NEWSLINK: Taking Measure Of The Ukrainian Mind-Set

Ukraine Map and Flag

[“Taking Measure Of The Ukrainian Mind-Set” – RFE/RL – rferl.org – October 25, 2014] Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty interviewed Kiev-based sociologist Iryna Bekeshkyna about unfolding conditions in Ukraine, back on the eve of recent national legislative elections: How have Ukrainian attitudes toward the EU, Russia, and NATO changed? Is it possible to conduct opinion polls in the Donbas? And why is […]

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NEWSLINK: Russia in grim go-it-alone mood as sanctions bite

File Photo of Cash, Coins, Line Graph

[“Russia in grim go-it-alone mood as sanctions bite” – BBC – Bridget Kendall – BBC – Sochi, October 27, 2014] BBC News covers Russia’s Valdai Club meeting at Sochi and the impact of Ukraine-related Western sanctions on Russia. Russia’s efforts to reduce … reliance on trade with the West overshadowed a high-profile meeting between … Putin and foreign correspondents …. * * * A series of […]

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NEWSLINK: In eastern Ukraine, most voters dream only of peace

Ukraine Map and Flag

[“In eastern Ukraine, most voters dream only of peace” – Reuters – Thomas Grove – Oct. 26, 2014] Reuters covers hopes in eastern Ukraine for an end to conflict, amidst recent national legislative elections, even as separatist-dominated areas failed to participate. Voters in eastern Ukraine had one thing on their mind as they voted in Sunday’s parliamentary election: an end […]

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NEWSLINK: In Ukraine’s East, Low Voter Turnout in Election Signals Kiev’s Challenges

Ukraine Map and Flag

[“In Ukraine’s East, Low Voter Turnout in Election Signals Kiev’s Challenges; Wary of Poroshenko’s Government, Few Voters Head to Polls in Eastern Town Controlled by Kiev” – Wall Street Journal – James Marson – October 27, 2014] The Wall Street Journal covers unfolding circumstances in Ukraine’s east, including issues over participation in recent legislative elections: * * * The lack of […]

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NEWSLINK: Ukraine leader wins pro-West mandate but wary of Russia

Verkhovna Rada File Photo

[“Ukraine leader wins pro-West mandate but wary of Russia” – Reuters – Richard Balmforth and Timothy Heritage – KIEV, Oct 27, 2014]  Reuters covers Ukrainian legislative elections that favored West-leaning Ukrainian Presidenti Petro Poroshenko: Pro-Western parties will dominate Ukraine’s parliament after an election handed President Petro Poroshenko a mandate to end a separatist conflict and steer the country further out […]

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NEWSLINK: Alleged Russian intelligence agent caught outside Kyiv claiming to be FSB general

Stylized Artist's Depiction of Shadowy Figures in Dark Coats and Dark Hats, One Carrying a Briefcase

[“Alleged Russian intelligence agent caught outside Kyiv claiming to be FSB general (PHOTOS)” – Kyiv Post – October 24, 2014] The Kiev Post covers reports that Ukraine captured a Russian operative connected with Ukrainian separatists, posing as a journalist: Ukraine’s State Security Service (SBU) says on Oct. 23 it apprehended a high-level Russian intelligence agent and a commissioned military officer […]

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Business New Europe: Ukraine’s bad start

Ukraine Map and Flag

(Business New Europe – bne.eu – Ben Aris in Moscow – October 24, 2014) This weekend’s crucial parliamentary elections in Ukraine could mark the end of two decades of failure and the launch of the country’s attempt to catch-up with the rest of the region. The trouble is that Ukraine is already off to a really bad start. There has […]

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RIA Novosti: Gorbachev says Putin’s latest speech questioning U.S. dominance best ever

Kremlin and Saint Basil's

(RIA Novosti – Moscow, October 26, 2014) The first president of the USSR, Mikhail Gorbachev, thinks that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s Valdai [Valday] speech was one of the strongest of his period in power. On Friday [24 October] the head of state gave a speech to participants in the Valdai discussion club in Sochi, in which he criticized the West’s […]

