It’s official: Native Americans and Siberians are cousins

Siberian River, Forest, Mountain

After more than a century of speculation, an international group of geneticists has conclusively proven that the Aztecs, Incas, and Iroquois are closely related to the peoples of Altai, the Siberian region that borders China and Mongolia. (Russia Beyond the Headlines – ARAM TER-GHAZARYAN, SPECIAL TO RBTH – rbth.ru – February 23, 2016) Scientists have suspected for a long time […]

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Russian Nationalists Oppose Moscow’s Plan to Resettle Ukrainian Refugees in Far East

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(Paul Goble – Staunton, February 16, 2016) Duma deputies are proposing and the Russian Ministry for Far Eastern Development has come out in support of a plan to resettle as many as 50,000 Ukrainian refugees who had fled their country because of the fighting but have not yet found permanent residences in the Russian Federation. This plan reflects the convergence […]

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China’s Economic Turmoil Ruins Russia’s New Year

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Peter Hobson – January 14, 2016) New fears over China’s economy and sharp falls in the price of oil have worsened the outlook for Russia as it tries to emerge from recession. The price of crude, the linchpin of Russia’s economy, fell almost 20 percent in the first two weeks of January to just above […]

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Russian-Chinese Trade Plummets in 2015

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – January 13, 2016) The volume of Chinese exports to Russia fell by 34.4 percent last year to $32.9 billion, the TASS news agency reported Wednesday, citing China’s customs department. Trade turnover between China and Russia dropped by 27.8 percent to $64.2 billion in 2015. The volume of Russia’s exports to China declined last year by […]

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Russia Seeks To Drive Wedge Into Central Asia

Map of CIS Central Asia and Environs

(RFE/RL – rferl.org – Bruce Pannier – January 5, 2016) Russia appears to be practicing a bit of “divide-and-conquer” politics in Central Asia, and state-owned Gazprom is spearheading the campaign. On January 4, Russia’s main news agencies quoted a “source” within Gazprom Export, the Gazprom wing charged with handling gas imports from other countries, saying Russia would not be importing any […]

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Sino-Russian energy relations reversed: a new little brother

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Don’t be fooled. Russia’s growing ties to China may not be what they seem. (opendemocracy.net – Morena Skalamera – December 22, 2015) Morena Skalamera is a post-doctoral fellow at the Belfer Center, Harvard University, where she researches the geopolitics of energy and European-Russian energy co-operation. In the year since Russia and China signed a landmark $400bn natural gas pact in […]

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NEWSWATCH Carnegie Endowment for International Peace/Eugene Rumer, Paul Stronski: “Russia, Ukraine, and Eurasia at Twenty­Five-A Baseline Assessment”

Map of Commonwealth of Independent States, European Portion

The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace undertakes an overview of former Soviet states two-and-a-half decades following the USSR’s collapse. For nearly twenty-five years following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Russia, Ukraine, and the rest of the former Soviet lands now collectively referred to as Eurasia defied the best and the worst expectations of students of the region’s history. Unfortunately, […]

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TRANSCRIPT: Dmitry Medvedev’s interview with Renmin Ribao

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(Government.ru – December 13, 2015) Ahead of his visit to China, Dmitry Medvedev gave an interview to the Chinese daily. Question: Russia and China are good neighbours, reliable partners and friends. The leaders of the two countries frequently meet each other and are consistent in their efforts to strengthen bilateral relations as a comprehensive strategic partnership, which has already become […]

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Over one-third of Russians expect big changes in country following ‘shift to the East’ – poll

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MOSCOW. Dec 14 (Interfax) – Russians believe that Russia and Asian countries are being drawn together primarily through common interests in political (20%) and economical (25%) areas, a public opinion poll conducted by the All-Russia Public Opinion Research Center (VTsIOM) suggests. However, almost half of the respondents (47%) could not decide what mostly gives a common ground to Russia and […]

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2015: A mixed bag for Russia’s Asian ‘Pivot’; Ties with ASEAN and China grow, but relationship with Japan remains frosty

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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – AJAY KAMALAKARAN, RBTH – December 10, 2015) Russia’s strategic and economic push towards Asia achieved mixed results in 2015, with Moscow strengthening ties with ASEAN countries and China, while its ties with Japan and Australia remained frosty. “When it comes to Asia, the biggest strategic economic gains came to Russia from the ASEAN […]

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RIA Novosti : “Russian envoy: Raised focus on relations with China predates Western sanctions”

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(RIA Novosti – December 8, 2015) Russian ambassador to the People’s Republic of China Andrey Denisov has denied that Russia’s “eastward turn” – its visible attempt to improve relations with countries in the Asia-Pacific region, primarily China – was a response to the introduction of sanctions against Russia by several Western countries; rather, he said, it had been mooted over […]

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Putin skips APEC meeting – but is Russia’s ‘pivot to Asia’ still on track?

