RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents :: JRL 2018-109 :: Friday, 15 June 2018

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Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2018-#109 :: Friday, 15 June 2018
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. Irrussianality: Paul Robinson, STRATEGY OR IMPROVISATION? PREDICTABILITY OR UNPREDICTABILITY?
2. www.rt.com: Russians name laziness and alcoholism as main drawbacks of their nation.
3. Kremlin.ru: 2018 FIFA World Cup opening ceremony.
4. TASS: Russia begins domestic FIFA World Cup with 5-0 win over Saudi Arabia.
5. www.rt.com: Bryan MacDonald, World Cup opening game: Russia’s footballers surprise those of little faith to kick-off the party. [Text with photos https://www.rt.com/sport/429795-world-cup-opening-game-russia/]
6. Moscow Times: Evan Gershkovich, Aging and Inexperienced: Why Russia’s World Cup Squad Is Doomed to Fail. Critics say the team is drawn from the worst generation in the history of Russian football. 
7. Moscow Times: Tanya Lokshina, What Lies Beneath Russia’s World Cup Glam and Glitter? Russia today is at its most repressive since the Soviet era.
8. The Economist editorial: An outrageous penalty. As the World Cup begins, Russia should free Oleg Sentsov. A film-maker locked up for protesting against the annexation of Crimea is on hunger strike.
9. The Independent (UK): US leads war games near Russian border with 18,000 troops on eve of World Cup. Drills show ‘demonstration of the commitment and solidarity’ of Nato forces in face of aggression from Moscow, says American army.
10. Russian International Affairs Council: Tatiana Zonova, On Sport and Diplomacy: On the Occasion of the 2018 FIFA World Cup. [Text with links http://russiancouncil.ru/en/analytics-and-comments/analytics/on-sport-and-diplomacy-on-the-occasion-of-the-2018-fifa-world-cup/]
11. AP/New York Times: In World Cup’s Shadow, Layoffs and Anger at Russian Factory.
12. Russia Observer: Patrick Armstrong, RUSSIAN FEDERATION SITREP 14 JUNE 2018. [Text with links https://patrickarmstrong.ca/2018/06/14/russian-federation-sitrep-14-june-2018/]
13. Intellinews.com: Mark Galeotti, Putin builds a Presidential Administration fit for stagnation.
14. www.rt.com: Court orders retrial for Russian rights activist, child porn probe resumed.
15. www.rt.com: Russian government approves raising of retirement age starting 2019.
16. Financial Times: Russia raises retirement age to boost state budget. Savings will free up funds for infrastructure, health and education.
17. The Bell: Raising the pension age, Putin’s new government launches its most serious reform in years.
18. Carnegie Moscow Center: Andrey Pertsev, Bullying the Big Cities: The Kremlin’s New Approach.
19. Intellinews.com: Russia’s top five banks account for 80% of ballooning volume of mortgage loans.
20. Russia Matters: Jean-François Ratelle, Terror Threat from Russian-Speaking Jihadists Won’t End with World Cup, and the West Should Care.
21. The Unz Review: The Saker, Can the EU Become a Partner for Russia? (excerpt) [Full text http://www.unz.com/tsaker/can-the-eu-become-a-partner-for-russia/]
22. Valdai Discussion Club: Gleb Ivashentsov, TRUMP-KIM SUMMIT: A BREAKTHROUGH OR JUST A ‘PRELUDE TO PEACE?’
23. www.rt.com: Russia in talks to build gas pipeline uniting the Korean Peninsula.
24. Washington Post: David Ignatius, Armenia shows democratic reform can triumph even in Russia’s shadow.
25. www.rt.com: EU relations won’t come at expense of Russian ties, says Armenian PM (VIDEO) [Video interview https://www.rt.com/news/429853-armenian-pm-interview-rt/]
26. Meduza: Ukraine decides to broadcast Russia’s FIFA World Cup, after all.
27. New York Times: Watching the World Cup in a War Zone, Where Every Shot Matters. (re Ukraine) (excerpt)
28. Russia Beyond: ‘Police Dog’ millionaire: Russian hacker explains how to steal a million.
29. New York Times: Top Agent Said F.B.I. Would Stop Trump From Becoming President. (excerpt)
30. Counterpunch.org: Jeremy Kuzmarov, Yellow Journalism and the New Cold War. [Text with links https://www.counterpunch.org/2018/06/15/yellow-journalism-and-the-new-cold-war/]
31. Washington Post: Carlos Lozada, THE EARLY CHAPTERS. Books on the Russia scandal focus on the news. What they need is more history.
32. The Blog Mire: Rob Slane, Joining Some Dots on the Skripal Case: Part 5 – An Educated Guess.
33. Foreign Affairs: Michael McFaul, Russia as It Is. A Grand Strategy for Confronting Putin.

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