(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Natalya Krainova – February 21, 2014) With three days to go until the Winter Olympics in Sochi draw to a close, fears are growing among many Russians that the apparent tolerance of President Vladimir Putin toward critics of his government in the run-up to the games will dissipate after the last foreign participant leaves. The […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Igor Rozin, RBTH – February 21, 2014) Russia’s president, prime minister and foreign minister all spoke out against the violence in Kiev on Thursday and now wait for details of an accord intended to restore peace. An agreement between the Ukrainian government and opposition leaders has supposedly been reached, with a signing scheduled […]
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KYIV. Feb 21 (Interfax) – The ultra-radical movement Right Sector has stated it does not trust Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych and will continue fighting against the current authorities. To settle the domestic situation we are initiating a return to the 2004 Constitution and announcing an early presidential election, Yanukovych said earlier on Friday. Our movement tends to see Yanukovych’s statement […]
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(Interfax – February 21, 2014) The Russian Foreign Ministry has urged foreign actors not to push the Ukrainian opposition into the further destabilization of the country. “We believe that the primary need of Ukraine is tranquility, not escalation. And foreign forces, who are actual curators of the incumbent Ukrainian opposition, should not tempt it into further destabilization with the purpose […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – February 21, 2014) Russia has warned the West that it is willing to fight a war over Crimea, a Ukrainian region where 60 percent of the population is ethnically Russian and where Russia’s Black Sea fleet is stationed. “If Ukraine breaks apart, it will trigger a war,” a senior government official told the Financial Times […]
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Subject: Ukraine Edging Closer to Civil War? Date: Thu, 20 Feb 2014 From: Vlad Signorelli <vlad@brettonwoodsresearch.com> Ukraine Edging Closer to Civil War? Protests in the capital of Ukraine turned deadly Tuesday with at least 25 dead and more than 240 injured. Bloody street fighting is transpiring between government police forces and the Western-leaning opposition. As the political crisis of the […]
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[check back for updates, including more links; links also posted to facebook and twitter] Johnson’s Russia List :: 2014-#36 :: 20 February 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 […]
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[“Kiev crisis reminds Russians of what could have been; Kiev crisis seen as a coup attempt of radicals egged on by the west” – Financial Times – Kathrin Hille – Moscow – February 20, 2014 – ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/58dce628-997e-11e3-b3a2-00144feab7de.html] The Financial Times examines Russian reactions to the crisis in Ukraine, including bias favoring the Ukrainian government: Since the very beginning of the […]
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[“Is Putin pushing for a crackdown in Ukraine? The Kremlin has said that it will not intervene in Ukraine, but the escalating violence in Kiev may force their hand.” – Christian Science Monitor – Fred Weir, Correspondent – Moscow – February 19, 2014 – csmonitor.com/World/Europe/2014/0219/Is-Putin-pushing-for-a-crackdown-in-Ukraine] The Christian Science Monitor and Fred Weir examine whether Russia is prodding the Ukrainian regime […]
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(Stratfor.com – February 19, 2014) As the standoff in Independence Square continues in Kiev, the western part of Ukraine has added a more serious element to the country’s internal struggle. On Wednesday, several administration buildings were taken over by protesters in the west, including in Khmelnytskyi, Ivano-Frankivsk, Uzhhorod and Ternopil. Meanwhile, demonstrators from an opposition group called People’s Rada in […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Viktor Kuzmin, special to RBTH – February 20, 2014) Russia’s Economic Development Minister heads to Washington next week for a series of talks in increasing bilateral trade relations. Russia and the United States will make another attempt early next week to revitalize bilateral trade during a working trip to Washington by Economic Development […]
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KIEV, February 20 (RIA Novosti) – Ukraine’s Interior Minister confirmed Thursday he had signed a decree to issue service firearms to police officers and authorized the use of live ammunition. The statement came in the wake of numerous reports from Kiev of both anti-government protesters and police officers being shot dead in ongoing clashes, in which at least 50 people […]
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(Interfax – February 19, 2014) Russian President Vladimir Putin blames “extremists” for the latest events in Ukraine, his spokesman Dmitriy Peskov told privately-owned news agency Interfax on 19 February. “The president thinks that it is extremists who are fully responsible for what is happening in Ukraine now. Moscow has supported and keeps supporting a dialogue with all civilized political forces […]
