(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble – Staunton, May 16, 2013) In thinking about Russia’s future, most of the country’s opposition figures remain trapped in the old debate about whether Russia is fundamentally European or really Asiatic, but, one Moscow commentator argues, it is time to recognize that “the successful Russia of the future” can and must be a country like the United States. In an article on the “Osobaya
(Interfax – May 15, 2013) Russian Prime Minister Dmitriy Medvedev believes that the basic principles of international law must not be revised even in the face of global crises, Russian Interfax news agency reported on 15 May. Speaking at the International Legal Forum in St Petersburg on the same day, Medvedev admitted that “many things that seem unshakable to us lawyers in the last century don’t seem so unshakable any
(Interfax – BUDAPEST, May 2, 2013) Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has described problems between Russia and the European Union stemming from the EU’s Third Energy Package as “artificial” and expressed confidence they will be solved. “We anticipate that the problems with the Third Energy Package that some of our partners are artificially trying to create will be resolved, and the Russian Federation in December last year put our concrete
(RIA Novosti – WASHINGTON, May 1, 2013) US Secretary of State John Kerry said Wednesday that Washington supports Georgia’s aspirations to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), ambitions that Moscow has repeatedly warned will only inflame tensions in the South Caucasus. “We are very supportive of Georgia’s aspirations with respect to NATO and Europe,” Kerry said ahead of a meeting in Washington with Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, whose
(Interfax – April 18, 2013) New moral values that have recently emerged in Europe may seriously complicate Russia-EU relations, Aleksey Pushkov, chairman of the State Duma International Affairs Committee, has said. He was speaking at parliamentary hearings in the State Duma on relations between Russia and the EU on 18 April, Russian privately-owned news agency Interfax reported on the same day. Commenting on the issues of same-sex marriages and adoption
(RIA Novosti -ST. PETERSBURG, April 12, 2013) Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matvienko lashed out at European politicians at an international conference in St. Petersburg on Friday, claiming Russophobia in the Parliamentary Assembly Council of Europe (PACE) was obstructing Russian-European cooperation and suggesting the EU’s stance on visa requirements and human rights was hypocritical. “Not so long ago, our partners reprimanded the USSR for ensconcing itself behind an iron curtain
(Interfax – MOSCOW, April 9, 2013) Mortality rates in Moscow have declined by practically every parameter thanks to the modernization of city healthcare in 2011-2012, city health department head Georgy Golukhov said at a city government meeting on Tuesday. “The death rate from external causes decreased by 25% in the reporting period; the death rate from respiratory disorders went down by 19%, and the death rate reported by suicides dipped
(Kremlin.ru – April 8, 2013 – Amsterdam) QUESTION: If you don’t mind, I will depart somewhat from the issues of the Russian-Dutch relations. Today, as you must know, we have received the sad news of Margaret Thatcher’s death. Can you tell us your opinion of the former Prime Minister’s contribution to building modern Europe and strengthening European security? VLADIMIR PUTIN: Margaret Thatcher was one of the most brilliant political figures
(Interfax – April 9, 2013) Russia’s strategy on the European gas market could be built on reinforcing its position in non-EU European countries and introducing independent gas companies to Russian projects in Europe, Russian privately owned Interfax news agency reported on 9 April, quoting a source in Russia’s Energy Ministry. Separately, Gazprom CEO Aleksey Miller has said that expanding the Nord Stream gas pipeline will depend on the feasibility of
(Interfax – MOSCOW, April 9, 2013) A recent poll has shown that Russian citizens had less favorable opinions towards the United States and European Union as well as to Ukraine and Belarus. Currently, 48% of Russians give generally positive comments about the United States, against 53% in January. Thus, the share of those opposed to the United States grew from 34% to 39%, sociologists of the Levada Center told Interfax
(Interfax – HANOVER, April 8, 2013) The European economy remains strong, despite the problems facing selected euro zone countries, Russian President Vladimir Putin said. “We’re sorry such things are happening on Cyprus, but the foundations of the European economy, of the German economy – and Germany is demonstrating very good rates of growth and economic reliability – (are strong). Therefore were do not have any major concerns, we wish our
(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Inna Soboleva, RBTH – April 8, 2013) NATO Deputy Secretary General Alexander Vershbow hopes that dialogue of deployment of an ABM system in Europe can be activated in the coming months. NATO hopes that, in light of the U.S. decision to cancel the fourth phase of its ABM system in Europe, a dialogue with Russia is now possible; the two parties might even
(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Nathan Gray – April 8, 2013) The ongoing financial crisis may be hitting European economies hard, but the continent retains a good deal of interest for Russian customers looking to invest in property abroad. Reasons vary according to country, of course: prestige in Britain, skiing in Switzerland and Austria, warm climates in Spain, Italy and Greece, and a combination of the above – depending on
NOVO-OGARYOVO, near Moscow. April 1 (Interfax) – Russian President Vladimir Putin has backed a suggestion for publishing works by German philosopher Immanuel Kant in Russian and credited the 18th-century thinker with being effectively the first person to propose European unification. “His works could definitely be published in the Russian language. Clearly, this would take time, including time to be spent on translation,” Putin said during a meeting with students and
MOSCOW, April 2 (RIA Novosti) Six years after announcing a unilateral moratorium on the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE), the Russian Defense Ministry has reaffirmed that the original document has no prospects in the future. “The CFE treaty was signed when two opposing military blocs NATO and the Warsaw Pact still existed,” head of the Russian Defense Ministry’s department for control over the execution
