(Kremlin.ru – Novo-Ogaryovo, Moscow Region, September 10, 2013) Vladimir Putin chaired a meeting with heads of Russian regions voted in during regional elections held on the single election day. PRESIDENT OF RUSSIA VLADIMIR PUTIN: Dear colleagues, good afternoon, Voting has closed and you have won your elections; naturally I must congratulate you on your victory and wish you success. I […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Allison Quinn – September 11, 2013) President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday hailed the recent regional elections as “more transparent than ever” as Moscow’s elections commission announced acting Mayor Sergei Sobyanin as the official winner of the city’s mayoral vote and set his inauguration ceremony for Thursday. Describing the elections as “legitimate, transparent and regulated,” Putin […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Yaroslava Kiryukhina, RBTH – September 10, 2013) In response to Russia’s recently adopted “anti-gay law,” people in cities all over the world are boycotting Russian vodka and talking of severing sister-city ties. Despite this criticism, which comes mainly from Western audiences, Russian lawmakers insist that the new legislation was created only to protect […]
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(Business New Europe – bne.eu – Ben Aris – September 11, 2013) How much does the rest of the world hate Russia? Answer: a lot. This excerpt below is part of an internal memo by a major US bank, which will remain nameless, to clients on the results of the Moscow mayoral elections at the weekend. What is supposed to […]
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(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble – Staunton, September 11, 2013) Their identity increasingly defined not by what they are or want to be but by what they fear and view as alien, Russians as a nation are fraying at the edges with some like the Siberians identifying in terms of a region, others like the Cossacks in terms of […]
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(RIA Novosti – NOVO-OGARYOVO – Moscow Region, September 10, 2013) Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday called on newly elected heads of Russian regions to get in contact with their former opponents and use their proposals. “I am urging you to build relationships not only with your support groups but with all your opponents as well, bearing in mind […]
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(RIA Novosti – Howard Amos – MOSCOW, September 11, 2013) Besides drunks, who do Russians not want most as neighbors or work colleagues? The answer: homosexuals, according to new research examining national identity released by a state-run pollster, the Russia Public Opinion Research Center, on Tuesday. According to the survey, 51 percent of Russians would not like “under any […]
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(kremlin.ru – September 12, 2013, also posted by the New York Times on September 11, 2013, as “A Plea for Caution From Russia” at http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/12/opinion/putin-plea-for-caution-from-russia-on-syria.html) The article by Vladimir Putin published in The New York Times. Recent events surrounding Syria have prompted me to speak directly to the American people and their political leaders. It is important to do so […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Ivan Nechepurenko – September 11, 2013) Britain, France and the U.S. are set to table a resolution on Syria’s chemical weapons in the UN Security Council on Tuesday evening as a Russian plan to avert a U.S.-led military strike against Syria has garnered overwhelming global support. The announcement came after Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on […]
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(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Henry Meyer – September 11, 2013) Vladimir Putin is seizing the chance to keep Russia’s foothold in the Middle East. President Barack Obama yesterday postponed a decision on military action in Syria after Putin proposed to put Syria’s chemical weapons under international control, shifting the global debate. It allows Putin to keep a role in molding […]
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(Interfax – September 11, 2013) Syrian insurgents possess chemical weapons, and Russia has given proof that they have used these weapons on Syrian territory to the UN Security Council, Russian State Duma international affairs committee head Alexei Pushkov said at a Duma plenary session on Wednesday. The Duma plans to issue a statement on the situation in Syria later in […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, September 10, 2013) The Central Asian region is important for Russia, just as Russia is important for Central Asia, Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin said in an interview published by the business daily Kommersant on Tuesday. “In some instances our relations were elevated by mutual agreement to the level of strategic partnership and even allied relations. […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Tatyana Lisina, special to RBTH – September 9, 2013) A mega regulator of the entire financial market