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(Interfax -February 19, 2014) Russian President Vladimir Putin talked to Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych about the situation in Ukraine on the night of 18-19 February, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitriy Peskov has said. But the information published about this conversation is untrue, he added. Peskov was speaking to journalists on 19 February, as reported by privately-owned Russian news agency Interfax. “As […]
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(Business New Europe – bne.eu – February 20, 2014) Two-thirds of Russians (63%) believe that protest rallies are harmful for Ukraine’s development, the Russian Public Opinion Study Center (VTsIOM) said. It polled 1,600 adults in 130 populated areas in 42 regions on February 1-2. Negative implications were mostly mentioned by elder citizens (73%) and people with primary education (73%). Respondents […]
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(Kremlin.ru – Feburary 19, 2014) Vladimir Putin had a meeting with an expert panel of economists from the Russian Academy of Sciences. During the meeting, the academicians shared their vision of the key areas of the nation’s further socioeconomic development. In particular, President of the Russian Academy of Sciences Vladimir Fortov delivered a report on the possible options of creating […]
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MOSCOW, February 20 (RIA Novosti) – Concerns about the Russian economy grew following data published Wednesday showing that investment by Russian companies fell 7 percent last month as compared with January 2012. The data, published by state statistics service Rosstat on its website, reinforced fears that the economy has become mired in stagnation. Russian business newspaper Vedomosti cited an unnamed […]
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(Kremlin.ru – February 17, 2014) Vladimir Putin held a State Council Presidium meeting on family, motherhood and childhood policy, in particular with regard to implementing the May 2012 Presidential Executive Orders. Taking part in the meeting were Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko, Deputy Prime Minister Olga Golodets, Presidential Aide Igor Levitin, the heads of federal ministries and agencies, and a […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – D. Garrison Golubock – February 20, 2014) The holdings of the Kiev History Museum were looted by unknown intruders during the night of Feb. 18-19, museum management said, Art Ukraine reported. “The first thing we saw, entering one of the vaults, was an 18th century ikon of the holy apostles wrapped in a brocade dress […]
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BAGHDAD. Feb 20 (Interfax) – Moscow is concerned by how the West has been trying to impact on the situation in Ukraine, and also notes that the situation in this country is being misrepresented, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said. “We are most deeply concerned by what is going on in Ukraine, and in particular by how Western capitals have […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Allison Quinn – February 20, 2014) The Kremlin on Wednesday denounced ongoing violence in Ukraine as an “attempted coup by radicals,” as Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov lashed out at the West and Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych declared Thursday a day of mourning. By Wednesday evening, at least 26 people were confirmed dead during clashes in […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Andy Potts, special to RBTH – February 19, 2014) The friendly atmosphere and general lack of restrictions on what spectators can take into the venues at Sochi make a refreshing contrast to the usual experience at sporting events in Russia. At first glance, the sight of a sports fan sitting in an arena […]
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MOSCOW, February 19 (RIA Novosti) – The majority of Russians believe their country is developed, rich and free, according to a survey published by a state-run pollster Wednesday. Fifty-seven percent of respondents told the Public Opinion Foundation that their country is developed, 58 percent described it as rich and 60 percent said they live in a free country. Fifty-one percent […]
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Subject: RUSSIA REPORT FEBRUARY 2014 Date: Wed, 19 Feb 2014 From: Sharon Tennison <sharon@ccisf.org> Friends, despite the fact that Ukraine is burning as I finish this report, I want to complete my thoughts about the Sochi Olympics before giving opinions on the Ukrainian issues. The Sochi Olympics have been a high point in this new year for me. And I […]
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Subject: RE: Johnson’s Russia List 2014-#34/Japan-Russia Ties Date: Wed, 19 Feb 2014 From: Joseph Ferguson <jodyferg@earthlink.net> Regarding an article posted on the JRL on the 18th of February (#34) from the Moscow Times, “Japan-Russia Ties: An Opportunity for the U.S.” by Jeffrey Mankoff, I wanted to post the following comments. I know this topic seems peripheral at best given current […]
