RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents & links :: JRL 2019-#196 :: Thursday, 6 December 2019

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Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2019-#196 :: Thursday, 5 December 2019
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. Government.ru: In Conversation with Dmitry Medvedev. Interview with Russian television channels.
http://government.ru/en/news/38520/
2. Foreign Affairs: Brian Milakovsky, Ukraine’s Divided House Still Stands. The Country Debates Whether Donbas Can Be Brought in From the Cold.
https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/ukraine/2019-12-04/ukraines-divided-house-still-stands
3. Valdai Discussion Club: Oleg Barabanov, 70 Years of the Russian Threat.
http://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/70-years-of-the-russian-threat/
4. www.rt.com: Cutting Russia off from SWIFT would mean declaration of war – Russian PM – rt.com/business/475089-russia-swift-ban-war/
5. Moscow Times: Evan Gershkovich, Ahead of Eastern Ukraine Peace Talks, Putin Is Sitting Pretty. The Kremlin is in a comfortable position heading into Monday’s international summit on solving the Ukraine crisis.
6. Reuters: Little wiggle room as Ukraine, Russia leaders meet for crunch Paris talks.
7. Financial Times: Tony Barber, The west has a choice: back Ukraine or improve relations with Russia. Vladimir Putin’s support for secessionist rebels has backfired.
https://www.ft.com/content/e54c28e0-0b9b-11ea-bb52-34c8d9dc6d84
8. The National Interest: Konstantin Remchukov, Who Will Follow Putin? There is no credible successor to Vladimir Putin.
https://nationalinterest.org/feature/who-will-follow-putin-102102
9. The Times (UK): Vladimir Putin uses small parties to crush the opposition.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/vladimir-putin-creates-multitude-of-small-russian-parties-to-overwhelm-opposition-xqvd2sjh0
10. BMB Russia: The current mood of Russian society can be compared to clinical depression…
11. Irrussianality: Paul Robinson, NO SOCIAL ACTIVISM HERE, PLEASE.
No social activism here, please
12. Meduza: Opinion: Igor Chubais says the problem with post-Soviet Russia comes down to history.
13. Moscow Times: Oleg Kashkin, Kremlin’s Cruel LGBT Crackdown Has Outlived Its Usefulness. The state itself no longer remembers why it began to target “gay propaganda,” or what threat it believed it posed.
https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/12/05/kremlins-cruel-lgbt-crackdown-has-outlived-its-usefulness-a68484
14. Interfax: Russian GDP could grow 1.3-1.5% in 2019 – Medvedev.
15. Reuters: Russia’s state spending, rate cuts to underpin economic growth, World Bank says.
16. World Bank: Sharper Focus Needed on Domestic Reforms in Russia Amid Weaker Global Outlook, Says New World Bank Report.
https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2019/12/04/rer-42-urges-sharper-focus-on-domestic-reforms-in-russia-amid-weaker-global-outlook
17. World Bank: How Wealthy is Russia?. Measuring Russia’s Comprehensive Wealth from 2000-2017.
https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/russia/publication/how-wealthy-is-russia
18. Financial Times: Inside the deal between the Kremlin and Russia’s top search engine. Restructuring of Yandex was culmination of years of delicate negotiations.
https://www.ft.com/content/dce2e23c-15c5-11ea-8d73-6303645ac406
19. Awful Avalanche: Can Russia Become a World Center for Medical Tourism? – Part I – awfulavalanche.wordpress.com/2019/12/05/can-russia-become-a-world-center-for-medical-tourism-part-i/
20. Russia Beyond: How free healthcare works in Russia – rbth.com/lifestyle/331377-free-healthcare-medical-russia
21. Russia Beyond: 7 facts about M11, a new ‘super motorway’ connecting Moscow & St. Petersburg – rbth.com/business/331374-m11-motorway
22. Deutsche Welle: Germans in favor of ‘reducing reliance’ on US. A new YouGov poll has found that a majority of Germans are in favor of reducing reliance on the US and increasing ties with Russia. Chancellor Angela Merkel has said Germany cannot defend itself alone.
https://www.dw.com/en/germans-in-favor-of-reducing-reliance-on-us/a-51510739
23. Rossiyskaya Gazeta: Daily says Russia plans to deploy more troops in westernmost region.
24. Moscow-on-Thames: Sam Greene, The Unrealism of Realists. (re Tom Graham)
The Unrealism of Realists
25. Oilprice.com: Russia-Ukraine Fallout Won’t Threaten Security Of EU Gas Supply.
26. Oilprice.com: The Pipeline Threatening A U.S.-China Trade Deal.
27. Riddle: Towards a Sino-Russian entente? Michael Kofman sees ties deepening between China and Russia. But there are limits to a defence pact based on few joint objectives besides their shared sense of confrontation with the United States – ridl.io/en/towards-a-sino-russian-entente/
28. Reuters: Leader of Belarus dismisses fears Russia could swallow his country.
29. Asia Times: Pepe Escobar, Trials and tribulations of Central Asia integration. The pros and cons of being the Heartland in the 21st century.
https://www.asiatimes.com/2019/11/article/trials-and-tribulations-of-central-asia-integration/
30. Interfax: USAID launches new program to support civil society in Ukraine.
31. The Nation: Stephen Cohen, Who Is Making US Foreign Policy? An anti-neocon president appears to have been surrounded by neocons in his own administration.
https://www.thenation.com/article/who-is-making-us-foreign-policy/
32. www.rt.com: The ’80s called! Impeachment witness Karlan mocked for suggesting Ukrainians are helping prevent Russian invasion of US – rt.com/news/475037-karlan-testimony-fight-russians/
33. The American Conservative: Daniel Larison, The Russians Are Coming!
34. Vanity Fair: TUCKER CARLSON WON’T STOP KOWTOWING TO RUSSIA. The Fox host is signaling his support for Donald Trump by framing Vladimir Putin as a friend.
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2019/12/tucker-carlson-wont-stop-kowtowing-to-russia
35. Market Watch: Trump must stop letting feeble Russia push us around . Putin’s only weapon is disinformation designed to weaken the West.
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/trump-must-stop-letting-feeble-russia-push-us-around-2019-12-03
36. https://johnsolomonreports.com: John Solomon, The 10 most important revelations to expect from the Russia probe FISA report.

The 10 most important revelations to expect from the Russia probe FISA report

Map of Commonwealth of Independent States, European Portion

 

Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

Map of CIS Central Asia and Environs

Eurasia Map

 

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