JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia’s New Elite Emerges to Fill Void After Multinationals Flee” – Bloomberg

File Photo of Meeting Room Table with Microphones and Chairs, adapted from image at cdc.gov

“Foreign firms have sold assets worth over $21 billion Third wave of business elite swoops in to grab bargains” “A new cohort of Russian business elite has emerged to benefit from the void left when international firms suddenly exited following … Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. … snapp[ing] up assets at discounted prices after … multinationals … [left due to] pressure […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Zelensky wines, dines with the world’s richest in the hopes of rebuilding war-torn Ukraine” – New York Post

File Photo of Assorted U.S. Cash, adapted from image at tsa.gov

“… Zelensky’s most important speech while in New York … was not at the UN, but in a private room a few blocks away. ‘Investing in Ukraine has to be good for you and good for us. I understand capitalism,’ [Zelensky said, to] what was described … as a ‘star-struck’ group of billionaire financiers, plus Henry Kissinger, New England Patriots […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Putin’s Regime is ‘Cracking’ as Elites Panic: Former U.S. Ambassador” – Newsweek

File Photo of Red Square, Kremlin, Environs, adapted from image at state.gov

“An argument on Russian state television is a ‘good sign’ that the country’s leadership is cracking, according to [] former U.S. [A]mbassador [McFaul]. Russia [reportedly] has threatened to nationalize assets of Western companies … pull[ing] resources from the country following its [Ukraine] invasion …. Hundreds of companies have already left Russia after expressing dissatisfaction with the war … [I]f the […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Toast of Emerging Markets in 2021, Russia Gives Pause” – Bloomberg

Cash, Calculator, Pen

“… For all the gains [Russia’s] assets … made in the past 12 months, a military incursion into Ukraine [reportedly] would transform the narrative instantly …. Unprecedented U.S. and European sanctions would leave Russia off-limits to many investors, rendering the benefits of rising commodity prices, record international reserves and the central bank’s hawkish turn all but irrelevant. … [T]ensions with […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russian Markets Tumble on Discovery of ‘Worst Ever’ Coronavirus Strain” – Moscow Times

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

Russian financial markets have tumbled in a day of global market turmoil following the discovery of a new coronavirus strain, dubbed the “worst ever” by scientists […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russian Markets Unfazed by Navalny’s Detention; Ruble and stock markets down slightly, but no signs of widespread panic” – Moscow Times

… The detention was met with immediate condemnation from U.S. and European leaders as well as new calls for sanctions against Russia in retaliation […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russian Ruble, Stocks Surge on Vaccine Optimism; Airlines and oil companies top performers as Pfizer announcement on vaccine effectiveness buoys markets.” – Moscow Times

File Photo of Blue-Gloved Hand Holding Syringe and Injecting Arm, adapted from image at nih.gov

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – November 9, 2020) The Russian ruble and stock market soared Monday, hitting their strongest levels in months as global markets cheered positive news from one of the frontrunners in the coronavirus vaccine race. American pharma giant Pfizer and German BioNTech said their vaccine, currently in Phase 3 medical trials, was 90% effective in preventing Covid-19 […]

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Russia Considers Emulating The World’s Largest Oil Hedge

Oil Well file photo

(Oilprice.com – Tsvetana Paraskova – July 22, 2020) Russia is considering whether to adopt a kind of state oil hedging program, similar to Mexico’s oil hedge, to protect government revenues from oil price crashes in the future, Russian news agency Interfax reported on Wednesday, quoting sources familiar with the matter. The Mexican oil hedge, or the Hacienda Hedge, is considered […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Melting Arctic Permafrost Threatens Russian Energy Firms’ Bottom Line – Morgan Stanley” – Moscow Times

File Photo of Polar Bear on Snow with Bare Ground in the Background, adapted from image at nasa.gov with photo credit to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service/Eric Regehr

Rapidly melting Arctic permafrost poses the greatest threat to major Russian energy producers’ infrastructure and financial indicators, according to a new Morgan Stanley report […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Major U.S. companies intend to stay in Russia – AmCham” – Interfax

File Photo of U.S. Embassy Moscow, with Russian Foreign Ministry Building in Distance

MOSCOW. April 20 (Interfax) – Nearly half of the U.S. companies operating in Russia will have to cut the number of their employees because of the restrictions imposed to slow the coronavirus infection epidemic, but major companies are not thinking of leaving this market, President of the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia (AmCham) Alexis Rodzianko said. “We have regularly […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia has zero FDI in 1Q20; Russia’s FDI in 1Q20 was next to nothing, which means in reality it was probably negative” – bne Intellinews/ Ben Aris

File Photo of Outdoor Electronic Sign with Russian Exchange Data

“Russia received almost zero foreign direct investment (FDI) in the first quarter 2020, dropping from $10.3bn in the same period a year earlier to $200mn, the Central Bank of Russia (CBR) reported …. This number almost certainly understates the real FDI, which was most likely negative. … a quirk of Russian national statistics means that foreign companies working and registered […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “EBRD drops a COVID-19 dambuster on Russian sanctions; The EBRD has started investing in Russia again after several years off” – bne Intellinews/ Jason Corcoran

