RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents :: JRL 2016-35 :: Friday, 19 February 2016

Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2016-#35
Friday, 19 February 2016
A project sponsored through the Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies (IERES) at The George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs
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RUSSIA

1. Russia in Global Affairs: Sergei Karaganov, 2015: Global Tendencies and Russian Policies. A Time of Trouble and a Time of Opportunity.
2. Interfax: Strategy-2030 to be formulated in coming months – Dvorkovich.
3. Defensenews.com: Russian Aggression Drives Increase in European Defense Spending.
4. Paul Goble: Ten Reasons Putin System May Not be as ‘Sustainable’ as Many Now Think.
5. Moscow Times: Putin’s Pre-emptive Strike: Kremlin Moves to Liquidate ‘Foreign Agents’
6. Transitions Online: Russian Premier Bypasses Ban on File-Sharing Site.Determined users can easily slip past Russia’s strict anti-piracy laws.
7. TASS: Russia won’t ban use of social networks under labor law provisions – ministry.
8. Vedomosti: Growing social pessimism noted in regions ahead of elections.
9. The Guardian (UK): Exiled oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky: I have no obligations to Putin. Outlining plans to back Russian opposition groups, Khodorkovsky – pardoned in 2013 – says he never agreed to stay out of politics.
10. Reuters: Economic data suggests Russian slump past worst.
11. Reuters: Russia government mulls five percent cut in defense procurement spending: sources.
12. Forbes.com: Kenneth Rapoza, Barclays Hints That Russia’s Economy May Have Finally Bottomed.
13. TASS: Saudi Arabia and Russia are on the right track to stabilizing oil prices.
14. Sputnik: Revenues From State Assets Privatization in 2016 to Total 800 Bln Rubles.
15. The Economist: Russia’s lawless economy. Night of the long scoops. Smashing the little capitalists in Russia’s capital.
16. Russia Direct: Sergey Markedonov, Inside the rise to national prominence of Chechnya’s Ramzan Kadyrov. Contrary to popular opinion, the growing power of Chechnya’s leader Ramzan Kadyrov is not a new phenomenon. The question, though, is how far Moscow will let him go with his national political ambitions.
17. RFE/RL: Chechen Separatist Leader: Kadyrov Is Here To Stay.
18. The Hill: Poll: Americans view Russia as less of a threat.
19. Russia Direct: In search of a new agenda for US-Russia relations. RD Interview: After their bitter confrontation over Ukraine and Syria, is it really possible for the U.S. and Russia to chart out a stable course for international relations? We asked Michael Kofman, a fellow at the Kennan Institute of the Wilson Center in Washington, DC.
20. Forbes.com: Kenneth Rapoza, Why A New ‘Cold War’ Is Bad For The Global Economy.
21. AFP: Russia warns Assad on vow to retake all of Syria.
22. TASS: “H-hour” looming for Syria.
23. http://readrussia.com: Mark Adomanis, Is Russia’s Intervention in Syria ‘Worth It?’
24. The Hill: Pentagon: Russia agreed not to strike US forces in Syria.
25. Rossiyskaya Gazeta: Russian expert views likely Syria development scenarios. (Vitaliy Naumkin)
26. The Economist: War in Syria. The peril of inaction. Russian daring and American weakness have changed the course of the war-for the worse.
27. The Economist: Vladimir Putin’s war in Syria. Why would he stop now? Russian bombers have brought the regime of Bashar al-Assad within sight of victory, but the bloodshed and dangers are growing.
28. Boston Globe: Stephen Kinder, The media are misleading the public on Syria.
29. Russia Beyond the Headlines/Gazeta.ru: Tajiks fear weaker Russian presence will open the way for ISIS. Locals in Tajikistan are worried about the possible reduction of Russian servicemen in the country, as the Islamic State militant organization grows in strength in neighboring Afghanistan
30. Sputnik: Blame it All on Moscow: Secret British Government Papers Revealed.
31. www.rt.com: ‘Obama has a bee in the bonnet about Putin’ – Stephen Cohen.
32. www.foreignaffairs.com: Gregory Feifer, Putin’s Patriotism Playbook. What’s Russian Nationalism Got to Do With It?

UKRAINE

33. AP: UN Says Conflict in Ukraine Has Affected 580,000 Children.
34. Irrussianality: Paul Robinson, BOOK REVIEW: UKRAINE À FRAGMENTATION.
35. Sputnik: US Sees PM Yatsenyuk as ‘Best Chance’ to Prevent Ukraine From Chaos.
36. Carnegie Moscow Center: Oleksandr Holubov, The Yatsenyuk Chronicles: How Ukraine’s Prime Minister Survived.
37. Kyiv Post editorial: Saving Yatsenyuk.
38. TASS: Ukrainian ex-president blames ruling party for political crisis. (Viktor Yushchenko)
39. www.russiainsider.com: Leaving the Sinking Ship: Tymoshenko Quits Ukraine’s Governing Coalition. She’s plotting a comeback as PM that looked beyond unlikely in 2014 but may very well succeed in 2016.
40. Sputnik: In Ukraine, Western Bailout Money Simply ‘Disappears Into a Black Hole’
41. Bloomberg: Leonid Ragozin, Something’s Rotten in the State of Ukraine.
42. Fort Russ/TASS: “European Ukraine” Ceases to Exist.
43. The Nation: Lev Golinkin, The Heartbreaking Irony of ‘Winter on Fire.’ The documentary, like much Western coverage of Ukraine, presents the West with a mythical, whitewashed version of the Maidan “revolution.”
44. Facebook: Ivan Katchanovski, Maidan shootings.
45. Facebook: Ivan Katchanovski, Maidan shootings. (more)
46. http://gordonhahn.com: Gordon Hahn, Who’s More in Violation of Minsk-2 – Kiev or Donbass?
47. Russia Insider: Donetsk Blog Feb 18: Baltic Snipers At Work – Right Sector Provocateurs – Railway Sabotage – Civilians Killed & Wounded.
48. Novaya Gazeta: Tatyana Ivzhenko, Ukraine may announce withdrawal from ‘Minsk Format’ of talks. Kiev prepares diplomatic offensive.