USAID Sums Up Outcomes of Its Activities in Russia Before Closure

USAID From the American People Logo

WASHINGTON. Sept 19 (Interfax) – The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has provided financial support in drafting the Russian Constitution and a number of federal codes over the 20 years of its work in Russia, USAID said in a statement posted on its website. “USAID-funded Rule of Law implementers helped draft the Russian Constitution, Part I of the Russian […]

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Foreign Ministry Accuses USAID of Meddling in Politics

Russian Foreign Ministry Building Tower file photo

By Nikolaus von Twickel –  Moscow Times –  September 20, 2012 Moscow’s abrupt decision to kick out the U.S. Agency for International Development raised new worries Wednesday about a widening crackdown on pro-democracy groups. The Foreign Ministry bluntly accused the agency, better known as USAID, of meddling in domestic politics. Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said Wednesday that the agency had […]

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Russia’s Yabloko Cannot Accept Leftist Dominance In Protest Movement – Leader

Sergei Mitrokhin File Photo

(Interfax – Moscow, 18 September) The March of Millions that took place on 15 September in Moscow has highlighted a disturbing trend – namely, the strengthening of positions and the prevalence of leftist nationalist powers, the leader of the Yabloko party, Sergey Mitrokhin, has said. “Unfortunately, our forecasts about the prevalence of red-brown colours at this march were proved right. […]

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Next Mass Protest Postponed Until December – Russian Opposition Activist

File Photo of Moscow Winter Protest

(Interfax – Moscow, 19 September): The opposition organizing committee has postponed the next March of Millions event from 20 October until early December, Left Front leader Sergey Udaltsov has said. “The opposition organizing committee decided today to hold the next March of Millions in early December, the (first) anniversary of the start of mass protest,” Udaltsov told Interfax on Wednesday […]

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‘Russia’s Tibet’ Opens to the Outside World

File Photo of Lake in Altai

By James Brooke –  Voice of America – September 18, 2012 James Brooke is VOA Moscow bureau chief, covering Russia and the former USSR. Word of the killings of four American diplomats in Libya took 24 hours to reach me last week. That was fitting as I was contemplating the silence of cedar forests, the grace of wild horses cantering […]

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Putin Slams Officials Over Election Promises

Kremlin and Moscow Environs Aerial View

By Irina Filatova – Moscow Times – September 18, 2012 President Vladimir Putin slammed government officials Tuesday for failing to implement the decrees containing his election promises, with the regional development minister and the labor and social services minister coming under fire. Putin said that he had discussed the assignments with almost all ministers, but there had been major failures […]

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Europe-Western China Corridor to Become Shortcut Between Europe, Asia-Pacific – Putin

Map of Russia

PAVLODAR. Sept 19 (Interfax) – Innovations will help make transportation systems more reliable and effective, said Russian President Vladimir Putin. “The introduction of innovations will help significantly enhance the reliability and effectiveness of transportation systems, first of all under the project to build a transportation corridor between Europe and Western China. It will run from St. Petersburg to the border […]

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Nemtsov: Left-wing, Liberal, Nationalist Opposition Wings in Agreement on Political Demands

Boris Nemtsov file photo

MOSCOW. Sept 15 (Interfax) – Boris Nemtsov, one of Russia’s opposition leaders, said on Saturday that the liberal, left-wing and nationalist wings of the opposition had reached agreement on political demands such as the ouster of President Vladimir Putin and new presidential and parliamentary elections. “New elections for the Duma, a new presidential election under public control,” Nemtsov, who is […]

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Duma Kicks Out Kremlin Critic

File Photo of Gennady Gudkov

By Alexander Bratersky – Moscow Times –  September 17, 2012 The State Duma voted Friday to strip prominent opposition figure Gennady Gudkov of his seat for engaging in unlawful entrepreneurship, marking the first time that a deputy has been kicked out of the lower house of parliament without first being convicted of a crime. The United Russia-backed vote also removed […]

