RUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents & links :: JRL 2019-#75 :: Friday, 3 May 2019

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Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2019-#75 :: Friday, 3 May 2019
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1. NBCNews.com: A Russian ‘spy whale’ is having too much fun to leave Norway.
2. Paul Goble: Multiple Civil Societies Exist in Russia – in Regions Spatially but Not Politically Far Apart.
3. Christian Science Monitor: Fred Weir, A Great Firewall of Russia? Kremlin puts key bricks into place. Russians have enjoyed a relatively freewheeling internet, but that is likely to change with a new surveillance law. How will the Russian public respond to their online life being closely monitored and constrained?
4. www.rt.com: US ambassador unleashes new sanctions threats against Nord Stream 2 participants.
5. Reuters: Factbox – Russian oil flows to Europe drop amid contamination.
6. Izvestia: Daily criticises Reuters over anti-Russian reports.
7. Defensenews.com: Michael Kofman, Russian defense spending is much larger, and more sustainable than it seems.
8. AP: Venezuela Thrust to Forefront of US-Russia Clashes.
9. Asia Times: Alexander Kruglov, Russia winning the push for peace in Kabul. Three decades after the Soviet retreat, Moscow, wielding pragmatism and realpolitik, is again a key player in Afghanistan.
10. The National Interest: Doug Bandow, What Putin Wants with North Korea. Moscow has no core national interests at stake, but it does see a chance to throw a cog in Washington’s policy wheels.
11. Asia Times: Matthew Ehret, Silk Road expands to Arctic and beyond.
12. New York Times: As Chinese Flock to Siberia’s Lake Baikal, Local Russians Growl.
13. Valdai Discussion Club; Timofei Bordachev, Will China Succeed as a Global Leader? – valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/will-china-succeed-as-a-global-leader/
14. The Unz Review: Mike Whitney, China and Russia: Whoopin’ Uncle Sam at His Own Game. – unz.com/mwhitney/china-and-russia-whoopin-uncle-sam-at-his-own-game/
15. Vedomosti: Paper examines Russia’s east Ukraine passports move.
16. Meduza: Long line for Russian passport applications forms in Donetsk on first day of expedited citizenship process.
18. TASS: Opposition politician slams Zelensky for ‘only thing left in common’ remarks.
19. Vedomosti: Yelena Mukhametshina: What Lessons for Russia Should the Kremlin Learn From the Zelensky Victory in Ukraine: the More Successful His Presidency Proves, the More This Will Influence Russian Policy.
20. Financial Times: Frederick Studemann, Ukraine’s politics of the absurd. The election of a comedian as president raises difficult questions.
21. The Journal of Political Risk: Robert Person, Ukraine’s Election Indicates A Strengthening Democracy.
22. 1843 (The Economist): Ian Bateson, The sitcom that spawned a president. Ukrainian audiences liked the TV character played by Volodymyr Zelensky so much, they elected him. The show’s producer tells 1843 why he thinks he’s opened a Pandora’s box.
23. Vulture (New York magazine): Werner Herzog Brings a Soviet Leader to Tears in the Humanizing Meeting Gorbachev.
24. The Hill: John Solomon, Ukrainian embassy confirms DNC contractor solicited Trump dirt in 2016.
25. Sic Semper Tyrannis: Larry Johnson, Intel and Law Enforcement Tried to Entrap Trump. (excerpt) – turcopolier.typepad.com/sic_semper_tyrannis/2019/05/the-mueller-report-provides-irrefutable-evidence-that-the-so-called-russian-collusion-case-against-donald-trump-was-a-deliber.html#more
26. Foxnews.com: Tucker Carlson, The Russia story cannot die — CNN, the Democratic Party, others have too much invested in it.
27. Washington Post editorial: Does Russia’s constitution mean nothing to Putin? By the looks of it, yes.
28. Kimberly O’Haver: Human Rights Initiative (HRI) Seeking Consultant.