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Business New Europe: Ukrainians elect pro-European parliament

Verkhovna Rada File Photo

(Business New Europe – bne.eu – Graham Slack in Kyiv – October 27, 2014) Ukrainians have elected a pro-European parliament in snap elections on October 26, according to preliminary results. The results show pro-European parties headed by President Petro Poroshenko and Prime Minister Arseny Yatsenyuk respectively are neck-and-neck for first place, with 20% of votes counted. Both men said they […]

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RIA Novosti: Ukraine Elections Offer Hope for Overcoming Crisis: Russian Human Rights Council’s Head

Mikhail Fedotov file photo

MOSCOW, October 27 (RIA Novosti) – The Ukrainian parliamentary elections went ahead according to Ukrainian law, which raises hope that the country could return to normal, the head of Russia’s Presidential Council for Civil Society and Human Rights Mikhail Fedotov said Monday. “As far as it can be judged from media reports, the elections were held normally. This raises hope […]

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RIA Novosti: Lavrov: Moscow Recognizes Parliamentary Election Results in Ukraine

Sergei Lavrov file photo

MOSCOW, October 27 (RIA Novosti) – Moscow considers the parliamentary elections in Ukraine as complete and is ready to recognize their results, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Monday. “It seems that these elections are complete, though not throughout the entire territory of Ukraine. I believe we will recognize these elections because it’s important for us that a power in […]

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RUSSIA & UKRAINE: JRL 2014-#222 table of contents with links :: Monday 27 October 2014

St. Basil's file photo

… 12. Wall Street Journal: In Ukraine’s East, Low Voter Turnout in Election Signals Kiev’s Challenges. Wary of Poroshenko’s Government, Few Voters Head to Polls in Eastern Town Controlled by Kiev.
13. Reuters: In eastern Ukraine, most voters dream only of peace.
14. Kyiv Post: Peace elusive for voters in Sloviansk district. …

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RUSSIA & UKRAINE: JRL 2014-#221 table of contents with links :: Friday 24 October 2014

St. Basil's file photo

… 16. Christian Science Monitor: Fred Weir, In gloomy Ukraine, an unexpected gleam for one company. …
17. Moscow Times: Russian Intellectuals Ask State-Run TV to Admit Falsehoods in Ukraine Reports.
18. Reuters: Russia still has troops in Ukraine, NATO says. …

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Interfax: Ulyukayev: GDP likely to decline in 2015 if low oil prices persist

Alexei Ulyukayev file photo

MOSCOW. Oct 24 (Interfax) – If current prices for oil persist in 2015, Russian GDP, retail trade, real incomes and investment will all decline, Ulyukayev said at a business breakfast hosted by Rossiiskaya Gazeta.” “If the current price of oil persists, then as soon as this year there will be practically no growth in real individual incomes and retail trade. […]

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RIA Novosti: Western sanctions increase Russians’ fears over economy – poll

File Photo of Cash, Coins, Line Graph

(RIA Novosti – Moscow, October 23, 2014) Russians have become more worried about the state of their country’s financial system after the introduction of Western sanctions, but at the same time the economic situation has not yet compelled Russians to massively change their spending behaviour, according to research conducted in October by Russia’s National Agency for Financial Studies [NAFI]. “Over […]

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Putin’s Nevsky-Stolypin tandem

File Photo of Vladimir Putin at Desk

(Business New Europe – bne.eu – Chris Weafer – October 24, 2014) Chris Weafer is Senior Partner at Macro-Advisory, which offers bespoke Russia-CIS consulting. Many of the headlines about Russia in recent months have quite rightly focused on the geopolitical risks and the sanctions impact on the economy. To that has recently been added the surprisingly abrupt fall in the […]

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Moscow Times: Russia Beats U.S. and Japan as Best Place to Live for Expats, Survey Shows

