(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – John Freedman – May 5, 2014) “Hamlet.” Has there ever been a better play to fall back on when you need to have a chat about Russia? “Words, words, words.” “To be or not to be.” “The rest is silence.” All phrases that sound loaded in many a Russian historical context. These days words get […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Ivan Nechepurenko – April 29, 2014) Amid growing criticism of its increasingly tighter regulation of the Internet, Russia’s official media watchdog on Monday vowed to continue its fight in the “information war,” saying freedom of speech “does not mean everything is permitted.” The government made clear at an annual meeting of top officials of the […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Oleg Sukhov – April 28, 2014) Last week, the State Duma gave its final approval to a bill introducing criminal penalties for “spreading lies” about the Soviet Union’s role in World War II. The legislation, under which offenders face up to five years in prison, has prompted renewed allegations that the Kremlin is imposing a […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Christopher Brennan – April 17, 2014) The State Duma has approved in a first reading a bill that would put an end to direct mayoral elections in some of Russia’s largest cities in what critics said was an attempt to ensure the appointment of mayors loyal to the Kremlin. The bill was approved Tuesday by […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Katie Davies – April 15, 2014) Russia’s first anti-sexual harassment law has been submitted to the State Duma, despite concerns among critics that its terms will be used to deport foreign workers unfairly. The changes will protect the honor and dignity of “the more beautiful, but weaker sex,” said Oleg Nilov, the bill’s author and […]
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PARIS. April 15 (Interfax) – Democracy in Ukraine, as well as in any other country, can not be affirmed via nationalists’ ideology, Russian State Duma Chairman Sergei Naryshkin said. “The initial democratic impulse of many people [in Ukraine] has been essentially devalued by depending on radicals – those, who rattle their sabers in a domestic civil conflict and do not […]
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STRASBOURG. April 7 (Interfax) – There will be no stability in Ukraine until it begins heeding the opinion of the Russian-speaking population, Alexei Pushkov, the head of the Russian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) and the head of the State Duma committee on international affairs, said. “The situation in eastern Ukraine shows that stability […]
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MOSCOW. April 4 (Interfax) – Russia’s State Duma has unanimously passed a statement On Political Repressions in Ukraine, in which it expressed concerns about violations of pro-Russian citizens in the country. “While leaning on extremist forces and involving the law enforcement agencies, the self-proclaimed authorities use methods which violate peoples’ rights regarding their political opponents and resort to repressions and […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Oleg Sukhov – April 2, 2014) United Russia deputy Alexander Sidyakin late Monday submitted to the State Duma a bill introducing prison terms for repeat violations of a law on public rallies, stirring fears among analysts of a crackdown on the opposition. The move coincided with an effort by prosecutors to block all blogs being […]
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Moscow, 31 March: The State Duma is ready for dialogue with the Ukrainian Supreme Council on various issues in order to bring their positions closer, including on the subject of the upcoming presidential election in Ukraine, member of the State Duma Committee for Security and Countering Corruption Nikolay Kovalev (One Russia parliamentary party) has said. “When 70 people in the […]
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(Interfax – Moscow, March 20, 2014) The parliamentary majority does not share [LDPR party leader] Vladimir Zhirinovskiy’s view that Russia has to expand its borders by incorporating Donbass [industrial area of Ukraine around Donetsk] and some other regions of Ukraine. “I would like to comment on the LDPR leader and say that some of his calls and judgments are not […]
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(Interfax – February 22, 2014) The south and east of Ukraine are not seeking to break away but they reject “political diktat” from “extremists” in Kiev, a senior Russian MP warned in reports on 22 February. Aleksey Pushkov, of the ruling One Russia party, chairs the State Duma’s international affairs committee. He was in Kharkiv to observe a congress of […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – February 11, 2014) The Communications and Press Ministry has submitted a draft bill to the government that would reorganize Russian Post and pave the way for the flotation of the company’s shares, Interfax reported Tuesday. The move is part of an overall strategy that would not only make Russian Post financially independent by 2018, but […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Jennifer Monaghan – February 6, 2014) More than 200 writers from around the world have signed an open letter to the Russian authorities denouncing the introduction of gay-propaganda and blasphemy laws in Russia, which they call an attack on freedom of expression. We “cannot stand quietly by as we watch our fellow writers and journalists […]