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Putin Redux: Continuity and change

File Photo of Vladimir Putin at Outdoor Rally with Microphone in Hand and Heavy Coat

Is Putinism a static system, or is it in need of renewal after the events of the past year? Richard Sakwa discusses the options before the Russian president and the elites that surround him. By Richard Sakwa – www.opendemocracy.net – September 14, 2012 Richard Sakwa is professor of Russian and European politics at the University of Kent, England. Among his […]

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Bureaucrats Smile in Special Economic Zone

Cash, Calculator, Pen

By Anatoly Medetsky –  Moscow Times – September 17, 2012 – JRL 2012-165 Even customs officers received praise Monday when foreign investors heaped accolades on the Alabuga special economic zone. In terms of attracted investment, Alabuga, in Tatarstan’s Yelabuga region, is the biggest of the 16 zones in the country where the federal government and regional counterparts have created favorable […]

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Romney’s Victory in U.S. Election May Lead to Bigger Arms Spending – Dvorkovich

Mit Romney file photo

YALTA. Sept 15 (Interfax) – Russia is seriously concerned about the anti-Russian comment of Republican Party candidate Mitt Romney, which may have a series of undesirable consequences, among them an arms race restart, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich said at the Russian Future session of the Ninth Annual Yalta Meeting on Saturday. “If Romney wins, we may have to […]

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Russian Prosecutors Seek ‘Innocence of Muslims’ Ban

File Photo of Mosque in Kazan and other Landmarks

MOSCOW, September 16 (RIA Novosti)-The Prosecutor General’s Office has declared the film “Innocence of Muslims” extremist and will seek a court ruling to ban the controversial video in Russia, its spokeswoman said on Monday. Before a court ruling the Prosecutor General’s Office has instructed the federal mass communications watchdog “to take measures to prevent media distribution of the information contained […]

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NEWSLINK: Shrinking Siberia: Why young people are fleeing Russia’s Far East.

Map of Russia

Newsweek.com –  September 17, 2012 –  Shrinking Siberia: Why young people are fleeing Russia’s Far East. – By Anna Nemtsova – click here to read more from original article After first profiling a Siberian policewoman fashion model, Anna Nemtsova addresses Siberian population decline.  Within a generation, Siberia, which is larger than China, will have less people than Moscow or St. […]

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Putin Moves Towards Conservative Electorate; Healthy Forces Around Unhealthy ‘Vertical’

File Photo of Vladimir Putin Sitting at Desk

Putin Moves Towards Conservative Electorate – Argumenty Nedeli – September 13, 2012 – Article by Andrey Uglanov: “Healthy Forces Around Unhealthy ‘Vertical’.” [no link available to English-languge version of article] Argumenty Nedeli reports that, according to the All-Russia Center for the Study of Public Opinion (VTsIOM), the number of citizens on whom Russian President Vladimir Putin makes a favorable impression […]

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JRL Table of Contents :: Johnson’s Russia List 2012-#165 – 17 September 2012

Map of Russia

Johnson’s Russia List 2012-#165 17 September 2012 davidjohnson@starpower.net A World Security Institute Project www.worldsecurityinstitute.org JRL homepage: www.russialist.org JRL on Facebook: www.facebook.com/russialist JRL on Twitter: www.twitter.com/JohnsonRussiaLi Support JRL: http://russialist.org/funding.php Your source for news and analysis since 1996 In this issue POLITICS 1. www.opendemocracy.net: Richard Sakwa, Putin Redux: Continuity and change. 2. Argumenty Nedeli: Putin Moves Towards Conservative Electorate. (Andrey Uglanov) 3. […]

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Opposition Calls for More Rage in Fight With Kremlin

Moscow Protest file photo

Moscow Times –  September 17, 2012 – by Jonathan Earle Sending a signal of defiance to President Vladimir Putin, an eclectic crowd of tens of thousands marched peacefully through central Moscow over the weekend, although their numbers appeared smaller than at previous protests. While opposition leaders trumpeted the protest as the largest yet ­ more than 100,000 turned out, they […]

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NEWSLINK: Russia reveals shiny state secret: It’s awash in diamonds; Trillions of carats’ lie below a 35-million-year-old, 62-mile diameter asteroid crater in eastern Siberia known as Popigai Astroblem. The Russians have known about the site since the 1970s.