Map of Asia-Pacific Highlighting APEC Member States

Media observers were quick to note Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to send Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev in his stead to this week’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Manila – what is the significance of Putin’s absence, and does it send a message about Russia’s changing priorities toward Asia? (Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – SERGEI STROKAN, VLADIMIR MIKHEEV, […]

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Most of investments into Russia in past year come from Asian market – Putin

Eurasia Map

(Interfax – November 13, 2015) Around 90 percent of the investments made into Russia in the past year are the resources of the Asian market, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview with the Interfax and Anadolu news agencies on Friday ahead of the G20 summit in Antalya. “Obviously, cooperation with Asian partners in attracting funds gains special relevance […]

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Russia to focus on economics, security at EAS summit in Kuala Lumpur

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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – ALEXEY TIMOFEYCHEV – November 13, 2015) Russia’s will look for promote the Russian Far East as an investment destination at the upcoming East Asia Summit in Malaysia. Economic and investment cooperation will be high on Russia’s agenda at the 10th annual edition of the East Asia Summit (EAS), which will take place in […]

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The Pentagon’s Lonely War Against Russia and China

Aerial Photo of Pentagon and Environs

(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Josh Rogin – November 11, 2015) At last weekend’s Reagan National Defense Forum, top Pentagon officials warned about the coming great power battles with Russia and China. But the U.S. approach to both countries shows that other parts of the administration view those relationships in a very different way. Before Defense Secretary Ashton Carter’s keynote speech […]

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RBTH: Negotiations on Ukraine are a marriage of convenience

Mercator Projection Satellite Image of Earth

(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – TROIKA REPORT: Sergey Strokan, Vladimir Mikheev – September 3, 2015) 1. Engaging the West Negotiations on Ukraine: a marriage of convenience amid new crisis A stormy session in Ukraine’s parliament this week while debating the proposed decentralization of governance in the eastern Donbass region, followed by a bloody riot in Kiev, signaled a […]

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Putin Flies to China Amid Economic Gloom

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Howard Amos – September 2, 2015) President Vladimir Putin will be one of the most noteworthy guests at Chinese celebrations to mark the end of World War II when he arrives in Beijing on Wednesday, even as fraying economic ties between the two giant countries undermine the Kremlin’s “pivot to the East.” The Russian delegation […]

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NEWSWATCH Moscow Times/Sarah Lain: Russia Faces Facts on China

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Writing in The Moscow Times, Sarah Lain, of the Royal United Services Institute, examines evolving Sino-Russian relations. Russia … cannot, and will not try to, compete with China’s growing economic influence … Russia’s leading multilateral economic foreign policy project … the Eurasian Economic Union … has … suffered from a variety of tensions …. Chinese investment via the Silk Road Economic Belt … could help […]

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NEWSWATCH Wall Street Journal/Ariel Cohen: How Russia Could Become a Food Superpower

File Photo of Wheat Field in Kenya, adapted from image at usda.gov

Writing in the Wall Street Journal, Ariel Cohen addresses historical shifts in Russian agriculture, and what the future might hold. Russia could be a food superpower, given its vast soil and water resources. It still may become one, but the question is whether the food will be Western or Chinese. Since the beginning of the Ukrainian conflict, the Russian economy has […]

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Interfax: Putin says Eurasia’s not a chessboard, it’s our home

Vladimir Putin file photo with VOA logo; screen shot from video still

(Interfax – July 9, 2015) Russia and its neighbours in the Eurasian landmass should not be treated as a “chessboard” or a “geopolitical playing field”, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on 9 July in remarks reported by privately-owned Russian news agency Interfax. “For us, this isn’t a chessboard, it’s not a geopolitical playing field – this is our home, and […]

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Interfax: Putin says Russia can overcome difficulties in international politics, economy by pooling efforts with China

Map of China and Environs, adapted from archived cia.gov image

UFA. July 8 (Interfax) – Russia is aware of the difficulties it has been encountering in international politics and the economy but is confident it can overcome them by pooling efforts with China, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said. “We are perfectly aware of the difficulties we have to face in the economy and international politics but, by joint efforts, […]

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RIA Novosti: No plans for military alliance with Moscow, says Chinese envoy

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(RIA Novosti – June 30, 2015) Li Hui, the Chinese ambassador to Russia, has said that Beijing has no plans to form a military alliance with Moscow. He made this statement during an in-depth interview published on the website of RIA Novosti (part of the state-owned International News Agency Rossiya Segodnya) on 30 June. (http://bit.ly/1FNjB7z) No threat to third parties […]

