(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 […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – www.rbth.ru – Nikolay Surkov, special to RBTH – February 19, 2013) Nikolay Surkov is an assistant professor at Moscow State Institute of Foreign Affairs While Western actors push for the creation of an interim government in Syria, Russia is pessimistic about chances for improvement in the situation. Moscow sees no state willing to guarantee such […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Ivan Nechepurenko – February 20, 2013) Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, re-elected in a landslide victory Monday, is expected to keep the promotion of Russian ties a priority during his second five-year term, as his country moves closer to clinching an Association Agreement with the European Union. Flare-ups in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, seized by Armenia […]
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BRASILIA, February 20 (RIA Novosti) – Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has arrived in Brazil’s capital Brasilia, a RIA Novosti correspondent reported Wednesday. During his visit to Brazil on February 20-21, Medvedev is expected hold talks with Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff and co-chair with Vice-President Michel Temer the sixth meeting of the Russian-Brazilian high-level bilateral cooperation commission. The Russian premier […]
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(Institute of Modern Russia – imrussia.org – Donald N. Jensen – February 19, 2013) With the unraveling of its “reset” with Moscow, the Obama administration is seeking new ways to engage the Russian leadership, relying on the time-tested issue of arms control. According to Donald N. Jensen, Resident Fellow at the Center for Transatlantic Relations at the Johns Hopkins School […]
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(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Aleksandras Budrys – February 20, 2013) Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the country should not return cultural property confiscated by Bolshevik and Soviet authorities after the 1917 revolution to its previous owners. “If we now agree that such property of the Russian state will be transferred to someone, we will open a Pandora’s box. […]
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WASHINGTON, February 19 (By Maria Young for RIA Novosti) The January death of a young boy adopted from Russia last year by American parents was called “suspicious” on Tuesday by Texas authorities investigating the case, but they stopped short of confirming the graphic evidence of abuse some Russian officials have claimed and said the parents have not been charged with […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Jonathan Earle – February 20, 2013) With striking unanimity and furor, senior officials and lawmakers on Tuesday condemned the latest death of an adopted Russian child in the United States, saying the incident vindicates the government’s controversial decision to ban U.S. adoptions. “The death of one more Russian child in the United States has at […]
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(Interfax – February 20, 2013) The Federation Council’s meeting on Wednesday began with the issue of the death in the U.S. of Maxim Kuzmin, 3, who was adopted by U.S. citizens. Senators did not hide their outrage with what has occurred, and each of them tried to communicate his position on the matter. Nikolai Kondratenko, former governor of the Krasnodar […]
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MOSCOW. Feb 20 (Interfax) – Russia would form a reserve of oil and gas fields in its Arctic zone under a proposal contained in the Strategy for Development of Russia’s Arctic Zone and Ensuring National Security to 2020 published on the government website on Wednesday. The fund would help guarantee the nation’s energy security and ensure the steady development of […]
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MOSCOW. Feb 20 (Interfax) – The government program for the Social and Economic Development of the Far East and Baikal Region for the Period to 2025, drafted by the Far East Development Ministry, was discussed at a meeting held by First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov, business daily Vedomosti reported on Wednesday. “The document was not officially submitted to the […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Irina Filatova – February 20, 2013) Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich got in the spotlight Tuesday amid rumors that he might have to resign in the wake of the recent scandals in the energy sector, which he oversees. In comments posted on his Facebook account late Monday, Dvorkovich unequivocally dismissed speculation in social networks that […]
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MOSCOW. Feb 20 (Interfax) – Russia should not boost domestic demand more quickly than it increases the economy’s productive potential, Senior Resident Representative of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Russia Odd Per Brekk told reporters in Moscow on Wednesday. On the basis of its latest research, the IMF has arrived at the conclusion that the Russian growth model of […]