Diamonds generic file photo

Russia reveals shiny state secret: It’s awash in diamonds; Trillions of carats’ lie below a 35-million-year-old, 62-mile diameter asteroid crater in eastern Siberia known as Popigai Astroblem. The Russians have known about the site since the 1970s. – Christian Science Monitor – September 17, 2012 – By Fred Weir, Correspondent – JRL 2012-165 click here to read orginal article Russia […]

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Israel Might Strike Iran After U.S. Presidential Elections – Russian Analyst

Map of Iran with Stylized Radar Sweep and Radiation Symbol Background Image

“Israel Might Strike Iran After U.S. Presidential Elections – Russian Analyst” – Interfax-AVN – Sept. 11, 2012 [click here to read original article] Interfax-VN cites Alexei Arbatov, former Duma member and current head of the International Security Center under the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Institute of World Economy and International Relations (IMEMO), as suggesting that Israel might launch a war […]

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AMERICAN UMBRELLA FOR TBILISI: An update on the American-Georgian military cooperation. – GROUP OF AMERICAN ANTI-AIRCRAFT DEFENSE EXPERTS IS VISITING GEORGIA

Georgia Map

AMERICAN UMBRELLA FOR TBILISI: An update on the American-Georgian military cooperation. – GROUP OF AMERICAN ANTI-AIRCRAFT DEFENSE EXPERTS IS VISITING GEORGIA – Author: Yuri Roks – Nezavisimaya Gazeta September 12, 2012 [no link available for English-language version of the original article] Nezavisimaya Gazeta reports that American antiaircraft defense experts have come to Tbilisi, under the framework of the Strategic Partnership […]

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JRL Table of Contents :: Johnson’s Russia List 2012-#164 – 13 September 2012

Map of Russia

Johnson’s Russia List 2012-#164 13 September 2012 davidjohnson@starpower.net A World Security Institute Project www.worldsecurityinstitute.org JRL homepage: www.russialist.org JRL on Facebook: www.facebook.com/russialist JRL on Twitter: www.twitter.com/JohnsonRussiaLi Support JRL: www.russialist.org/funding.php Your source for news and analysis since 1996 In this issue POLITICS 1. RIA Novosti: Russia is world’s most educated country. 2. Moscow Times: Medvedev Calls for Pussy Riot Release. 3. Interfax: […]

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Putin ‘Tightening Screws’ – In Politics: Vladimir Putin’s Universal Screwdriver. Russian President Once Again Demonstrates His Signature Harshness

  Putin ‘Tightening Screws’ –  Nezavisimaya Gazeta – September 10, 2011 – Article by Ivan Rodin, Nezavisimaya Gazeta political observer: “In Politics: Vladimir Putin’s Universal Screwdriver. Russian President Once Again Demonstrates His Signature Harshness.” [no link available to English-language version of original article] Nezavisimaya Gazeta observes that recently “the Russian president once again demonstrated his traditional harshness.” … specifically before […]

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NO LONGER IMPRESSIVE: Pollsters say that support for Vladimir Putin dropped 20% over the last ten years

File Photo of Vladimir Putin Sitting at Desk

NO LONGER IMPRESSIVE: Pollsters say that support for Vladimir Putin dropped 20% over the last ten years – Kommersant – September 11, 2012 –  Maxim Ivanov, Sofia Samokhina [no link available to English-language version of article] Kommersant reports that a poll by the Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM) shows a 20% drop in the number of Vladimir Putin supporters […]