World Map Showing Continents, Greens, Browns, Ice

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – October 24, 2014) Russia has ranked 17th on HSBC Bank’s annual list of the of the world’s best countries for expats, beating other destinations like Japan, France and the United Kingdom. Expats in 34 countries were asked in the HSBC Expat poll published Wednesday to judge their experiences on living abroad in three main categories […]

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RIA Novosti: Donetsk People’s Republic Hopes to Free Part of Donbas by End of November: Prime Minister

Ukraine Map and Flag

DONETSK, October 23 (RIA Novosti) – TheDonetsk militias will free from the Ukrainian government forces the outskirts of the village of Yelenovka in Donetsk’s Volnovakha region by the end of November, Donetsk People’s Republic’s (DPR) Prime Minister Aleksander Zakharchenko said Thursday. “This is our land, our city. It’s not likely we will enter there in the near future, but I […]

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Russian Intellectuals Ask State-Run TV to Admit Falsehoods in Ukraine Reports

Kremlin and Saint Basil's File Photo

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Anna Dolgov – October 24, 2014) A congress of Russian intellectuals has appealed to the head of state-run Channel One television to acknowledge “falsifications” in its reporting on Ukraine, holding the network accountable for the deaths of young Russians who were moved to go and fight there. The congress told Channel One chief Konstantin Ernst […]

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With Ukraine Revitalizing NATO, Russia Dusts Off its Own Security Alliance

Map of European Portion of Former Soviet Union

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Matthew Bodner – October 24, 2014) While top Russian officials and pro-Kremlin politicians continue to paint NATO as an existential threat to Russia and even an instigator of the Ukraine crisis, Moscow has been working to strengthen the legitimacy of its own security organization: the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). But while this bundling of […]

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Ukraine Crisis Fosters New Political Breed

Verkhovna Rada File Photo

(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Volodymyr Verbyany – October 23, 2014) Andriy Teteruk had just returned from fighting as a volunteer battalion leader in eastern Ukraine when he received an invitation from Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk to run for parliament on his People’s Front ballot. “I also got proposals from the Petro Poroshenko Bloc and Oleh Lyashko’s Radical Party,” Teteruk, 41, […]

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Ukraine’s parliamentary elections could pave way for new constitution

Verkhovna Rada File Photo

(Business New Europe – bne.eu – Graham Stack in Kyiv – October 24, 2014) Ukraine is to go to the polls on October 26 in early elections likely to give forces supporting President Petro Poroshenko a strong majority in the parliament, paving the way for sweeping constitutional reform. “This should be a constitutional majority,” said Poroshenko, out campaigning in the […]

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Despite Swedes’ Sub Panic, Russia’s Baltic Fleet Is Far From Fearsome

Russian Nuclear Submarine file photo

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Matthew Bodner – October 22, 2014) As Sweden’s navy goes on its sixth day of hunting a suspected Russian submarine, Swedish defense officials announced on Tuesday that they intend to force the mystery vessel, if found, to surface “with armed force, if necessary,” the English-language Swedish newspaper The Local reported. The announcement that Sweden is […]

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RUSSIA & UKRAINE: JRL 2014-#220 table of contents with links :: Wednesday 22 October 2014

St. Basil's file photo

[check back for updates, including more links; links also posted to facebook and twitter] Johnson’s Russia List JRL 2014-#220 :: Wednesday 22 October 2014 E-Mail: davidjohnson@starpower.net A project of the Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies (IERES) at The George  Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs: www.ieres.org JRL homepage: russialist.org JRL on Facebook: facebook.com/russialist  JRL on Twitter: twitter.com/JohnsonRussiaLi Support JRL: russialist.org/funding.php  Ukraine 1. The National Interest: Nicolai Petro, Why the Putin Peace Plan […]

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Mud and Loathing on Russia-Ukraine Border

Map of Commonwealth of Independent States, European Portion

(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Stepan Kravchenko – October 21, 2014) Tamara Nekrasova never really hated Ukrainians, not even when a shell fired from Ukrainian territory struck her house just a short walk from the Russia-Ukraine border, sending her to the hospital and killing a neighbor. It wasn’t until later, after months of relentless anti-Ukraine reports on Russian television, that anger […]