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MOSCOW. Feb 19 (Interfax) – The long-term forecast for Russia’s social and economic development in the period to 2030 will be the foundation for the country’s long-term budget strategy, as well as federal and regional programs, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said. “Long-term budget strategy, federal and regional programs should be formed on the basis of this document, but we need […]
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Moscow, February 18, Interfax – The inaugural congress of the Russian Ten Commandments Party took place in Moscow. The total of 134 delegates from 45 Russian subjects, including Christians of different confessions, Muslims, and Jews, participated in the inaugural congress on February 17. The political council, the decision making body of the party, was headed by Sergey Mezentsev, Ph.D. “I […]
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(RIA Novosti – February 19, 2013) The number of convicts charged with corruption of all sorts is constantly declining, RIA Novosti news agency reported on 19 February, quoting the head of the Russian Supreme Court, Vyacheslav Lebedev. According to Lebedev’s data, a total of 10,000 people were charged with corruption in 2010, 7,500 people – in 2011, while in 2012 […]
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MOSCOW, February 20 (RIA Novosti) – Russia’s Investigative Committee (IC) initiated criminal proceedings against more than 800 state and government officials last year, including about 600 lawmakers on different levels, committee chief Alexander Bastrykin said on Wednesday. “Last year we took legal action against some 600 deputies and elected heads of municipalities and local self-government bodies, 19 deputies of regional […]
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(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble – Staunton, February 19, 2013 – http://windowoneurasia2.blogspot.com/2013/02/window-on-eurasia-having-released.html) President Vladimir Putin’s decision to give official support to some of the most reactionary and vicious groups in Russian society in order to counter the increase in the number of the middle class who are appalled by his policies in this regard carries with it great risks […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Alexander Winning – February 20, 2013) Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin is among the few politicians capable of appeasing warring factions within the ruling elite and becoming President Vladimir Putin’s successor, a report released Tuesday said. The report, drafted by the influential Minchenko Consulting Group, said that although there exists a broad consensus within Putin’s inner […]
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(Interfax – February 19, 2013) The decision to abolish daylight savings time, taken in June 2011 under then-President Dmitriy Medvedev and hotly debated since its implementation, is becoming increasingly more annoying for Russians, a survey by the pro-Kremlin All-Russia Public Opinion Research Centre (VTsIOM) pollster has found, the Interfax news agency reported on 19 February. The poll, posted on the […]
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MOSCOW, February 20 (RIA Novosti) – Russia’s upper house of parliament, the Federation Council, approved a bill on Wednesday banning smoking in public places. The ban, which takes effect on June 1, was passed by 125 votes. Four senators voted against the bill and six abstained. The State Duma, the parliament’s lower house, passed the bill in its third and […]
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(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Aleksandras Budrys – February 20, 2013) Most Russians support measures aimed at restricting the advertising, sale and use of tobacco products contained in the new bill passed by both houses of parliament, but are divided about its outcome, a poll run by the Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VTsIOM) showed on Wednesday. It showed 79 […]
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Date: Mon, 18 Feb 2013 From: “Russian Analytical Digest (RAD)” <newslist@isn.ch> Subject: No.122: Pussy Riot RUSSIAN ANALYTICAL DIGEST Newsletter 4 February 2013/No. 122 Pussy Riot To download this issue please click here: http://www.css.ethz.ch/publications/DetailansichtPubDB_EN?rec_id=2415 Analyses Failed for Now: Pussy Riot and the Rule of Law in Russia, by Caroline von Gall, Cologne The Pussy Riot Trial and the Russian Orthodox Church, […]
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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 […]
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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: […]
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Date: Fri, 15 Feb 2013 From: “The Heritage Foundation” <mailingFP@heritage.org> Subject: Invitation for Feb 21- After the Failed Russian Reset: What Is Next? The Heritage Foundation After the Failed Russian Reset: What Is Next? Featuring Vladimir Kara-Murza Commentator, World Affairs Stephen Blank, Ph.D. Research Professor of National Security Affairs, U.S. Army War College Katrina Swett, Ph.D. President, Lantos Foundation Hosted […]
