. Russia Beyond the Headlines: Russians demonstrate record pessimism as economic slump goes on. The results of a new survey shows consumers in Russia are at their gloomiest for 11 years as disposable income dries up, with many unable to afford a vacation.
9. Russia Insider/Komsomolskaya Pravda: How Russians Are Rolling With the Punches and Adjusting to the Sanctions. Weighing the pros & cons of buying food, luxury goods, designer clothes, overseas vacations, wedding parties, etc.
10. Wall Street Journal: Russia Taps Global Credit Markets. Sale of $1.75 billion of bonds is the first such sale since Western sanctions were imposed, but the size fell short of market expectations.
11. Bloomberg: Russia Hails Eurobond Triumph as Traders Ask: Who Bought It?
12. www.rt.com: American businesses to attend Russian economic forum despite Washington discontent.
13. www.rt.com editorial: The Menace of Unreality: How euronews spreads misinformation & distorts news about Russia.
14. Washington Post: The Washington Post begins global expansion of Opinions. New European initiative is anchored by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Anne Applebaum in London.
15. Russia Direct: Pietro Shakarian, What the 1897 Russian census has to do with post-Soviet politics. By understanding demographic trends from more than a century ago, it’s possible to obtain a more nuanced view of the complexities of the current crises in Ukraine and Nagorno-Karabakh.
16. Valdai Discussion Club: RUSSIA SHOULD NOT EXPLOIT EU INTERNAL DIVISIONS. Russia should steer away from supporting right-wing populists in Europe and instead look at general openness, when it comes to attempting to resolve the current crisis in relations with the EU, according to Richard Sakwa.
17. Stratfor.com: The U.S. and Russia Plan for Conflict. U.S. calls to strengthen NATO’s eastern front, which Washington portrays as defensive deployments and reassurance initiatives, look very different from Moscow’s perspective.
18. http://theduran.com: Maxim Shashnekov, A Russian’s Message to the West: Let’s put aside the Warmongers and talk Peace. General Sir Richard Shirreff’s prediction of war with Russia is an example of false and obsolete Western thinking about Russia which is creating an unnecessary conflict between the West and Russia.
19. Russia Beyond the Headlines: Is the U.S. behind Japan’s reluctance to sign a peace treaty with Russia? In the second part of this series on Russia-Japan ties, Rakesh Krishnan Simha looks at how the two countries are finding common cause in many areas, despite being unable to settle the over 70-year old dispute over the Southern Kuril Islands.

UKRAINE

20. TASS: Nearly half of Ukrainians don’t trust president, government and parliament – opinion poll.
21. Deutsche Welle: President Poroshenko’s offshore connection in Germany.
22. TASS: Putin signs order on pardoning Savchenko.
23. Consortiumnews.com: Robert Parry, More Game-Playing on MH-17?
24. Russia Insider: How Ukraine’s Thug Regime Marked May 9th: Preach Hate, Assault Women and Kids.
25. US-Russia Business Council: Normandy Leaders’ Call Sees Little Results.
26. www.rt.com: EU presses Kiev over fresh leak of journalists’ data by Ukrainian witch-hunt website.
27. World Affairs: Alexander Motyl, Answering the Critics: Donbas Disengagement.
28. Kyiv Post: Samuel Ramani, What a Trump presidency might mean for Ukraine.
29. Fort Russ: New Maidan Predicted in Ukraine: It Will Be Short and Bloody.
30. The Guardian: Mikheil Saakashvili: ‘Ukraine’s government has no vision for reform.’ A year after becoming governor of Odessa, the combative ex-Georgian president talks about his anti-corruption drive and his frustration with Petro Poroshenko.
31. Paul Goble: ‘Reintegration of Donbass Will Be Impossible After Five Years,’ Senior Kyiv Official Says.
32. RFE/RL: ‘I Will Never Return To Donetsk’ — Conflict Reduces One Woman’s Life To Rubble. Former Donetsk resident Nadia Zaslavska spoke to Dmitry Volchek from RFE/RL’s Russian Service about why the conflict in eastern Ukraine drove her from the city even though she had spent many happy years living there.

Map of Commonwealth of Independent States, European Portion

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

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