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Russia-China pipeline to be largest infrastructure project in world – premier

Gas Flame file photo

(Interfax – June 29, 2015) Russian Prime Minister Dmitriy Medvedev has announced that the Power of Siberia gas pipeline, which is set to run from Russia to China, will be the world’s largest infrastructure project, privately-owned Russian news agency Interfax reported on 29 June. Speaking at a ceremony dedicated to the start of construction of the Chinese part of the […]

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Russia’s Pivot to China Is Real

Map of China and Environs, adapted from archived cia.gov image

(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Leonid Bershidsky – June 25, 2015) The search for alternative investors and markets has been a political priority for President Vladimir Putin and his government since Western countries imposed economic sanctions on Russia last year. The resulting pivot to China may seem merely cosmetic, but it is happening. Admittedly, most of the vague and extremely long-term […]

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Fears of Chinese Expansion Mar Budding Alliance With Russia

Map of China and Environs, adapted from archived cia.gov image

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Ivan Nechepurenko – June 25, 2015) The image of Russia’s increasingly friendly relations with China took something of a battering this week when a regional governor’s stated intention to rent out swathes of land to a Chinese investment company was met at home by a storm of indignation. After the governor of the Zabaikalsky region […]

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Putin Offers Little Change at Russia’s Top Economic Forum

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Ivan Nechepurenko and Peter Hobson – ST. PETERSBURG, June 22, 2015) More than a year into an economic firestorm that is pushing Russia into its first recession in six years, Russia’s flagship economic forum in St. Petersburg was titled “Time to Act.” With Western sanctions over Ukraine and fallen oil prices battering the economy, thousands […]

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Russia Embraces Yuan in Move Against U.S. Dollar Hegemony

Map of China and Environs, adapted from archived cia.gov image

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Peter Hobson – June 16, 2015) Russian financial authorities, energy companies and state-controlled banks are stepping up their use of China’s yuan currency as Western sanctions spur diversification away from the U.S. dollar. In recent weeks, major Russian institutions have lined up to announce moves to use the yuan, which will likely emerge as the […]

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World’s economic centre of gravity continues shift east

Mercator Projection Satellite Image of Earth

(Business New Europe – bne.eu – Ben Aris in Moscow – June 9, 2015) [Charts here http://www.bne.eu/content/story/bnechart-worlds-economic-centre-gravity-continues-shift-east] The leaders of the G7 industrialised nations met in Berlin on June 7, but their decisions are becoming less and less relevant to the rest of the world as the centre of global economic gravity moves relentlessly east. In 1990, the centre of […]

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NEWSWATCH Deutsche Welle: Russia’s pivot to Asia – A Sino-Russian Entente?

Eurasia Map

The rupture between Russia and the West stemming from the Ukraine crisis has led Moscow to expand ties with Asia, especially China. Dmitri Trenin, head of the Carnegie Moscow Center, talks to DW about the implications.

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NEWSLINK New York Times: Kamchatka, Home to Russian Version of Alaska Iditarod, Frets Over Growth

Map of Russian Far East and Environs, Including Kamchatka Peninsula; adapted from image at noaa.gov

When Vladislav Revenok, an Orthodox priest, first participated in the obscure Russian version of Alaska’s Iditarod, he found himself in places so isolated that he was mobbed by villagers demanding to be baptized. They told him he was the first priest to visit the outback of the already remote Kamchatka Peninsula in about 50 years.

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NEWSWATCH AP: American farmer among the winners in sanctions-hit Russia

Eurasia Map

[“American farmer among the winners in sanctions-hit Russia” – AP – James Ellingsworth – Apr. 1, 2015] AP examines the impact of Ukraine-related Western sanctions on Russia, such as increased prices for some farmers, instability in international projects, and evolving energy relations between Russia and China. The impact of sanctions, and a Russian embargo, on agriculture is apparently mixed. Russia’s ‘counter-sanctions’ ban on food imports […]

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Interfax: Medvedev: Russia is part of Europe but also eyeing Asia

Eurasia Map

MOSCOW. Dec 10 (Interfax) – Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has disagreed with the opinion that Russia is not part of European civilization. “There is no doubt that Russia is part of Europe and European civilization and there is nothing to add here. I have always said so and Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin has said so too,” Medvedev said in an […]

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Interfax: Moscow says Silk Road route may go via Russia

China Map

BEIJING. Nov 10 (Interfax) – Some sections of the Silk Road route pass through Russia, according to Russian Direct Investment Fund head Kirill Dmitriyev. “The route is being chosen, and Russia should hold a very active position in this respect. The Russian president said earlier today that we had plenty of infrastructural capacity for building a part of that route […]