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Russia’s Liberal Ekho Moskvy Braces for Inspection After Running Interview With Putin-Critic Navalny

Alexei Navalny file photo

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – October 22, 2014) The Emergency Situations Ministry has announced an unscheduled inspection of the offices of Ekho Mosvky two days after a journalist at the opposition-friendly radio station said it had been threatened with “problems” for running an interview with opposition leader Alexei Navalny. News website Slon.ru cited the station’s deputy editor, Tatyana Felgenhauer, as […]

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List of ‘foreign agents’ grows thanks to Justice Ministry

World Map Showing Continents, Greens, Browns, Ice

(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Galiya Ibragimova, RBTH – October 21, 2014) Since Russia’s Justice Ministry received the right to declare organizations “foreign agents” without their consent, the number of NGOs on the list has grown substantially In the two years since the passage of Russia’s controversial law on NGOs in July 2012, human rights and research organizations […]

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Moscow Times: Russians More Afraid of U.S. Than Islamic Terrorism, Survey Shows

File Photo of Vladimir Putin and Barack Obama Seated Before Russian and U.S. Flags

(Moscow Times – moscowtimes.com – Allison Quinn – October 22, 2014) Nearly a quarter of Russians believe that the United States poses a bigger terrorist threat to their country than radical Islamists, a survey published Tuesday showed. Twenty-two percent of respondents to the poll by the state-run All-Russia Public Opinion Research Center (VTsIOM), titled “Terrorist Threats Against Russia: New Sources,” […]

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Ukraine, the Euromaidan and the EU-A Net Assessment of Kyiv’s Course Toward Europe Since the Start of 2014

Ukraine Map and Flag

(Eurasia Daily Monitor: Volume 11, Issue 185 – Vladimir Socor – Jamestown Foundation – jamestown.org – October 20, 2014) Western powers lost control and, to some extent, lost comprehension of the situation in Ukraine during the Euromaidan mass protest movement and its aftermath. They then trailed behind the events throughout Russia’s war against Ukraine to date. The European Commission’s lame-duck status […]

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Playing its own game: Belarus as a peacemaker between Russia and the West

Belarus Map

(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Alexander Iskandaryan, special to RBTH – October 20, 2014) Alexander Iskandaryan is a political scientist and director of the Caucasus Institute in Yerevan, Armenia. The leadership in Minsk seems to be taking advantage of the crisis in Ukraine to improve its image Relations between the West and Belarus have taken a curious and […]

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Russian agricultural production soars after food sanctions

Field of Grain file photo

(Business New Europe – bne.eu – October 21, 2014) When Russian President Vladimir Putin cut off European Union imports of agricultural products earlier this year, one of the rationales was to give a boost to the badly underdeveloped domestic sector – and it seems to working. September’s retail and investment numbers were down but agricultural production soared by 16.8% year-on-year […]

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NEW BOOK: The Caucasus Emirate Mujahedin: Global Jihadism in Russia’s North Caucasus and Beyond

Caucasus Mountains Satellite Image

Subject: Book announcement Date: Sat, 18 Oct 2014 From: GORDON HAHN <gordon-hahn@sbcglobal.net> My most recent book – The Caucasus Emirate Mujahedin: Global Jihadism in Russia’s North Caucasus and Beyond – has been published by McFarland Publishers. It is available for purchase from the publisher and Amazon. The Caucasus Emirate Mujahedin: Global Jihadism in Russia’s North Caucasus and Beyond Gordon M. […]

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Interfax: Western sanctions only united Russian society – Naryshkin

Russian Duma Building

CHERKESSK. Oct 21 (Interfax) – The sanctions imposed by Western countries against Russia have united Russians, said State Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin. Speaking at a meeting with members of the Karachay-Cherkessia People’s Assembly on Tuesday, he said that Western partners have been putting pressure on Russia, in particular, by introducing a number of sanctions, including personal ones, which “runs counter […]

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Putin’s import substitution policy is working