began work in Russia on Sept. 1. According to experts, this will have a positive impact on the economy as a whole and increase Russia’s investment attractiveness. On Sept. 1, the Central Bank of the Russian […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Pavel Vasiliadi, Analyst at the UFS Investment Company, special to RBTH – September 10, 2013) Economist Pavel Vasiliadi describes how Russia has more options than most of its G20 peers in choosing to either save or spend its way out of the crisis. In the debate on international financial architecture, Russia, having picked […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Irina Filatova – September 10, 2013) The Russian economy might see a slight pickup by the end of this year driven by expanding investment and a possible easing of monetary policy by the Central Bank, according to the latest forecast by Morgan Stanley presented Monday. The GDP growth is likely to expand by 2.2 percent […]
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(Kremlin.ru – September 10, 2013 – Novo-Ogaryovo, Moscow Region) QUESTION: Mr President, everybody’s talking about Syria, chemical weapons and bringing Syria’s chemical arsenal under international control. We have just received a report from Washington saying you discussed this matter with President Obama at the G20 summit in St Petersburg. Is it true? Did you talk about this? And if so, […]
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(Interfax – Novo-Ogarevo, September 9, 2013) Russian President Vladimir Putin believes that it is necessary, while defending human rights and freedoms in the North Caucasus, not to ignore sweeping accusations of allegedly widespread violations of human rights in the region. “Attempts by foreign states to use the existing problems in the North Caucasus to the detriment of Russia should be […]
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(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble – Staunton, September 10, 2013) Even as Russians debate whether Aleksey Navalny won by losing, it is already clear that three groups lost the Russian revolution: the KPRF which suffered its worst defeat ever, the Russian people whose political alienation led to an extraordinarily low turnout, and the Kremlin itself which demonstrated its incapacity […]
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(Business New Europe – bne.eu – Ben Aris in Moscow – September 10, 2013) In the face of persistently high inflation and capital outflows, the Russian government has decided to freeze energy tariffs, which will give the economy a short-term boost, but will also stymie the long-term development of the economy. Times are tough in Russia after economic growth dropped […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, September 10, 2013) Eighteen Russian universities made the list of the best 800 educational institutions in the world this year, according to the tenth annual World University Rankings compiled by QS Quacquarelli Symonds. Moscow State University remained in the top 200 despite moving back four spots compared with last year, from 116 to 120. In […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Natalya Krainova – September 10, 2013) Yekaterinburg, Russia’s fourth-largest city, elected outspoken opposition politician Yevgeny Roizman as its mayor on Sunday, in a move that dealt a blow to pro-Kremlin forces but gave little actual power to the winner, pundits said. Roizman’s success likely stems from voters’ disappointment with regional authorities and Roizman’s reputation as […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW. September 9, 2013) Andrei Vorobyov won the gubernatorial election in the Moscow region with 78.94% of the vote, Moscow regional elections commission chairman Irek Vildanov told Interfax. “A. Vorobyov won the election of the Moscow region’s governor upon processing of 100% of voting result reports. He gained 78.94% of the vote,” Vildanov said. Konstantin Cheremisov (the Communist […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, September 9, 2013) Election performance of opposition candidate Alexei Navalny was phenomenal, Civil Platform party leader Mikhail Prokhorov said, adding that he could have defeated Acting Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin already in the first round. “The preliminary result of Alexei (Navalny) makes me think that they (the authorities) must have realized there would have not been any […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – September 9, 2013) Moscow held its first mayoral election in nearly 10 years on Sunday, and voter turnout amounted to less than 30 percent, according to exit polls. The contenders included acting Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, opposition leader Alexei Navalny, Communist Ivan Melnikov, Liberal Democrat Mikhail Degtyarev, Yabloko party chairman Sergei Mitrokhin, and A Just Russia’s […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Marina Obrazkova, RBTH – September 4, 2013) Starting Sept. 1, new penalties are in effect for Russian drivers. Sanctions were modified for 46 violations, and maximum fines will increase by 10 times, going up to roughly $1,500. Changes that are taking effect in Russia’s Code of Administrative Offenses (CAO) involve increasing liability for […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, September 9, 2013) Russia has become a relatively happier country, but it still ranks below its autocratic neighbor Belarus, according to a UN-sponsored study released by Columbia University on Monday. Russia climbed eight positions in the second annual World Happiness Report, ranking 68th of 156 countries just behind Belarus (66) and the island nation […]