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If Anyone is Going to Attack Russia, It Will Be China – and When China Does So, It will Win, Khramchikhin Says

China Map

(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble – Staunton, November 5, 2014) If anyone is going to carry out military aggression against Russia, Aleksandr Khramchikhin, the deputy head of the Moscow Institute for Political and Military Analysis, says, it will not be the West as many Russians think but rather China; and when China does so – and that rather than […]

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Russia’s future lies with the East – deputy premier

Dmitry Rogozin file photo

(Interfax – Chelyabinsk, April 12, 2014) Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitriy Rogozin has said that Russia’s future lies with the East, not the West. “All our prospects lie not with the West but with the East. In the East, Russia borders on Japan, China, India is close by, the two Koreas, the entire southeast Asia. All the future history of […]

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RIA Novosti: Powers of Russia’s Far East Ministry Set for Expansion

Siberian Natural Scenery, with River, Trees, Hills

MOSCOW, February 17 (RIA Novosti) – Greater powers are to be handed over to a government department overseeing affairs in Russia’s Far East within the coming month, a top official has said in an interview published Monday. The move is in line with government designs to boost the fortunes of a vast expanse of territory between Siberia and the Pacific […]

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Some Government Agencies Could Move East

Siberian Natural Scenery, with River, Trees, Hills

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Anatoly Medetsky – February 6, 2014) The Cabinet is mulling further tax breaks for the Far East and moving some government agencies to the remote region in another bid to inject more vigor in the economically lagging area. In addition, two new state companies could emerge to plow 170 billion rubles ($4.8 billion) into preparing […]

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Construction of New Pipeline from North Siberia to China Kicks Off

China Map

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Anatoly Medetsky – December 18, 2013) Construction of a major pipeline kicked off Tuesday in an effort that will likely bring more oil from Siberia to China. Governor Lev Kuznetsov made a show at the starting ceremony in his Krasnoyarsk region, braving the rubber-bullet injury he suffered during a robbery of his southern French villa […]

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Russia to Build Disposal Facility for Soviet-Era Nuclear Waste

Radioactivity Symbol

MOSCOW, November 22 (RIA Novosti) ­ A spokesman for Russia’s state nuclear corporation said Friday that a facility for the disposal of Soviet-era radioactive waste is to be built in the country’s Far East. Officials said they made the announcement to quell media speculation that a site was being set aside for the dumping of nuclear waste from abroad. Those […]

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Has Siberia had enough of Russia?

Siberian Natural Scenery, with River, Trees, Hills

(opendemocracy.net – Aleksei Tarasov – November 21, 2013) Aleksei Tarasov is correspondent for Novaya gazeta based in Krasnoyarsk, Russia. In 2008 he was awarded the prestigious Golden Quill prize for his investigative work. With Siberia’s enormous natural resources being mercilessly exploited by Russia, and now China as well, Aleksei Tarasov wonders if the region might some day amount to more […]

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RIA Novosti: Russia: Shifting the Focus from Europe to Asia

Eurasia Map

(RIA Novosti – Fyodor Lukyanov – November 18, 2013) Fyodor Lukyanov is Editor-in-Chief of the Russia in Global Affairs journal ­ the most authoritative source of expertise on Russian foreign policy and global developments. Some crucial changes can pass almost unnoticed, as happened earlier this month, when it was decided to put off the EU-Russia summit from December to the […]

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TRANSCRIPT: [Putin] Interview to Korean Broadcasting System

Map of Asia-Pacific Highlighting APEC Member States

(Kremlin.ru – Novo-Ogaryovo, Moscow Region, November 12, 2013) In the run-up to Vladimir Putin’s official visit to the Republic of Korea, the President gave an interview to South Korean television and radio company KBS. The interview was recorded on November 7. KYUSUN YEON: First of all, I would like to thank you for taking time for this interview out of […]

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Putin Heads East, Looking to Challenge U.S. Clout in Asia

Map of Asia-Pacific Highlighting APEC Member States

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Ivan Nechepurenko – November 12, 2013) Russia looks to outdo the U.S. in pivoting toward Asia, with two state visits scheduled this week to Vietnam and South Korea. When President Vladimir Putin was asked at last month’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in Bali what he thought about U.S. President Barack Obama’s absence due to a […]

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Russian government selects Far East development model

KHABAROVSK. Oct 29 (Interfax) – The Russian Far East Development Ministry has put together a model for the Far East that will establish a network of export oriented zones in the region. Other ministries have not yet reached a consensus on this issue, but Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has already issued some instructions. Export to Russia irrational In a meeting […]

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