Field of Grain file photo

(Business New Europe – bne.eu – October 21, 2014) When Russian President Vladimir Putin cut off European Union imports of agricultural products earlier this year, one of the rationales was to give a boost to the badly underdeveloped domestic sector – and it seems to working. September’s retail and investment numbers were down but agricultural production soared by 16.8% year-on-year […]

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Russia and Ukraine jockey for position before another round of gas talks

Gas Flame file photo

(Business New Europe – bne.eu – October 21, 2014) Russia and Ukraine are meeting on October 21 to hammer out a new agreement over Ukraine’s debts to Russia and future pricing for Russian gas, as winter approaches and Ukraine desperately needs Russian supplies to be restarted. Russia’s president Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian opposite number Petro Poroshenko reached a provisional […]

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RIA Novosti: EU Has Misconceptions About the Origin of Ukrainian Conflict

Ukraine Map and Flag

(RIA Novosti – Alexander Mercouris – LONDON, October 21, 2014) Alexander Mercouris is a London-based lawyer The ASEM summit in Milan cruelly exposed the illusions EU leaders hold about the Ukrainian conflict, and not for the first time Ever since the February coup in Ukraine, the EU’s leaders have held to two assumptions: First, that the crisis in Ukraine is […]

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RIA Novosti: Swedish Forces Admit Failure, Issuing False Information on Alleged Foreign Submarine Location

Russian Nuclear Submarine file photo

STOCKHOLM, October 21 (RIA Novosti) – The Swedish Armed Forces admitted Monday evening that they have failed to maintain transparency and issued false information about the whereabouts of the alleged foreign submarine in the Stockholm archipelago. “The Armed Forces are conducting an intelligence operation in the Stockholm archipelago. . . We are supposed to do this with maximum transparency while […]

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RIA Novosti: Obama Compares Russia’s Policy With Ebola Threat, Islamic State

File Photo of Vladimir Putin and Barack Obama Seated Before Russian and U.S. Flags

MOSCOW, October 21 (RIA Novosti) – US President Barack Obama said Russian policy is one of the three main reasons Americans should worry about, along with the Ebola virus and the Islamic State terrorist group. “But people are still anxious. And they’re anxious for three reasons: one, internationally, we’re seeing a tumultuous time in the Middle East… The Ebola crisis… […]

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RUSSIA & UKRAINE: JRL 2014-#219 table of contents with links :: Tuesday 21 October 2014

St. Basil's file photo

[check back for updates, including more links; links also posted to facebook and twitter] Johnson’s Russia List JRL 2014-#219 :: Tuesday 21 October 2014 E-Mail: davidjohnson@starpower.net A project of the Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies (IERES) at The George  Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs: www.ieres.org JRL homepage: russialist.org JRL on Facebook: facebook.com/russialist  JRL on Twitter: twitter.com/JohnsonRussiaLi Support JRL: russialist.org/funding.php  1. Paul Goble: Window on Eurasia: Another Indication a New Russian Attack […]

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ASN 2015 World Convention (Proposal Deadline Reminder: 29 October 2014)

Columbia University Campus with Main Building

Subject: To Post: ASN 2015 World Convention (Proposal Deadline Reminder: 29 October 2014) Date: Sat, 18 Oct 2014 From: Dominique Arel <darel@uottawa.ca> Dear David: could you post this Deadline Reminder on JRL? Thanks, Dominique Call for Papers 20th Annual World Convention of the Association for the Study of Nationalities (ASN) International Affairs Building, Columbia University, NY Sponsored by the Harriman […]

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Ukraine’s Euromaidan Reforms Reveal Deep Divisions

Ukraine Map and Flag

(Voice of America – voanews.com – Mark Snowiss – October 20, 2014) With eastern Ukraine crippled by conflict between government forces and pro-Russia separatists, many democratic activists in Kyiv paint the struggle as having given birth to a new unified state. They identify the call to resist what is widely perceived to be Russia’s aggression as having brought together a […]

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Success of Russia-Ukraine Gas Deal Depends on EU’s Willingness to Pay