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Date: Wed, 4 Sep 2013 From: IERES <ieresgwu@gwu.edu> Subject: Thursday, September 12 – Reset the Reset? The Future of U.S.-Russia Relations Elliott School of Internation Affairs The George Washington University IERES – The Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies Reset the Reset? The Future of U.S.-Russia Relations Part of IERES’s Behind the Headlines Series with Kimberly Marten Barnard College, […]
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(RFE/RL – rferl.org – Tom Balmforth – MOSCOW, September 9, 2013) For Aleksei Shagal, it all began when he read one of Aleksei Navalny’s blog posts. The 27-year-old freelance journalist was deeply inspired by Navalny, an anticorruption blogger with a nationalist streak, and was propelled for the first time in his life into political activism. Shagal joined the throngs who […]
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(Interfax – September 10, 2013) No incidents occurred during the Monday rally staged by supporters of opposition activist Alexei Navalny, who ranked second in the Moscow mayoral elections, on Bolotnaya Square. “This election has finally molded politics in Russia,” Navalny said at the rally. He called his election result a victory. “I know that a third of Moscow voters cast […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Ivan Nechepurenko – September 10, 2013) Kremlin-backed candidate Sergei Sobyanin got a victory at Moscow’s mayoral election Sunday, but opposition star Alexei Navalny walked away with a symbolic victory by getting more than he or the government bargained for, analysts said. According to official results, Navalny garnered 633,000 votes in a city with 7.25 million […]
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(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Anna Arutunyan – September 10, 2013) The pro-Kremlin Moscow mayor-elect Sergei Sobyanin may have won a firm victory in Sunday’s polls, but unexpectedly high results for his rival, opposition activist Alexei Navalny, suggest authorities got more than they bargained for when they called for snap elections. Instead of a mayor legitimized by the first competitive […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, September 10, 2013) The Moscow city elections commission endorsed official results of the mayoral election on Tuesday. Acting Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin was proclaimed the winner. He gained 51.37% of the vote while the voter turnout stood at 32.07%. RPR-PARNAS candidate Alexei Navalny ranked second with 27.24% of the vote. Ivan Melnikov (the Communist Party) was third […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, September 9, 2013) Human rights activists call the organization of the Sunday mayoral elections in Moscow exemplary but quoting their own sources say that a runoff could be held to determine the mayor. “There were no crude breaches of law, but there were subtle irregularities which we still have to study,” cochairman of Golos movement council Grigory […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, September 10, 2013) The Russian proposal to put Syrian chemical weapons under international control is advantageous for the U.S. administration and Russia hopes the U.S. president will confirm his support of this initiative, State Duma International Affairs Committee Chairman Alexei Pushkov told reporters on Tuesday. “Let us hope that President Obama will confirm the support that he […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, September 10, 2013) Russia will soon put forward a “workable” plan for placing Syrian chemical weapons under international control, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday, following up on a day-old Russian proposal that has shifted the international debate on military intervention in war-torn Syria. “The Russian side is currently busy preparing a workable, clear, concrete […]
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(RIA Novosti – WASHINGTON, September 9, 2013) As the United States and Russia lock horns over the use of chemical weapons in Syria, the former Cold War foes are still wrestling with the remnants of their own massive chemical stockpiles that they have been working to eliminate for two decades. “They are terribly expensive to maintain and provide good […]
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[check back for updates, including more links; links also posted to facebook and twitter] Johnson’s Russia List :: 2013-#164 :: 10 September 2013 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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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Marina Obrazkova, RBTH – September 9, 2013) According to a survey, the worst attitudes toward Russia are expressed, ironically, by people in countries where Russian tourists traditionally go: Israel, Turkey, Jordan and Egypt. Experts explain this by the nuance that participants in the survey primarily evaluated not the country and its inhabitants, but […]