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Ukraine A Wall Street Journal editorial comments that as Ukraine gets “ugly” with rioting and a regime crackdown in Kiev, the EU and U.S. are staying on the sidelines … … the Washington Post argues in an editorial that violence in Ukraine shows need for negotiated settlement … writing in The Guardian, Mary Dejevsky, Ukraine is now in a potentially […]
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[check back for updates, including more links; links also posted to facebook and twitter] Johnson’s Russia List :: 2014-#35 :: 19 February 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 […]
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(opendemocracy.net – Andrew Wilson – February 18, 2014) Andrew Wilson is a Reader at University College London. He is the author of The Ukrainians: Unexpected Nation (Yale, 2009). His latest book, Belarus – The Last European Dictatorship was published in October Whatever their outcome, the events in Ukraine seem likely to be of greater long-term import than the ‘Orange Revolution’ […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Vsevolod Pulya, RBTH – February 18, 2014) In November 2013 Vsevolod Pulya, an RBTH editor, was an intern at the Denver Post. In this piece he describes his experiences working and traveling in Colorado, and discusses the mutual stereotypes that influence the way Russians and Americans perceive each other. One peaceful November morning, […]
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KIEV, February 19 (RIA Novosti) – Violent unrest in Ukraine’s capital has spread to other cities in the former Soviet nation, highlighting geographical divisions and raising fears that civil conflict could spin out of control. Reported disturbances were concentrated in the major cities of the country’s west, the heartland of Ukrainian nationalism, where there is strong backing for anti-government protesters […]
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KIEV, February 19 (RIA Novosti) – Ukraine’s acting prime minister said Wednesday that the violent protests that have rocked the capital were an attempt to seize power by force. “Both society and authorities strongly condemn the violence. This is not a sign of democracy. … This is the manipulation of people’s minds and an attempt to take power by force,” […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – February 19, 2014) State-owned gas giant Gazprom captured its largest-ever share of the European and Turkish gas market last year, supplying 30 percent of the continent’s needs, as compared to 26 percent in 2012. The Russian export monopoly sent 162.7 billion cubic meters of gas westward in 2013, and beat the record market share of […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Kira Egorova, Anna Sorokina, RBTH – February 19, 2014) On Wednesday morning, the ruble slid to a five-year low against the dollar on trading in the Moscow Exchange. Experts have tried to reassure investors arguing, that the ruble will gain ground soon The Euro also reached an all-time high against the Russian national […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – February 19, 2014) The All-Russian Nature Conservation Society will ask prosecutors to check whether opposition leader Alexei Navalny is guilty of poaching. The ecologists’ suspicions were raised by a picture published on the Internet that shows Navalny posing beside a dead moose. “If you look at the photograph, it’s clear that the hunting took place […]
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MOSCOW, February 18 (RIA Novosti) – Russia’s leading opposition activist Alexei Navalny published material Tuesday allegedly showing that a prominent lawmaker and son of nationalist firebrand Vladimir Zhirinovsky owns an undeclared $2.5 million apartment abroad with seven toilets and a balcony Jacuzzi. Igor Lebedev, deputy speaker of the State Duma, bought the property in Dubai in 2009 but failed to […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Oleg Sukhov – February 19, 2014) When a judge delivers a verdict Friday in the high-profile Bolotnoye case, the defendants’ cage will contain eight people. It might have held dozens more if some of the potential suspects had not fled abroad, fearing unfair prosecution in what many observers call a politically motivated trial aimed at […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Oleg Sukhov – February 19, 2014) Yekaterina Pavlova, a former deputy head of the pro-Kremlin Voice of Russia radio station, has been appointed chief executive of opposition-leaning radio station Ekho Moskvy. The decision Tuesday triggered speculation that the Kremlin was seeking to bring the station under its control. The news also comes shortly after Dozhd, […]
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(Interfax – February 19, 2014) No more than 1,000 checks have been conducted with respect to nonprofit organizations (NPOs) operating in Russia, which were fined a meager amount, whereas the total number of NPOs in our country is 200,000, the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Human Rights Commissioner Konstantin Dolgov said. The accusations against Russia over NPOs checks are baseless, he said. […]
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(Business New Europe – bne.eu – Ben Aris in Moscow – February 19, 2014) [Photos and videos here http://www.bne.eu/storyf5777/West_must_take_some_of_ the_blame_for _Kyivs_burning] The body in Kyiv count stood at 25 dead as of 6 a.m. local time with and will almost certainly rise again today, as Ukraine’s capital saw its worst violence since the stand off between the government and protestors […]