(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Scott Rose – April 1, 2013) Russia won’t bail out people or companies that stand to lose money held at Cyprus’s two largest banks, First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov said. “If someone gets stuck and loses money in those two biggest banks, that’s really too bad,” Shuvalov said in an interview late yesterday on Russian state television. “But the Russian government isn’t planning to do
Date: Tue, 26 Mar 2013 From: IERES <ieresgwu@gwu.edu> Subject: Invitation-Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Igor S. Ivanov Speaks on U.S.-Russian Relations IERES – The Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies The Changing System of International Relations and Its Impact on U.S.-Russian Relations Part of IERES’s Eurasian Leadership Series with Igor S. Ivanov Former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Russian Federation President, Russian International Affairs Council In
From: “Ariel Cohen” <Ariel.Cohen@heritage.org> Subject: INVITATION: Kennan Institute Caucasus Railroads and Pipelines Conference April 2, 9:30AM-2PM Date: Tue, 26 Mar 2013 Dear Friends: I am honored to invite you to the following event, at which I co-chair a panel. If you do not live in the Washington, D.C. area, our apologies. Feel free to forward to your friends in the area who may have an interest in the subject or
(Eurasia Daily Monitor: Volume 10, Issue 58 – Jamestown Foundation – jamestown.org – Pavel Felgenhauer – March 28, 2013) The European Union is Russia’s number one trading partner, and for many years Moscow was seeking to establish a privileged political and economic relationship with select Western European “friends” like France and Germany. Moscow’s most important foreign policy objective since the Cold War was to undermine the transatlantic tie between the
(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble – Staunton, March 27, 2103 – http://windowoneurasia2.blogspot.com/2013/03/window-on-eurasia-last-year-23000.html) More than 23,000 citizens of the Russian Federation, a large percentage of them non-Russians from the North Caucasus, sought political asylum in Europe in 2012, a number that ranks Russia just behind Afghanistan and Syria and ahead of Iraq, Somalia and China, according to Eurostat, the European Statistics Bureau. In a report about this on the Word
MOSCOW. March 22 (Interfax) – If visas are not scrapped, strategic partnership between Russia and the European Union will not be possible, said Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev. “We must understand that visas will have to be scrapped in any case if we are to build a strategic partnership,” Medvedev said at a press conference on Friday after talks between Russian government and European Commission officials. “This is our Carthage
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Irina Filatova and Howard Amos – March 22, 2013) Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev on Thursday intensified his criticism of a plan by European financial authorities to rescue the Cypriot economy, labeling it as “completely absurd,” in the most colorful response yet by Russian officials to the controversial measures. The proposal to impose a one-time levy on deposits in Cypriot banks came as a surprise, with
(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Nathan Gray – March 21, 2013) PARIS – Before an audience of mostly French businesspeople in Paris on Tuesday, political and business representatives outlined the benefits and risks of conducting business in Russia at The Economist magazine’s Russia Business Summit. Targeted at Western European investors, the event at times took on the air of a campaigning push to attract companies to the country, but speakers
GORKI (Moscow Region), March 20 (RIA Novosti) Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday slammed the European Union and Cyprus for what he described as their dismal management of the island nation’s debt woes. Medvedev told journalists from European media outlets in an interview that the mishandling of the crisis had undermined confidence in financial institutions, in Cyprus and beyond. “The actions of the EU, the European Commission and
(RFE/RL – rferl.org – March 20, 2013) As the financial crisis deepens in Cyprus, attention is focusing on Russia’s role in preventing the Mediterranean island nation from going bankrupt and exiting the eurozone. RFE/RL’s Claire Bigg spoke to Natalya Orlova, chief economist at Alfa Bank. RFE/RL: Michael Sarris, the Cypriot finance minister, was in Moscow this week to discuss the restructuring of a previous Russian loan as part of an
(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Henry Meyer & Ilya Arkhipov – March 21, 2013) Russia rebuffed Cyprus’s request for a bailout loan as the euro-area nation sought to salvage talks in Moscow by wooing investment in its energy reserves. Russia is unable to provide loans and will instead consider making investments in the Cypriot energy industry, the island nation’s Finance Minister Michael Sarris said today in an interview broadcast on Antenna
(Government.ru – March 21, 2013) Transcript: Dmitry Medvedev: Good afternoon everyone. I’m at your disposal. Let’s get to work. Question (as translated): The first question is about Cyprus. You and President Putin have criticised the EU decisions. Don’t you think that the EU may be displeased with this and that the recent events may undermine trust between Russia and the EU in the long term perspective? Won’t that hurt relations
(RIA Novosti – March 19, 2013) The Russian president’s special envoy for cooperation with African countries, Mikhail Margelov, has said that the US, EU monopoly in the African states was coming to an end as “the new players, that is BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa), have stepped in”, Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported him as saying on 19 March. Speaking at a news-conference at the agency, Margelov
MOSCOW, March 20 (RIA Novosti) Cypriot Finance Minister Michael Sarris is set to continue negotiations on a potential Russian loan with Russia’s First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov on Wednesday, after initial talks between the two countries’ finance ministries ended without an agreement. The Cypriot minister is in Moscow to discuss the extension of a 2.5-billion-euro loan that Russia gave Nicosia in 2011 at a rate of 4.5 percent.