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(RIA Novosti – BERLIN, September 8, 2013) German intelligence sources suggest that last month’s alleged chemical weapons attack in Damascus was not ordered by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Bild am Sonntag has reported. Forces loyal to President Assad had been asking him for four months to use chemical weapons against the rebels, but they still received no approval from […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, September 9, 2013) Russia is considering holding peace talks on the Syrian conflict in Moscow, as plans for a US-Russia-backed Geneva-2 conference remain stalled, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Monday after a meeting with his Syrian counterpart. Lavrov said the main obstacle to the Geneva-2 summit intended to bring the Syrian government and rebel […]
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(RIA Novosti – September 6, 2013 – Fyodor Lukyanov, is Editor-in-Chief of the Russia in Global Affairs journal, authoritative source of expertise on Russian foreign policy and global developments) Responding to an opponent, Barack Obama said: “I stood up and opposed this war at a time when it was politically risky to do so because I said that not only […]
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(Interfax – GORKI, September 9, 2013) A group of lawyers has arrived at the conclusion that the normative bases of the European Union and Customs Union are incompatible, and that if Ukraine joins the EU free trade zone it will not be able to take on Customs Union obligations, Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov has said. “The conclusion […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Ivan Nechepurenko – ST. PETERSBURG , September 9, 2013) When Presidents Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin posed for the cameras outside Konstantinovsky Palace in St. Petersburg at the start of the G20 summit, they both wore wide grins on their faces. But the public geniality apparently did not translate into a private detente. The U.S. […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, September 9, 2013) Russia was subject to 74 trade restrictions imposed by 17 countries as of September 1. These included 40 anti-dumping duties, Deputy Economic Development Minister Alexei Likhachev told reporters. Likhachev said anti-dumping proceedings in the EU against Russian goods were particularly noteworthy as the EU disregards the price of gas in Russia and uses its […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, September 9, 2013) Presidential aide and former health minister Tatyana Golikova was nominated by President Vladimir Putin Monday to head Russia’s Audit Chamber, the Kremlin said. Golikova was selected by Putin from a pool of three candidates for the position put forward by a State Duma commission that also included Sergei Stepashin, the Chamber’s head […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Alexander Panin – September 9, 2013) On the eve of elections, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev gave the government three days to prepare a feasibility study on how a possible freeze on natural monopolies’ prices next year might affect economic growth and business in general. The Cabinet on Friday was ordered to evaluate by Monday the […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Marina Obrazkova, RBTH – September 9, 2013) Russian President Vladimir Putin held a meeting of the Council on Civil Society and Human Rights on Sept. 4, during which he attempted to clarify his position on civil rights advocates in nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). He reminded those present that the Russian law is constructed in […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, September 8, 2013) Human rights defenders did not find any serious violations that might influence the outcomes of the Moscow mayoral elections as of the moment polling stations closed down. “No such violations were recorded as of the moment polling stations closed down. But another important procedure, the count of votes, is still ahead,” Golos co-leader Grigory […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – D. Garrison Golubock – September 9, 2013) Leo Tolstoy, the world-famous author and doyen of Russia’s golden age of literature, is not a gentleman about whom one expects to hear breaking news. However, in a surprise announcement last Thursday, Russia’s two most prominent Tolstoy museums announced that they would be merging and appointing a new […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – September 9, 2013) Billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov expressed regret Monday that he had not run for Moscow’s mayor, saying that he would have posed a more serious challenge to the incumbent, Sergei Sobyanin, than opposition leader Alexei Navalny. Prokhorov, leader of the pro-business Civic Platform party, said he had not been able to make a bid […]
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