Johnson’s Russia List :: 2014-#29 :: Tuesday, 11 February 2014

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Johnson’s Russia List :: 2014-#29 :: 11 February 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
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POLITICS

1. Interfax: Russian academics protest Kennan closure.
2. Russia Direct: Kennan Institute alumni in Russia: An open letter. The Wilson Center’s decision to halt the activities of the Kennan Institute’s Moscow office will have profoundly negative implications for U.S.-Russia relations.
3. Moscow Times: Sochi Security Gets High Marks.
4. ITAR-TASS: Awesome Soviet era symbol keeps Russian society split in two. (Dzerzhinsky statue)
5. Interfax: Moscow commission rules not to reinstall monument to Dzerzhinsky on Lubyanskaya Square.
6. Pew Research: Russians Return to Religion, But Not to Church.
7. RIA Novosti: Half of Russians Are in Love – Poll.
8. Moscow Times: What the Papers Say, Feb. 11.
9. Pew Research: Russia’s moral barometer: Homosexuality unacceptable, but drinking, less so.
10. ITAR-TASS: Foreign Ministry calls for unbiased coverage of democratic processes in Russia.
11. Interfax: Russian NGOs have many issues with transparency – Transparency Int’l.
12. ITAR-TASS: Russia’s State Duma to review second reading of government bill on NGOs.
13. Interfax: Ice hockey draws special interest at Sochi Olympics – IOC.
14. RIA Novosti: In Nod to Sochi Costs, Ovechkin Values Hockey Gold at $50 Billion.
15. ITAR-TASS: Putin wants surge of interest in Sochi to be turned into positive trend.
16. Kremlin.ru: Meeting with the Public Council for the Preparation of the 2014 Winter Olympics.
17. Reuters: Olympics-Criticism of Games reflects “Cold War” mentality-Putin.
18. Interfax: Russian president’s spokesman says proud of Sochi Olympic infrastructure.
19. Reuters: World warms to Sochi through Lipnitskaya’s grace.
20. Forbes.com: Mark Adomanis, Enjoy Julia Lipnitskaya’s Performance? A Leading Russian Oppositionist Thinks That Makes You A Nazi. (Viktor Shenderovich)
21. Wall Street Journal: Shape Up Sochi.
22. AP: New Yorker’s Remnick: NBC’s Political Translator.
23. Moscow Times: Andrei Malgin, Olympic Ceremony Without World War II.
24. RIA Novosti: Russian State TV Journalist Plagiarizes Nationalist Website.
25. Moscow Times: Ex-Olympian Rodnina Apologizes For Racist Twitter Picture.
26. Carnegie Moscow Center: Lilia Shevtsova, The Russian National Hobby-to Build Potemkin Village.
27. Paul Goble: Window on Eurasia: Sochi Marks the Return of Soviet-Style Megaprojects.
28. National Public Radio: So Far At The Games, A Low-Key Response To Russia’s Anti-Gay Law.
29. New York Times: Two Founding Members of Pussy Riot Respond to Criticism.
30. Washington Post: Katrina vanden Heuvel, For Pussy Riot members, no more taking freedom for granted.
31. David Stone: On Mark Adomanis in JRL #28. (re Pussy Riot)

ECONOMY

32. Business New Europe: Ben Aris, Kaluga – Russia’s regional pioneer.
33. Moscow Times: Draft Bill for Postal Privatization Submitted.
34. ITAR-TASS: Russian government officials to take part in Krasnoyarsk economic forum in late February.
35. Blouin News: Mark Galeotti, Sochi brings railway magnate Yakunin to center stage.
36. ITAR-TASS: Tycoon Potanin donates most of his wealth for charity.
37. RFE/RL: Endgame Nears In EU’s Antitrust Showdown With Gazprom.

FOREIGN AFFAIRS

38. Financial Times: Kathrin Hille, Sochi games will do little to normalise ties with the west. ‘Normal’ games boost Kremlin but foreign policy tests remain.
39. World Politics Review: Matthew Rojansky, EU-Russia Collision Not Inevitable in Post-Soviet Space.
40. Stratfor.com: George Friedman, New Dimensions of U.S. Foreign Policy Toward Russia.
41. The National Interest: David Rieff, Obama’s Liberal Imperialism.
42. Business New Europe: Interview with a titushki.
43. Euromaidan PR: The Hijacking of a Nation.
44. The Voice of Russia: Ukrainian “Corridor of Death” or how extremists in Kiev mocked Berkut.
45. Interfax: Anti-Semitism surging in Ukraine – Israeli diplomat.
46. Eurasianet.org: Looking at Euromaidan’s Support in Eastern Ukraine.
47. Council on Foreign Relations: Robert Kahn, Five Financial Questions for Ukraine.
48. The Voice of Russia: Yatsenyuk: nice chap for the US.
49. Moscow Times: Separatist Games for U.K. and Russia.
50. Russia Beyond the Headlines: George Feifer, Black Volgas and the NSA. Thank you, Edward Snowden, for telling us how badly reform is needed. It would have been impossible without the knowledge you gave us. (DJ: Who remembers Feifer’s wonderful books?)
51. www.russiatoday.com: Russian veterans seek political reassessment of Afghanistan war.
52. ITAR-TASS: Georgian president to analyze Putin’s remarks about their possible meeting.