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(RIA Novosti – Fyodor Lukyanov – February 14, 2013) Fyodor Lukyanov is Editor-in-Chief of the Russia in Global Affairs journal an authoritative source of expertise on Russian foreign policy and global developments – http://eng.globalaffairs.ru] Georgia has most likely entered the final stage of its political transformation. The next few weeks will show whether President Mikheil Saakashvili, whose term ends […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – www.rbth.ru – Pavel Koshkin, RBTH – February 18, 2013) Despite growing difficulties in Russian-U.S. relations, interest in American culture remains strong as evidenced by a growth in attendance at Moscow’s American Center. A bust of American writer Mark Twain and a cardboard cutout of U.S. President Barack Obama greet Russians who enter the American […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – www.rbth.ru – Anna Nemtsova, special to RBTH – February 19, 2013) Russian children’s rights ombudsman speaks candidly about his mission to abolish foreign adoption and end Russia’s role as an international “donor of orphans.” Russian children’s rights ombudsman Pavel Astakhov, 47, is a man with a controversial mission: to end once and for all the […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Natalya Krainova – February 19, 2013) The U.S. State Department will assist in Russia’s probe into the January death of a 3-year-old Russian boy adopted by an American woman, a spokesman told RIA-Novosti on Wednesday. Children’s ombudsman Pavel Astakhov said the boy, Maxim Kuzmin, was killed by his adoptive mother in Texas on Jan. 21 […]
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(RFE/RL – rferl.org – Robert Coalson – February 19, 2013) It was like putting a match to a powder keg. Reports of the death in Texas of a Russian adoptee are producing an outpouring of outrage from Russian political elites aimed directly at the United States. “Why should we send our children to certain death,” Deputy Chairwoman of the Federation […]
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BRUSSELS. Feb 18 (Interfax) – Russia Foreign Minister Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry are planning to meet soon, the Russian minister said on Monday. “We came to an agreement that we’ll try to cross paths some time very soon,” Lavrov told reporters in Brussels in commenting on a phone conversation between him and Kerry. Lavrov said he […]
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(RIA Novosti – Moscow, 18 February 2013) The West’s capabilities to dominate global politics continue to dwindle, the Foreign Policy Concept of the Russian Federation, whose text was posted on the website of the Foreign Ministry today, reads. [http://www.mid.ru/bdomp/ns-osndoc.nsf/e2f289bea62097f9c325787a0034c255/c32577ca0017434944257b160051bf7f] “The capabilities of the historically established West to dominate the global economy and politics continue to decline. The global potential of […]
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MOSCOW. Feb 18 (Interfax) – The G20 finance ministers and central bank governors have wrapped up their first meeting in Moscow, issuing quite an extensive document – a 26-point communique devoted to some of the main topics of the meeting, such as the global economy, financing of investment, government borrowing and sustainability of government debt, reform of the international financial […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Alexander Bratersky – February 19, 2013) Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has ordered the government to find ways to reduce bureaucratic obstacles to regional investment amid a drive to boost regional economies. Medvedev has called for the Economic Development, Finance and Regional Development Ministries to present proposals to increase regional investment, RIA-Novosti reported Monday, citing the […]
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(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Aleksandras Budrys – February 19, 2013) Moscow will organize two “subbotniks,” or voluntary labor days, on Saturdays April 20 and April 27, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said at a Moscow government meeting. The tradition of holding “subbotniks” dates back to 1919, when in the early years of Soviet power in Russia, massive voluntary work on weekends […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Eradzh Nidoev – February 19, 2013) More than a year after the start of marches against allegedly rigged Duma elections, the burning caldron that was the Russian protest movement cooled to a gentle bubbling, while its participants went back to their usual temperate lives. Such a turn of events poses a problem for the Dozhd […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Natalya Krainova – February 19, 2013) A bill redefining the conditions under which children can be seized from so-called “socially vulnerable families” has provoked fear among critics that more minors could be taken into state care due to petty infractions. Amid a renewed push by authorities to decrease the number of children in state care, […]
