RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2015-#184 :: Tuesday 22 September 2015

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Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2015-#184
Tuesday – 22 September 2015
A project sponsored through the Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies (IERES) at The George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs
The contents do not necessarily represent the views of IERES or the George Washington University.
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RUSSIA

1. Moscow Times: Russia to Conduct ‘Micro-Census’ in October.
2. Russia Beyond the Headlines: Poll: Most Russians do not want to live in Moscow.
3. Irrussianality: Paul Robinson, THE LIMITS OF KREMLINOLOGY.
4. Russia Direct: The cleansing of the Russian elite and another opposition rally in Moscow. Media Roundup: The Russian media focused on the potential implications of a new political corruption scandal, Greece’s snap parliamentary elections, Europe’s refugee crisis, and reports about Russian troops in Syria.
5. Bloomberg: Leonid Bershidsky, A Loyal Governor Feels Putin’s Wrath.
6. Moscow Times: Russian Senator Introduces Bill Criminalizing Pro-Stalin Propoganda.
7. Moscow Times: Vladimir Ryzhkov, Attitude to Stalin Reveals Russia’s Considerable Divide.
8. TASS: Putin calls situation in Russian economy “complicated but not critical”
9. Sputnik: Russian Economy Worthy of Investment Grade: Fitch Ratings Boss.
10. Moscow Times: After the Boom: Moscow Malls Struggle With Fewer Customers.
11. Sputnik: Russian Economy Needs to Lower Dependence on Oil Prices – Putin.
12. TASS: Passions run high over need for virtual money in Russia.
13. Russia Beyond the Headlines: Home comforts: Russians learn to love the staycation. Holiday trends: A fall in outbound tourism by almost 34 percent was the steepest for 20 years, according to the Russian Travel Industry Union. RBTH takes a closer look at the figures.
14. TASS: Russia nominates Mikhalkov’s Sunstroke for Oscar.
15. Moscow Times: Moscow’s Amfest Film Festival Goes Off the Beaten Track.
16. TASS: Valery Gergiyev: Sometimes people think they are holding a magic wand. Artistic and general director of the State Academic Mariinsky Theater in TASS special project Top Officials. (lengthy interview)
17. Interfax: Moscow concerned by plans to modernize U.S. nuclear weapons in Germany.
18. TASS: New Russian ICBM missile to be shown to US inspectors in November – source.
19. Valdai Discussion Club: Alexander Sergunin and Valery Konyshev, Russia and the U.S. in the Arctic: A New Confrontation or Damage Limitation?
20. Russia Direct: Alexei Fenenko, 25 years after reunification, Germany must make tough choice about Russia. The Ukrainian crisis has aggravated Russian-German relations. This impacts negatively not only the situation of Russia but also the status of Germany in international politics.
21. The Unz Review: Eric Margolis, Russian Mouse Threatens U.S. Elephant.
22. TASS: Russia, US to create precedent for interaction over Syria, struggle with IS. (Sergey Rogov)
23. Russia Beyond the Headlines: Dmitry Babich, Build a coalition to save Syria. The current East-West crisis is the worst of all options in the face of the ISIS threat.
24. Russia Beyond the Headlines/Rossiyskaya Gazeta: Lack of common cause risks handing Syria to ISIS. Political analyst Fyodor Lukyanov discusses why there is no united front in the struggle against ISIS.
25. Rossiyskaya Gazeta: Russian experts, politicians comment on Syrian president’s interview.
26. Moscow Times: Why Russia Is Expanding Its Naval Base in Syria.
27. The Unz Review: Anatoly Karlin, Syrian Civil War 101.
28. The National Interest: Paul Pillar, Russian Involvement and a Redirection of Policy on Syria.
29. http://readrussia.com: Mark Adomanis, Why Russia’s Intervention in Syria Is Doomed to Failure.
30. Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Russian diplomat interviewed on proliferation and arms control. (Mikhail Ulyanov)

UKRAINE

31. BBC: Ukraine health officials fear big polio outbreak.
32. Reuters: Ukraine rebels offer to postpone local vote: separatist website.
33. Wall Street Journal: NATO Expands Cooperation With Ukraine, Support for Its Armed Forces. Ukrainian officials make clear the country intends to pursue membership of the western alliance.
34. Current Politics in Ukraine: David Marples, PEACE AT LAST IN UKRAINE? ANALYZING RUSSIAN GOALS.
35. Fort Russ: Sakadynsky: “Things are worse in Ukraine than in the 1990’s”
36. MSNBC.com: In war-torn Ukraine, a ghost town begins to rebuild.
37. Russia Beyond the Headlines: Russia refuses to accept ‘restructuring’ of Ukrainian debt. The Kremlin is refusing to accept proposals by Kiev to restructure $3 billion worth of bonds and demands full payment on the debt. Experts point out that this is an economic as well as a political issue and it could become a bargaining chip in the ongoing negotiations over a bilateral gas deal.
38. Antiwar.com: Justin Raymond, Ukraine’s ‘Democratic’ Dictatorship. They’re banning journalists, books, movies, and even actors.
39. AP: Ukraine’s Richest Man Plays Both Sides of War’s Frontline. (Rinat Akhmetov)
40. Business New Europe: Commander-in-Chief Poroshenko’s shipyard to play key role in rebuilding Ukraine’s navy.
41. Sputnik: Russian PM Approves Railroad Which Bypasses Ukraine.
42. http://newcoldwar.org: UN special rapporteur on torture issues sharply critical report on Ukraine.http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-09-22/foreign-fighters-join-pro-russian-rebels-in-eastern-ukraine/6792696
43. Kyiv Post: Paper chase: One US businessman’s story shows a lot has yet to change in post-Maidan Ukraine.
44. Australian Broadcasting Company: Russia’s foreign legion: Hundreds of fighters join pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine.
45. http://newcoldwar.org/PZM Magazine (Israel): The Israeli mother who went to fight Nazism in Ukraine.
46. New Eastern Outlook: American Risks Life, Limb and Citizenship to Fight Fascists in Ukraine.