(Interfax – March 20, 2013) The international conference on security issues in Europe, the Russian Defense Ministry plans to hold in Moscow on March 23-24, is to bring closer ties of European countries on the issue, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov told reporters on Wednesday. “A lot has been done in the recent years to ensure security in Europe in general and in certain countries in particular,” Antonov said.
(opendemocracy.net – Agnia Grigas – March 18, 2013) Agnia Grigas is a development and political risk consultant to corporations and governments. She works in business and academia. Dr Agnia Grigas is the author of The Politics of Energy and Memory between the Baltic State and Russia (Ashgate Publishing, January 2013) Moscow uses energy as a geopolitical weapon and is thus in a strong position vis a vis the EU, 40%
BRUSSELS. March 19 (Interfax) – Russian officials said on Monday at a meeting of the Russia-NATO Council that Russia intended to hold an international conference on military and political aspects of European security in Moscow on May 23-24, Sergei Koshelev, director of the Russian Defense Ministry’s department for international military cooperation, said. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu has proposed holding the conference and Russian President Vladimir Putin has approved, Koshelev.
(Interfax – Moscow, March 18, 2013) Washington’s decision not to deploy the last elements of its missile shield in Europe should be welcomed in Russia, Chairman of Council on Foreign and Defense Policy, Fyodor Lukyanov, said. “The Russian side should in general welcome this step, whatever stands behind it. At the same time, I think and judging by the reaction of Russia, there will be no fundamental change in Russia’s
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Irina Filatova – March 19, 2013) The proposal by the Cypriot authorities to introduce a levy on the country’s bank deposits as part of a plan to bail out its economy drew harsh criticism from Moscow on Monday, with the largest Russian lenders facing multibillion-dollar losses as a result of the measure. President Vladimir Putin warned of possible negative implications of the proposed move, which
(Interfax – March 18, 2013) Russia is upbeat about progress achieved in the talks on relaxing visa procedures with the European Union, Russia’s EU Ambassador Vladimir Chizhov told Interfax on Brussels. “I don’t think we should fall into euphoria. I would say the problem has been unblocked, which means that an opportunity has emerged for making further progress. But this does not mean all problems have been settled and all
MOSCOW. March 11 (Interfax) – Russia has the biggest child suicide rate in Europe, the Rospotrebnadzor website reported on Monday. “Russia has the highest suicide rate among children and teens in Europe. The rate has grown by 35%-37% in the recent years. In all, Russia reported about 800,000 suicides from 1990 to 2010,” it said. The child suicide rate continues to grow in Russia, the report said. “A survey showed
(Russia Beyond the Headlines – www.rbth.ru – Natalia Bespalova, Special to RBTH – March 12, 2013) Ukrainians would not want to join the Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan at the expense of Euro-integration, but the Ukrainian president says his country “is not tough or rich enough to neglect such cooperation” Talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukranian counterpart Viktor Yanukovich were held at the Russian president’s
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Nikolaus von Twickel – March 12, 2013) A much-touted agreement with the European Union making travel easier for businesspeople, students, NGO workers and other professionals might go into force finally, as Brussels has changed its stance on Moscow’s demand to include a visa waiver for government officials. But there are some catches, as both sides still face difficult negotiations before reaching a visa-facilitation agreement, a
(RFE/RL – rferl.org – Richard Solash – March 11, 2013) WASHINGTON — The battle over the Sergei Magnitsky case is moving to Europe. After being lobbied by activists for nearly three years, the U.S. Congress passed legislation in late 2012 to sanction Russian officials implicated in the prosecution and death of Magnitsky, a whistle-blowing Moscow lawyer who died in pretrial detention. The case has come to symbolize Russia’s perceived rights
(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Joseph de Weck – February 7, 2013) Russia may pivot to Asia should the proposed U.S.-European Union free-trade agreement hurt its businesses, said Kirill Dmitriev, the Chief Executive Officer of the $10 billion Russian Direct Investment Fund. “Any attempt to use the liberal language of free trade to create something that excludes other countries and puts them in a disadvantageous position will be met with the