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Johnson’s Russia List :: 2014-#34 :: 18 February 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 POLITICS 1. R-Sport: Russia Struggles Past Norway to Make Olympic Hockey Quarterfinals. […]
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[“After 20 years, Russia and Estonia sign border treaty” – Reuters – February 18, 2014 – reuters.com/article/2014/02/18/us-russia-estonia-idUSBREA1H0QN20140218] Reuters reports on Russia and Estonia signing a treaty formalizing their border, still awaiting ratification by their respective legislatures. The treaty comes amidst long-standing tensions between the two countries. Russia and Estonia signed a treaty setting out the position of their joint border […]
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[“Japan-Russia Ties: An Opportunity for the U.S.” – Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Jeffrey Mankoff – February 18, 2014 – themoscowtimes.com/opinion/article/japan-russia-ties-an-opportunity-for-the-us/494786.html] A Moscow Times commentary by Jeffrey Mankoff, of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, suggests that Russian relations with the United States and the European Union are at an impasse, but that Russian Relations with Japan have been […]
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(“Former Prime Minister of Georgia Convicted of Corruption” – New York Times – Olesya Vartanyan, David M. Herszenhorn – February 18, 2014 – nytimes.com/2014/02/18/world/europe/former-georgian-prime-minister-convicted-of-corruption.html) The New York Times reports that former Georgian prime minister Ivane Merabishvili has been convicted of public corruption and sentenced to five years of prison. Although the conviction is part of a series of cases that […]
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(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Aliaksandr Kudrytski, Volodymyr Verbyany – February 18, 2014 1:09 PM ET) Ukrainian forces announced the start of an operation to clear the Kiev square occupied by thousands of protesters, after at least 10 people died in the bloodiest day of the country’s three-month standoff. Police officials said by loudspeaker shortly before 9 p.m. that women and […]
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[“Ukraine riot police move in on Kiev protesters after 14 die; Protesters battle police in Kiev after Russia renews aid”/update of “Protesters battle police in Kiev after Russia renews aid” – Reuters – Pavel Polityuk, Richard Balmforth – February 18, 2014 – reuters.com/article/2014/02/18/us-ukraine-idUSBREA1G0OU20140218] Reuters covers deadly clashes between Ukrainian police and protesters in Kiev. The death toll is rising, just […]
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[“Russia and the G8: Increased Prominence in International Affairs” – Valdai Discussion Club – Andrew Monaghan – February 18, 2014 – valdaiclub.com/russia_and_the_world/66904.html] Andrew Monaghan, Senior Research Fellow at Chatham House, assesses Russia’s role and position on the world stage, as they follow up the Sochi Olympics by hosting the G8 summit in several months: Some suggest that Russia is in […]
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[“Sochi Olympics Official: We Realized Hotel Problems ‘Too Late’; First Public Explanation for Rocky Launch of 2014 Games; ‘Red Alert’ Sounded” – Wall Street Journal – Matthew Futterman, Gregory L. White -February 17, 2014 – online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304899704579388882111244174] The Wall Street Journal covers the various glitches and delays in the preparations for the Sochi Olympics: The International Olympic Committee’s chief coordinator for […]
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[“What the Papers Say, Feb. 18, 2014” – Moscow Times/BBC Monitoring – themoscowtimes.com/news/article/what-the-papers-say-feb-18-2014/494765.html] The Moscow Times and BBC Monitoring review Russian print publications. Nezavisimaya Gazeta 1. Alexandra Samarina article headlined “Waiting for personnel changes” predicts that a number of senior officials including governors may lose their jobs after the Sochi Olympics. The author reports on the meeting of the State […]
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[“The culture of corruption: Russians pay, but they don’t like it” – Washington Post – Timothy Frye – February 17, 2014 – http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monkey-cage/wp/2014/02/17/the-culture-of-corruption-russians-pay-but-they-dont-like-it-2/] The Washington Post features Timothy Frye, Columbia University political scientist and Director of the Harriman Institute for Russia, Eurasian and East European Studies, writing on Russia’s culture of corruption: A central theme of the Sochi Olympics has […]
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[“Fast food conquers Russia, brings obesity” – ITAR-TASS – Lyudmila Alexandrova – February 18, 2014 – http://en.itar-tass.com/opinions/1676] ITAR-TASS tries to blame McDonald’s for Russian obesity: Russia’s first McDonald’s fast food restaurant opened on downtown Moscow’s Pushkinskaya Square in late January 1990, causing unprecedented buzz among Muscovites who formed a multi-kilometer line to taste American fast food. International fast food came […]
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