Johnson’s Russia List :: 2013-#181 :: Thursday, 10 October 2013

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Johnson’s Russia List :: 2013-#181 ::10 October 2013
E-Mail: davidjohnson@starpower.net
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POLITICS

1. Moscow News: Anna Arutunyan, Russian winter: Why gray brings on the blues.
2. Moscow Times: 40% Property Ownership a Mystery to Government.
3. Moscow Times: Boris Kagarlitsky, Austerity Measures, Russian-style.
4. Valdai Discussion Club/Moskovskiye Novosti: Alexander Rahr, Russia in Search of an Identity: Standing Separate from the West While Remaining a European nation.
5. ITAR-TASS: World Mental Health Day draws attention to problems of senior citizens.
6. Moscow Times/BBC Monitoring: What the Papers Say, Oct. 10, 2013.
7. RIA Novosti: Court Ruling Opens Way for Navalny Election Runs.
8. Interfax: Russian State Duma passes bill in first reading giving new grounds to inspect NGOs.
9. Moscow Times: At Least 7 Judges Quit Supreme Arbitration Court.
10. RFE/RL: Putin’s Legal Vertical: Kremlin Seeks To Consolidate Court System.
11. RIA Novosti: Konstantin von Eggert, Deciphering the Kremlin: Reading the Runes of Russian Officialdom.
12. International Herald Tribune: Victor Erofeyev, Russia’s Search for Itself.
13. New York Times: A Russian Region Neither at War Nor at Peace, but Facing a Crackdown. (Dagestan)
14. Washington Post: Russia courts send harsh anti-protest message in two decisions.
15. The New Yorker: Joshua Yaffa, The Insanity of Protesting Against Putin.
16. Moscow Times: Top Clinic Denies Return to Soviet-Era Punitive Psychiatry.
17. Interfax: Human rights council will ask prosecutor general to drop piracy charge against Arctic Sunrise crew – Fedotov
18. Christian Science Monitor: Fred Weir, First pirates, now junkies? Russia to up charges against Greenpeace.
19. Moscow TImes: Andy Frecka, How (Not) to Shake Hands in Russia.

ECONOMY

20. ITAR-TASS: Russia among world leaders in terms of income inequality.
21. Bloomberg: Leonid Bershidsky, Just How Rich Are Russia’s Billionaires?
22. Moscow Times: Economy Faces Stagnation Unless Productivity Increases.
23. Reuters: NEWSMAKER -Russia’s new central bank head shows independent streak. (Elvira Nabiullina)
24. Financial Times: Russia moves towards free float of rouble.
25. Wall Street Journal: S&P: Russia Can Forget About Ratings Boost in Foreseeable Future.
26. Global Voices: Are Russian Pensions Robbing Peter to Pay Paul?
27. Moscow Times: Igor Logvinenko, The Dirty Truth About Russia’s ‘Dirty’ Money.
28. Russia Beyond the Headlines: No hope for Russia’s hi-tech sector? Most Russians do not believe in Russia’s future as a leading hi-tech exporter, a Debate Night this week at Moscow’s Technopolis revealed.
29. New Scientist: Fall of USSR locked up world’s largest store of carbon.

FOREIGN AFFAIRS

30. Russia Direct: Dmitry Suslov, Can American exceptionalism adjust to a multipolar world? A multipolar world requires a reassessment of standard approaches to American diplomacy.
31. ITAR-TASS: Sergei Lavrov: Some states try to dodge ban on use of force guided by momentary interests.
32. South China Morning Post: Sino-Russian ties grow amid US pivot to Asia. Mutual desire to offset Washington’s influence has helped old foes Beijing and Moscow find common ground on numerous strategic issues.
33. Russia Direct: Katherine Magalif, From Vladivostok to Bali: What Went Wrong? When Russia hosted the APEC Summit in Vladivostok in 2012, hopes were high that Russia could become a major economic player in the region. One year later, we’re still waiting for the results.
34. Interfax: Moscow says Russian, U.S. presidents to meet when time comes.
35. RIA Novosti: Russian Warheads Fuel Half of US Nuclear Power – Official.
36. RIA Novosti: Snowden’s Father Says Russia Only Safe Place For Son.
37. Moskovskiye Novosti: Russian Paper Downplays Seriousness of US Government Shutdown.
38. Moscow News: Anna Arutunyan, America’s Putin envy.
39. Russia Direct: How Syria could reshape modern geopolitics. Russian think tanks welcome Russia’s actions and initiatives on Syria, but are not rushing to celebrate the diplomatic triumph quite yet.
40. US-Russia.org: Building on the success of US – Russia diplomacy in Syria. Expert Panel Contributions.
41. ITAR-TASS: Moscow has no illusions with regards to destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons.
42. Moscow Times/Vedomosti: Konstantin Simonov, CIS Countries Learn to Play Off EU and Russia.
43. RIA Novosti: Ukraine Threatens to End Russian Gas Imports Over Prices.
44. Carnegie Moscow Center: Dmitri Trenin, The Great Illusion. (re Russia and Ukraine)
45. Moscow Times: Azeri Presidential Election Shows the Power of Oil.