(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Dmitry Babich, special to RBTH – February 26, 2013) Dmitry Babich is a political analyst for the Voice of Russia radio station. Just about everyone is scolding Britain for being dismissive of the European Union with the notable exception of Russia. Strange as it may seem, both Russia and Great Britain, without consulting each other, have adopted very similar policies towards the
(opendemocracy.net – Michael Cecire – February 25, 2013) Michael Hikari Cecire is a Black Sea-Eurasia regional analyst and an associate scholar at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, where he contributes to the Project on Democratic Transitions. China’s steadily growing economic expansion throughout the world is a cause of concern for many governments. Eastern Europe and Central Eurasia are no longer so dependent on Moscow and China is quietly rolling out
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Ivan Nechepurenko – February 26, 2013) Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Monday accused the European Union of employing a double standard when it agreed to allow nondiplomatic Ukrainian officials to enter member states without a visa. “A Ukrainian bureaucrat is no different from a Russian one,” he told students at Moscow’s Diplomatic Academy. Russian and Ukrainian diplomats are permitted to enter the EU without a
(Russia Beyond the Headlines – www.rbth.ru – Sergey Sumlenny, special to RBTH – February 20, 2013) Russia and the EU are losing the ability to conduct effective political dialogue, say experts. While Russia still appeals to European businesses, it is also under unwelcome pressure to conform to European ideals of democracy and human rights. Meanwhile, Germany could be the key to improving the dismal forecast for EU-Russian relations. Economic relations
From: “Samuel Greene” <samuel.greene@kcl.ac.uk> Subject: New Russia policy & society programmes in London Date: Tue, 12 Feb 2013 The King’s Russia Institute at King’s College London is now accepting applications for our MSc in Russian Politics & Society and our PhD in Russian & Eurasian Studies. Offering a unique, multi-disciplinary and globally integrated approach to the study of Russia’s most pressing domestic and international policy challenges, our programmes draw on
Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2013 From: Freedom House <FHEvents@freedomhouse.org> Subject: Upcoming Event- March 4 Forum: US-EU-Russia Relations After Putin’s Crackdown You are cordially invited to attend a forum hosted by the Foreign Policy Initiative, Freedom House, and the Institute of Modern Russia New Approach or Business As Usual? US-EU-Russia Relations After Putin’s Crackdown Date: Monday, March 4 Time: 3:00-5:30PM Location: Senate Dirksen Building, Room 106 WELCOME REMARKS AND INTRODUCTIONS: 3:00
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Howard Amos – February 12, 2013) Natural gas assets being sold by crisis-ridden Greece are at the center of an escalating battle between Russian companies with ready cash and European officials reluctant to facilitate the growth of Moscow’s influence in their backyard. One of the juiciest prizes of Greece’s privatization program, gas company DEPA and its transmission subsidiary DESFA, are expected to fetch between 1
(Interfax – February 8, 2013) Half of Russia’s trade turnover is with the EU, and EU countries are the main sources of foreign investment in the Russian economy despite the crisis, Russia’s permanent envoy to the EU Vladimir Chizhov told reporters before Diplomats’ Day, which is marked on Feb. 10. “Russian-EU relations can’t stagnate because the Russian economy and the EU economy are closely connected in the modern global world,
(www.opendemocracy.net – Ivan Krastev – February 7, 2013) Ivan Krastev is chairman of the Centre for Liberal Strategies, Sofia, and permanent fellow at the Institute for Human Sciences in Vienna (IWM). The incompatibility of an anachronistic and arbitrary regime with the modern world is leading many to consider that democratic change is possible likely even in Russia. But those expecting that a new ‘democratic’ government would somehow take
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Nikolaus von Twickel – February 8, 2013) Eleven prominent rights groups have sent a complaint against Russia’s so-called foreign agent law, which targets NGOs engaged in political activities, to the European Court of Human Rights. The organizations argued on Thursday that the legislation violates the Constitution and fundamental human rights such as the freedoms of expression and assembly by threatening the groups with
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