RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents :: JRL 2018-57 :: Wednesday, 28 March 2018

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Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2018-#57
Wednesday, 28 March 2018
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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1. Russia Beyond: Kemerovo tragedy, 2 days on: What we know.
2. Intellinews.com: Russian President Putin promises justice after Siberian shopping mall blaze tragedy.
3. Kremlin.ru: Meeting with local activists in Kemerovo.
4. www.rt.com: Man who lost five relatives becomes angry voice for Kemerovo fire survivors. [Text with video https://www.rt.com/news/422528-kemerovo-fire-businessman-family/]
5. Interfax: Supervisory bodies need reform in wake of Kemerovo tragedy – Matviyenko.
6. New York Times: Putin’s Grim Reality: Public Fury Over Children’s Deaths in Mall.
7. www.rt.com: ‘Without doubt Russia is responsible’: Presentation UK gave to prompt diplomat expulsions leaked. [Text with graphics https://www.rt.com/news/422529-uk-embassy-presentation-skripal/][UK document: https://www.kommersant.ru/docs/2018/UK_Briefing.pdf]
8. TASS: Kremlin: London’s Skripal ‘presentation’ doesn’t stand up to scrutiny.
9. Christian Science Monitor: Fred Weir, Why this round of expulsions may bring US, Russia to breaking point. The expulsion of 60 Russian diplomats from the US and the anticipated retaliation in kind from Moscow is expected to fuel hostile narratives and heighten public suspicions, leaving dwindling channels of communication. Allegations of espionage seem likely to lengthen the rupture.
10. The Interpreter (Lowy Institute): Tom Switzer, Skripal: the West escalates, but where is the proof? [Text with links https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/skripal-west-escalates-where-proof]
11. The Spectator (UK): Ron Liddle, Our response to the nerve gas attack has been an act of self-harm.
12. Facebook: Debating the Skripal case. Dmitri Trenin et al. (excerpts)
13. Russian and Eurasian Politics: Gordon Hahn, Putin, Skrypal, Novichok, and Spy Markets.
14. www.rt.com: UK government needed good spy scandal after Brexit fallout – Russian rep to EU.
15. Vesti.ru: Hot Take: Top Russian/Israeli Experts Worried That Putin Might be Too SOFT on West. [News video with subtitles https://www.vesti.ru/doc.html?id=3000479&cid=4441]
16. Vesti.ru: Top Pundit Mikheyev: Years of Russian Cooperation and Friendship Wasted, Only Force Will Prevail Now. [News video with subtitles https://www.vesti.ru/doc.html?id=3000072&cid=4441]
17. TASS: Lavrov: ‘Rest assured, Russia won’t tolerate’ West’s obnoxious conduct.
18. TASS: Nezavisimaya Gazeta: UK spy poisoning sanctions ‘just the beginning’, warns expert. (Anders Aslund)
19. Politico.com: Samantha Vindograd, How Will Trump Punish Russia Next? When it comes to sending messages to bad actors, presidents have a standard bag of tricks to choose from.
https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/03/28/trump-russia-diplomats-punishment-217716
20. The Unz Review: Anatoly Karlin, Russia Elections 2018: Some Final Notes. (excerpt) [Full text with many charts, maps, and links http://www.unz.com/akarlin/final-notes-russia-elections-2018/]
21. www.rt.com: Russian election boss plans to use blockchain to protect polls against rigging.
22. Paul Goble: Putin Won Because His People Support Him and Would Have Even If Vote had Been Free and Fair, Pastukhov Says.
23. The New Kremlin Stooge: Mark Chapman, Even With a Translator, The West Still Just Doesn’t Get Putin. [Text with links and charts https://thenewkremlinstooge.wordpress.com/2018/03/27/even-with-a-translator-the-west-still-just-doesnt-get-putin/#more-123]
24. TASS: Russia will not cancel liberalization steps for business, Putin says.
25. www.rt.com: Russian gas pipeline gets green light from Germany as US tries to kill project.
26. Sputnik: De-Dollarization: How Russia and China May Soon Dethrone the Petrodollar.
27. TASS: Kremlin: Diplomatic boycott of FIFA World Cup by some countries won’t affect championship.
28. The Real News : US and Russia: New Age of Nuclear Instability (Part 1/2). Russia has the power to destroy the U.S. several times over, and unprecedented bipartisan hawkishness in Washington is driving the world to a precipice by blocking diplomatic talks, demonizing Putin, and delegitimizing the system in Russia says Prof. Richard Sakwa.
29. The Real News: US and Russia: New Age of Nuclear Instability (Part 2/2). With the New START treaty set to end in 2021 and no substantive nuclear arms talks underway, the United States and Russia have entered “a phase of enormous danger,” says author and scholar Richard Sakwa.
30. Bloomberg: James Stavridis, Russia and NATO: Talking Their Way Out of Another Cold War.
31. Reuters: We must avoid new Cold War: German government’s Russia expert.
32. Washington Post: Josh Rogin, For John Bolton, Russia is part of a new ‘axis of evil’
33. National Review: Michael Brendan Dougherty, We Will Never Have an Honest Conversation about Russia Again.
34. Valdai Discussion Club: Georgy Toloraya, NORTH KOREAN MULTI-STAGE GAME.
35. The Hill: Congress bans arms to Ukraine militia linked to neo-Nazis.
36. Washington Post: Alyssa Rosenberg, ‘The Americans’ is one of the most humane shows on TV. We need it now more than ever.

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