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MOSCOW. Feb 5 (Interfax) – Outgoing U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul made a mistake in trying to maintain contacts not only with Russian government institutions but also with the opposition, says Alexei Pushkov, the head of the Russian State Duma international affairs committee. “I think the ambassador’s replacement is unlikely to have any impact on Russian-American relations. Surely, it […]
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MOSCOW. Feb 4 (Interfax) – Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed into law a bill that toughens liability for extremism-related crimes. The document amends Russia’s Criminal Code and Code of Criminal Procedure, according to the authorities’ legal information website. “In an effort to neutralize the threats to national security posed by the destructive activities of religious organizations on Russian territory, […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – January 31, 2014) A bill has been introduced to the State Duma that would replace the presumption of innocence in Russian trials with the concept of “objective truth,” scrapping the impartiality of the court in what critics say will amount to the establishment of an “inquisitorial” system. The bill, which has the backing of Investigative […]
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(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Natalia Antonova – January 29, 2014) Whether you’re sick of people’s garlic breath on public transportation, or else scandalized by frank discussion of sex on TV, you may rest assured that someone in the State Duma is probably working on introducing a law addressing your very concerns. In 2013 alone, 1,513 new legislative initiatives and […]
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MOSCOW. Jan 26 (Interfax) – Attempts to explain all of Syria’s current problems by President Bashar al Assad’s tenure hold no water and only reflect Washington’s obsession with the idea of Syrian president’s overthrow, chairman of the State Duma’s International Affairs Committee Alexei Pushkov said in remarks about U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry’s speech at the Davos international economic […]
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(Interfax – Moscow, January 22, 2013) Members of the Federation Council have agreed with the position of their colleagues from the lower chamber [of parliament, State Duma], which adopted a statement on the events in Ukraine on Wednesday [22 January]. “The Federation Council cannot stand aloof from the events in Ukraine and we express solidarity with the stance of the […]
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MOSCOW, January 22 (RIA Novosti) The Russian State Duma passed a bill imposing tougher penalties for extremism-related crimes Wednesday. The legislation, which the lower chamber of parliament passed in second and third readings, increases the prison sentence for public incitement of extremism from three to four years, and also raises fines for the offence. The penalty for inciting hatred […]
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MOSCOW, January 22 (RIA Novosti) A bill that would have branded Russian media outlets that receive more than 50 percent of their funding from abroad as “foreign agents” was withdrawn from consideration in the State Duma on Tuesday. The bill’s authors said they had decided to reintroduce the legislation at a later date with a lower threshold for qualification […]
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MOSCOW. Jan 21 (Interfax) – The “anti-terrorist” package of bills will not restrict citizens’ rights and is aimed at preventing the financing of organized crime, Irina Yarovaya, chairman of the State Duma committee on security and corruption prevention, said. “Our logic is to propose additional measures for ensuring collective security measures. We want to disarm terrorists and deprive them of […]
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MOSCOW, January 16 (RIA Novosti) Sweeping anti-terrorism legislation presented to Russia’s parliament this week is expected to undergo a first reading in February, but a government-linked rights watchdog called Thursday for a comprehensive review to ensure it does not violate any constitutional principles. Bills presented Wednesday to the State Duma, the lower house of parliament, include measures to broaden […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Marina Obrazkova, RBTH – January 17, 2014) Russian MPs want to step up counterterrorism measures to include more control over what the Internet. The powers of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) will be expanded, electronic payments in the Russian segment of the Internet will come under stricter regulations and, overall, state control […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Natalya Krainova – January 14, 2014) The State Duma in the coming months will focus on legislation that will provide “stability” for businesses at a time of “extremely challenging” economic circumstances in Russia, Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin said Tuesday. “Today, almost in every strategic direction of the country’s development there are additional risks. They stem […]