Gas Flame file photo

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Alexander Panin – October 21, 2014) As the Russian and Ukrainian Energy Ministers sit down with European Commission chaperones to resolve their intractable natural gas dispute on Tuesday, the ball will be in the EU’s court, which is expected to finance both Ukraine’s and its own energy security. With the approach of winter sharpening the […]

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Russian Rhetoric Doesn’t Point to Reconciliation With West

Kremlin and Saint Basil's File Photo

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber – October 21, 2014) The prospect of assuaging the rift in U.S.-Russia relations appeared dimmer Monday after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov predicted that the dire state of bilateral ties would persist for a long time. Lavrov’s bleak forecast follows last week’s multilateral talks about the situation in Ukraine on the sidelines of […]

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Interfax: Gunfire again audible in Donetsk, shells damage gas mains, disrupt power supply – city government

Ukraine Map and Flag

KYIV. Oct 21 (Interfax) – The fighting subsided in Donetsk overnight but heavy gunfire was again reported from the Kirovsky and Kyivsky districts on Tuesday morning, says a report posted on the City Council website. The Kyivsky district was shelled from 5 p.m. through 10:30 p.m. local time on Monday. A residential building was damaged and a fire started in […]

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Another Indication a New Russian Attack in Ukraine May Be Imminent

Map of Commonwealth of Independent States, European Portion

(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble – Staunton, October 21, 2014) Many in both Ukraine and the Russian Federation have suggested in recent days that a new and large-scale Russian military attack in Ukraine may be imminent, but perhaps the clearest evidence for that has been provided by an unexpected source: Ella Panfilova, the Russian human rights ombudsman. In an […]

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Does Russian Liberalism Still ‘End at Ukraine’?

Map of European Portion of Former Soviet Union

(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble – Staunton, October 14, 2014) Since at least the time of the Russian Civil War, it has been common ground among many observers in Moscow and the West that Russian liberalism “ends at Ukraine,” a notion for which Aleksey Navalny’s statement that Russia will retain Crimea whatever happens appears to provide fresh evidence. But […]

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Russian Rights Ombudswoman Slams EU Over Ukraine Silence

Ukraine Map and Flag

(RFE/RL – rferl.org – October 20, 2014) Russia’s human rights ombudswoman has accused the European Union of “ignoring human suffering” in eastern Ukraine, in an interview published in the state-run bulletin “Rossiiskaya gazeta.” Ella Pamfilova said that although Europe is “an icon in the style of human rights, democracy, and freedom of speech,” it “openly prefers to disregard the situation […]

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RIA Novosti: Time Running out for Election Monitors, Registering Ahead of Ukrainian Parliament Polls

Verkhovna Rada File Photo

MOSCOW, October 20 (RIA Novosti) – Monday will be the final day for those, going to monitor the upcoming parliamentary election in Ukraineto register with the country’s Central Election Commission. More than 1,800 observers have been registered so far, with 1,589 representing non-government organizations and 238 dispatched by foreign governments. A snap election to the Ukrainian unicameral parliament, known as […]

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Masked men again attack Akhmetov’s Zaporizhstal steel plant

Ukraine Map and Flag

(Business New Europe – bne.eu – October 20, 2014) Over 100 masked men wearing nationalist insignia laid siege to Zaporizhstal, one of Ukraine’s largest steel plants, and owned by Ukraine’s richest man Rinat Akhmetov, newswires report. “The northern and southern entrances to the Zaporizhstal metallurgy plant are blocked by about 10 passenger vans carrying unidentified people of athletic appearance wearing […]

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RIA Novosti: Ukrainian president “recognized by everyone” – Russian foreign minister

File photo of Barack Obama and Petro Poroshenko facing one another, with Obama gesturing

(RIA Novosti – Moscow, October 19, 2014) Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said that he would not dramatize Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko’s public statements ahead of the elections to the Supreme Council [parliament], although some of them are “hitting below the belt”. “As regards public statements (by Poroshenko), the election campaign is under way in Ukraine, passions are running […]

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