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MOSCOW, February 19 (RIA Novosti) The Russian government’s work in the next five years will be crucial to improving the system of state governance and the business climate, essential to restoring investor confidence and the level of investment to modernize the economy, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said on Monday. Medvedev made his comments while unveiling a long-term budget […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Ivan Nechepurenko – February 19, 2013) The meteor that struck outside Chelyabinsk on Friday with such suddenness and explosive force has prompted a question among some spooked observers: If Russian defense officials were unable to track an object 17 meters in diameter rocketing down to earth, how could they detect a much smaller but equally […]
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(Jamestown Foundation – jamestown.org – Eurasia Daily Monitor: Volume 10, Issue 30 – Pavel K. Baev – February 18, 2013) The meteor that exploded over Chelyabinsk in the early hours of February 15, as damaging as it was, produced even more jokes than material destruction. One of those was about the State Duma urgently approving legislation banning the incursions of celestial […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – www.rbth.ru – Ben Aris, special to RBTH – Februray 19, 2013) The size of Russia’s shadow economy undermines recent efforts to improve the business climate. Russia has lost $782.5 billion in “illicit” capital flight over the last 18 years while $552.9 billion of illegal money has entered the country over the same period of time, […]
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MOSCOW, February 19 (RIA Novosti) – Russia has no plans to end US cargo traffic to Afghanistan via its territory despite differences in relations between the two states, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov said on Tuesday. “Cargo transit [to Afghanistan] via Russian territory is an important aspect of our cooperation, and we have no plans to end it,” Gatilov […]
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Date: Wed, 13 Feb 2013 From: Sue Dorfman <Sedorf@comcast.net> Subject: PUTIN’S KISS on 2/20 in DC Matt Rojansky suggested I contact you to help spread the word on the upcoming screening of the film, PUTIN’S KISS. The film shows on Wednesday, February 20 at 7 pm at the West End Cinema, located at 2301 M St NW Washington, DC 20037. […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Alexander Bratersky – February 18, 2013) Leaders of the Group of 20 said Saturday that global economic growth remains weak despite government measures, but they agreed to avoid currency wars intended to stimulate the economy by devaluing their money. A meeting of the group’s finance ministers and central bankers was held in Moscow for the […]
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(opendemocracy.net – Pavel Chikov – February 15, 2013) Pavel Chikov is chair of AGORA, an association of human rights organisations based in Kazan. Since 1999 Chikov has been a leading human rights lawyer and head of a number of Russian human rights organizations in Moscow and Kazan Continuing oDRussia’s debate on the future for Russian NGO funding, now a view […]
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(RIA Novosti – February 15, 2013) Russian Minister of Communications and Mass Communication Nikolay Nikiforov has said that remarks recently voiced by his deputy Aleksey Volin regarding the role of journalism in the Russian society do not constitute the ministry’s official position. Nikiforov said this at the Economic Forum in Krasnoyarsk on 15 February, as reported by Russian news agency […]
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MOSCOW. Feb 15 (Interfax) – Some 56% of Muscovites approve of President Vladimir Putin’s work, the Public Opinion Foundation said after polling 3,632 adults on January 26 – February 7. Four percent said they knew nothing about Putin’s activity, 28% expressed their discontent and 11% could not answer the question. Fifty-one percent said Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin was working well. […]
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(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Kristen Blyth – February 18, 2013) Making a smoking section at a restaurant, as comedian George Carlin once put it, is like designating a urinating section in a swimming pool. The two are not separate, whether you like it or not. In Russia, a country where about 39 percent of people are regular smokers, coming […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Natalya Krainova – Februray 18, 2013) In light of the meteorite blast that sent shock waves through the Ural Mountains city of Chelyabinsk on Friday, leaving more than a thousand people injured, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev tasked his deputy, Dmitry Rogozin, with proposing ways to predict and prevent disasters from space. Rogozin plans to give […]
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