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JRL Table of Contents :: Johnson’s Russia List 2012-#163 – 11 September 2012

Map of Russia

Johnson’s Russia List 2012-#163 11 September 2012 davidjohnson@starpower.net A World Security Institute Project www.worldsecurityinstitute.org JRL homepage: www.russialist.org JRL on Facebook: www.facebook.com/russialist JRL on Twitter: www.twitter.com/JohnsonRussiaLi Support JRL: www.russialist.org/funding.php Your source for news and analysis since 1996 In this issue POLITICS 1. Kommersant: NO LONGER IMPRESSIVE Pollsters say that support for Vladimir Putin dropped 20% over the last ten years. 2. […]

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JRL Table of Contents :: Johnson’s Russia List 2012-#162 – 7 September 2012

Map of Russia

Johnson’s Russia List 2012-#162 7 September 2012 davidjohnson@starpower.net A World Security Institute Project www.worldsecurityinstitute.org JRL homepage: www.russialist.org JRL on Facebook: www.facebook.com/russialist JRL on Twitter: www.twitter.com/JohnsonRussiaLi Support JRL: www.russialist.org/funding.php Your source for news and analysis since 1996 In this issue POLITICS 1. Vedomosti: WESTERN WAYS ARE NOT MANDATORY. Vladimir Putin’s interview to the ‘Russia Today’ TV Channel is to show his […]

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JRL Table of Contents :: Johnson’s Russia List 2012-#161 – 6 September 2012

Map of Russia

Johnson’s Russia List 2012-#161 6 September 2012 davidjohnson@starpower.net A World Security Institute Project www.worldsecurityinstitute.org JRL homepage: www.russialist.org JRL on Facebook: www.facebook.com/russialist JRL on Twitter: www.twitter.com/JohnsonRussiaLi Support JRL: www.russialist.org/funding.php Your source for news and analysis since 1996 In this issue POLITICS 1. Reuters: Russia’s Putin defiant on Syria, says Romney “mistaken” 2. Kremlin.ru: Interview by President of Russia Vladimir Putin to […]

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JRL Table of Contents :: Johnson’s Russia List 2012-#160 – 5 September 2012

Map of Russia

Johnson’s Russia List 2012-#160 5 September 2012 davidjohnson@starpower.net A World Security Institute Project www.worldsecurityinstitute.org JRL homepage: www.russialist.org JRL on Facebook: www.facebook.com/russialist JRL on Twitter: www.twitter.com/JohnsonRussiaLi Support JRL: www.russialist.org/funding.php Your source for news and analysis since 1996 In this issue POLITICS 1. ITAR-TASS: Medvedev sets 6 tasks for social development of Russian villages. 2. Moscow Times: Sergei Guriev and Oleg Tsyvinsky, […]

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JRL Table of Contents :: Johnson’s Russia List 2012-#159 – 4 September 2012

Map of Russia

Johnson’s Russia List 2012-#159 4 September 2012 davidjohnson@starpower.net A World Security Institute Project www.worldsecurityinstitute.org JRL homepage: www.russialist.org JRL on Facebook: www.facebook.com/russialist JRL on Twitter: www.twitter.com/JohnsonRussiaLi Support JRL: www.russialist.org/funding.php Your source for news and analysis since 1996 In this issue POLITICS 1. Reuters: Russia’s fractured society deepens Putin’s woes. 2. Reuters: Recalling 1812 battle, Putin calls for unity in Russia. 3. […]

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Putin’s perks: Nice work

File Photo of Vladimir Putin Sitting at Desk

Putin’s perks: Nice work – The Economist – September 1, 2012 click here to read original article The Economist covers a report by Boris Yeltsin deputy prime minister, and current opposition leader, Boris Nemtsov, addressing or alleging the life of  wealth and luxury enjoyed by Russian President Vladimir Putin. Nemtsov and journalist Leonid Martynuk suggest Putin is motivated to maintain […]

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