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(Interfax – January 14, 2014) Duma deputies are ready to vote for the re-introduction of daylight savings time even if the decision is not backed by the government, the Russian State Duma said. “Since the government is not in a hurry, it means there will be the law aiming to bring all constituent regions of the Federation as close as […]
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MOSCOW. Jan 9 (Interfax) – The bill of the Russian Liberal Democratic Party faction member Roman Khudyakov to introduce criminal liability for relatives of terrorist is PR, head of the Russian State Duma legislation committee Pavel Krashennikov (the United Russia party faction) said. “To imprison for a brother, father, son – we remember when this happened and, thank God, we […]
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MOSCOW. Dec 26 (Interfax) – The number of Russians convinced that the State Duma should make decisions independently of the president’s opinion has exceeded the number of those believing that the Duma should support the president in all of his undertakings for the first time since 2000, the Public Opinion Foundation found based on a poll of 1,500 respondents it […]
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MOSCOW. Dec 23 (Interfax) – The European Union did not have enough strength and willingness to help Ukraine recover from an economic crisis and to convince Kyiv to sign the association agreement, State Duma International Affairs Committee Chairman Alexei Pushkov said. “Why did the EU set such unattractive conditions for signing the association agreement for Ukraine and make political demands […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber – December 17, 2013) The State Duma will vote Tuesday in a first reading on President Vladimir Putin’s draft bill to grant amnesty to certain categories of prisoners, a piece of legislation that could exonerate high-profile detainees despite what critics say are its narrow criteria. As part of an effort to free space […]
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MOSCOW. Dec 12 (Interfax) – The State Duma may pass the amnesty bill before December 25, Russian Human Rights Ombudsman Vladimir Lukin told Interfax on Thursday. “We have reached an agreement with the State Duma administration: they hope to pass the draft resolution on the amnesty in the first reading on December 17. It will be possible to speak about […]
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MOSCOW. Dec 12 (Interfax) – The agreements of the Sextet and Tehran on the Iranian nuclear program call into question if there is any sense of the missile shield in Europe being created by NATO, head of the Russian State Duma committee on foreign affairs Alexei Pushkov said. “[Russian President Vladimir] Putin has put the question correctly: the issue of […]
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MOSCOW. Dec 9 (Interfax) – State Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin has noted the importance of the stability of the Russian constitution and the delicate attitude of Russian society and the authorities towards it. “The stability of the Russian constitution is of special importance for our country,” Naryshkin said at a joint meeting of two houses of the Russian Federal Assembly […]
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BARNAUL. Dec 8 (Interfax) – Amendments related to the confiscation of bribe-takers’ property could be added to the law, Russian presidential administration head Sergei Ivanov said. “I will not anticipate the events but certain amendments could probably be added to the law,” Ivanov said in an interview with the NTV TV channel on Sunday. The confiscation institution in Russia does […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Marina Obrazkova, RBTH – December 2, 2013) A recent poll revealed the population’s negative attitude towards the lower house, with many said to be in favor of its abolition. According to a poll by the Levada Center, the majority of Russians oppose the work of the current State Duma deputies, with more than […]
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KAZAN. Nov 29 (Interfax) – State Duma Chairman Sergei Naryshkin claims the West applied strong pressure on Ukraine to sign an association agreement with the European Union. “We all have witnessed unprecedented pressure on Ukraine on the part of Western countries and institutions: highest-ranking European bureaucrats in fact regularly attended not only Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada sessions but also sessions of […]
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MOSCOW. Nov 19 (Interfax) – State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Alexei Pushkov has blamed frequent aircraft accidents in Russia on the antisocial type of capitalism that appeared in the country under the influence of a liberal economy. “Airplanes tend to crash in our country quite often because the liberal economy generated a special kind of capitalism in Russia that […]
