RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents :: JRL 2017-10 :: Wednesday, 11 January 2017

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Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2017-#10
Wednesday, 11 January 2017
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DJ: America’s premier expert on Russia, Michael McFaul, signs off on the intelligence community’s recent report on Russia, in part because of the secrets he personally learned about Russia thru five years in government. Australian radio interview “Russia’s motives in developing US relationship ‘crystal clear’: expert on RN Breakfast”:
radio.abc.net.au/programitem/pgdq6lXrL6?play=true

Today’s big Russia story in media around the world. “These Reports Allege Trump Has Deep Ties To Russia” (“compromising information on Trump”) promoted by the community (“unverified” but circulated to Obama, Trump, and others):
buzzfeed.com/kenbensinger/these-reports-allege-trump-has-deep-ties-to-russia?utm_term=.fak0jKwzG#.smo0A6dR9

Finally, cybersecurity expert Jeffrey Carr asks “Does the GRU know what Covert means?”:
medium.com/@jeffreycarr/does-the-gru-know-what-covert-means-1e5f35e92309#.tvns5xj3p

In this issue

1. The Hill: Comey: DNC denied FBI’s requests for access to hacked servers.
2. Christian Science Monitor: Fred Weir, Twenty years ago, Russians loved the US. Where did it all go wrong? In the immediate post-Soviet era, Russians held the US in high esteem. But that started to change amid economic woes and Western adventurism in the Balkans and Middle East.
3. Russia Direct: What kind of Russia should the West fear? RD Interview: Dmitri Trenin of the Carnegie Moscow Center explains how current misguided perceptions in both the United States and Russia could lead to a dangerous new geopolitical reality.
4. Vedomosti: Putin’s response to US-Russia row seen as signal for Trump. (Petr Kozpeskovlov)
5. Russian and Eurasian Politics: Gordon Hahn, Russia’s Quiet Revolution.
6. TASS: Putin considers thorough investigation into Nemtsov’s murder necessary.
7. Interfax: Prosecutors should continue paying more attention to protecting fair business from pressure, unjustified checks – Putin.
8. Interfax: Econ Ministry to prepare measures in Feb to improve Russia’s Doing Business rating.
9. TASS: Moody’s expects Russia’s GDP to grow by 1% in 2017.
10. RFE/RL: World Bank Sees 1.5 Percent GDP Growth In Russia For 2017.
11. Reuters: General Frost to the rescue: cold helps Russia comply with OPEC deal.
12. RFE/RL: Russian Ministry Airs Drastic Proposals To Snuff Out Smoking.
13. Russian International Affairs Council: The proportion of foreign students studying in the U.S. and Russia is exactly the same – 5%. However, the actual number of foreign students in the United States is four times higher.
14. Russia Observer: Patrick Armstrong, Rotating on Your Tanks.
15. Russia Direct: Artem Kureev, Why the new US military buildup in Europe doesn’t yet worry Russia. As President Obama deploys thousands of troops and new military hardware to Europe, Moscow is waiting to see the next moves of the Trump administration.
16. Interfax: Peskov on next U.S. State Secretary Tillerson: we aren’t wearing rose-tinted glasses.
17. Christian Science Monitor: Howard LaFranchi, Is Rex Tillerson’s image as a Russia-lover fair? Senators are beginning to see more nuance in Secretary of State nominee Rex Tillerson’s relationship with Russia. But many are not convinced he knows the difference between business deals and diplomacy.
18. Atlantic Council: Stephen Blank, Negotiating with Russia: A Scenario for Success.
19. Irrussianality: Paul Robinson, A BAD SIGN. (re Chrystia Freeland)
20. Russia Beyond the Headlines: Russians deride American uproar over cyber attack accusations. The U.S. intelligence community’s assertions about purported Russian hacking during the U.S. presidential election is dismissed by both the Russian government and public.
21. Reuters: For Russia, U.S. election meddling claims strip Trump win of luster.
22. The Hill: Mark Weisbrot, Intel agencies ask Americans to ‘trust, don’t verify’ in new Cold War.
23. Fort Russ: Ruslan Ostashko, Russian Hackers, Masha Gessen, and Clinton’s shame: A Russian view.
24. Antiwar.com: Justin Raimondo, Where’s the Evidence? The CIA-FBI-NSA report on the hacking of the 2016 election is pure baloney.
25. FAIR (Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting): Adam Johnson, US Government Tries and Fails to Play Media Critic on RT.
26. Lawfare: Benjamin Wittes, Susan Hennessey, and Quinta Jurecic, About that Explosive Trump Story: Take a Deep Breath.
27. Chronicles: Edward Lozansky and Jim Jatras, Trump’s opponents are trying to cripple him by playing “Russian card”
28. The New Yorker: Andy Borowitz, RUSSIA BANS MERYL STREEP MOVIES.
29. Vanity Fair: Peter Savodnik, THE SECRET SOURCE OF PUTIN’S EVIL.