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(Pravda.ru – Anton Kulikov – November 12, 2013) The Russian State Duma deputies proposed an introduction of the “Separatist Propaganda” article in the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and establishing a prison sentence of three to six years for said propaganda. So far this is only a draft bill, and its future is unclear. The document was proposed for […]
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(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Anna Arutunyan – November 14, 2013) On November 2, President Vladimir Putin signed a controversial law changing Russia’s anti-terrorism legislation, enabling law enforcement authorities to confiscate the property of relatives of anyone who has committed a terror attack. The Moscow News has asked five experts to weigh in on whether the law will work and […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Oleg Sukhov and Ivan Nechepurenko – November 13, 2013) The State Duma on Tuesday approved in the first reading a bill seeking to merge the Supreme Arbitration Court into the Supreme Court, as the former warned that the move could signal the end of the entire arbitration court system. Arbitration courts, which hear commercial disputes, […]
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MOSCOW, November 12 (RIA Novosti) The speaker of Russia’s lower house of parliament said in an op-ed published Tuesday that the country’s politicians are too ignorant about the Constitution and that civil servants should be made to pass an exam on it before they can enter government service. “[The Constitution] has ceased to be required reading for many politicians […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Delphine d’Amora – November 7, 2013) Prominent members of the business community have sent an appeal to President Vladimir Putin asking for a reevaluation of amendments to the Criminal Code, which Putin himself submitted to the State Duma on Oct. 11, Vedomosti reported Thursday. The amendments would authorize investigators to open tax cases at their […]
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ST. PETERSBURG. Nov 7 (Interfax) – Investigators are preparing to charge former Russian parliamentarian Mikhail Glushchenko with masterminding the assassination of State Duma member Galina Starovoitova in 1998, Glushchenko’s lawyer Alexander Afanasyev told Interfax on Thursday. “Both defense lawyers representing Mikhail Ivanovich [Glushchenko] were officially notified that at 2:00 p.m. tomorrow he will be charged under Part 3 of Article […]
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MOSCOW. Nov 7 (Interfax) – State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Alexei Pushkov believes that the scandal sparked by revelations that U.S. special services monitored European leaders’ phone conversations will soon fizzle out because the European leadership is dependent on Washington. “The administration of [U.S. President Barack] Obama does not seem to be particularly troubled by Europe’s anger over this […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – November 6, 2013) The Investigative Committee has developed a bill criminalizing tax optimization transactions, Vedomosti reported Wednesday. The proposed bill is set to amend the Tax Code by introducing definitions for “imaginary” and “fictitious” financial transactions. These terms refer to transactions which business either did not complete, or have completed, but fudged the description and […]
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MOSCOW. Oct 30 (Interfax) – Alexei Pushkov, the head of the State Duma committee on international affairs, said he was outraged by the fact that western governments have not reacted to reports on the use of chemical weapons by rebels in Syria against Syrian Kurds. “According to information received from Syrian Kurds, the rebels used chemical weapons against them in […]
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MOSCOW, October 29 (RIA Novosti) Russian lawmakers will consider letting people who have been convicted for serious crimes run in elections, on the condition that voters are told about their criminal records. “As it turns out, people’s rights are affected, even though they’ve already been punished,” state lawmaker Sergei Ivanov of the nationalist LDPR party and author of the […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Andrey Vaganov, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Nezavisimaya Gazeta, special to RBTH – October 25, 2013) A recently passed law on reforming the Russian Academy of Sciences is aimed at segregating scientific research from academic property management. The government argues the move will free science of an irrelevant burden. Academics, for their part, are convinced […]
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(RIA Novosti – October 21, 2013) Russian State Duma MPs have downplayed the significance of the Communications Ministry’s draft decree requiring internet service providers to install equipment for storing internet traffic and sharing it with the Federal Security Service (FSB), Russian news agencies reported on 21 October. The Russian heavyweight liberal newspaper Kommersant reported earlier on the same day that […]
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