Cash, Calculator, Pen

“A modest investment by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in a Russian travel company may prove to be the sanctions dambuster that the Kremlin has been longing for. The London-headquartered bank announced on April 7 it would provide finance to a Russian travel aggregator Travelata as part of its €1bn coronavirus (COVID-19) funding programme … designed to […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russia Has Lost $1 Trillion in Capital Flight Since Fall of U.S.S.R., Says Putin’s Economist. Top politician blames International Monetary Fund for promoting massive capital outflow” – Moscow Times

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – October 25, 2019) Around $1 trillion of capital has been pulled out of Russia since the fall of the U.S.S.R., a close aide to President Vladimir Putin has told world leaders at the Russia-Africa forum in Sochi. Sergei Glazyev, who was a long-time economic adviser to Putin and is now minister in charge of integration […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russian Baring Vostok executives could face years in detention” – Intellinews/ bne Ben Aris

File Photos of Law Books and Gavel, adapted from image at fjc.gov

“… fund manager[ and] U.S. citizen Michael Calvey, will appear in court … October 29 to appeal against his continued pre-trial house arrest … [T]hree Russians facing the same charges will be appealing … ongoing isolation in prison cells. State investigators say they need to take the maximum time allowed by law – a full year – to investigate a […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Why Is Russia So Unproductive? Analysts say a toxic cocktail of state capitalism, corruption and low investment curbs output” – Moscow Times

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Jake Cordell – September 23, 2019) During his annual phone-in with the public in June this year, President Vladimir Putin described low productivity as “one of the most acute and important” problems facing Russia. Economists agree. Russia is one of the least productive moderately rich countries in the world, ranking 39th out of the 42 […]

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RUSSIALINK TRANSCRIPT: “Dialogue with Dmitry Medvedev; The Prime Minister discussed the Government’s plans to achieve national development goals with businesspeople and analysts on Rossiya 24’s Dialogue programme” – Government.ru

Dmitri Medvedev file photo

(Government.ru – Sept. 11, 2019 – government.ru/en/news/37840/) Excerpts from the transcript: Foreign investment Dmitry Medvedev: We live in a complicated world, and the circumstances our country has found itself in are fairly complicated as well, including sanctions and trade wars. Nevertheless, investors want to invest. Speaking of foreign investors, the RDIF and other investment-related institution activity are quite telling in […]

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Russia Could Allow Private Oil Firms To Explore Arctic Shelf

Arctic Map

(Oilprice.com – Tsvetana Paraskova – September 4, 2019) The Russian ministry of natural resources is open to the idea that private oil and gas firms could be allowed to explore Russia’s Arctic shelf, where currently only state-held firms Rosneft and Gazprom have the right to operate, Russia’s Natural Resources Minister Dmitry Kobylkin told news agency TASS in an interview published […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russian Stocks Seen Rising 25% by Mid-2020” – Reuters

File Photo of Outdoor Electronic Sign with Russian Exchange Data

“… [impacted by] the price of oil, Russia’s key export, and fading fears of more Western sanctions …. Russian stock indexes achieved their biggest gains year-to-date in mid-July. The dollar-based RTS had risen nearly 33% back then and its rouble-based peer MOEX was up 21%. Russia’s largest gas producer Gazprom gained nearly 68% year-to-date earlier in July, while the country’s […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Review: The Struggle of Russia’s crony capitalists” [re: Anders Aslund new book]” – Reuters/ Dasha Afanasieva

File Photo of Kremlin Tower, St. Basil's, Red Square at Night

“… Anders Aslund … in ‘Russia’s Crony Capitalism: The Path from Market Economy to Kleptocracy‘ … [casts Putin] as a patriarchal overlord … handsomely reward[ing] those loyal …. creat[ing] a new elite of friends, former co-workers and relatives. What’s less clear is what, if anything [can be done about it]. … [A]naly[zing] the last 15 or so years of Putin’s […]

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Russia’s FDI Outlook Grim, with No Chinese Rescue in Sight

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

(Russia Matters – russiamatters.org – Nicholas Trickett – July 11, 2019) Nicholas Trickett is editor in chief of BMB Russia and an associate scholar with the Foreign Policy Research Institute. He specializes in the domestic and international political economy of the Russian energy and infrastructure sectors and Russian foreign policy, and is currently finishing an MSc in international political economy […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Michael Calvey Case Revisited: A Corporate Hit, a Bargaining Chip” – Kennan Institute/ Pavel Koshkin

Cash, Calculator, Pen

(Kennan Institute – wilsoncenter.org/program/kennan-institute – Pavel Koshkin – wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/michael-calvey-case-revisited-corporate-hit-bargaining-chip) Pavel Koshkin is a research fellow of the Institute of U.S. and Canadian Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences (ISKRAN) and a contributor to Forbes Russia The American investor Michael Calvey, who was detained in February in Moscow on fraud charges, is back in the news again. Calvey, who has […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russia’s Top Auditor Kudrin Blasts Corruption in Legal System” – Moscow Times

Alexei Kudrin file photo

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – June 6, 2019) Russian economic growth is hampered by deep-seated corruption in the country’s legal system, the head of Russia’s auditing agency said Thursday. Audit Chamber head Alexei Kudrin told a St. Petersburg International Economic Forum panel that corruption in the Russian judiciary system goes back centuries, pointing to one of the classic Russian poet […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Why are Russian stocks so cheap?” – Intellinews/ Ben Aris

File Photo of Outdoor Electronic Sign with Russian Exchange Data

“Investors into Russian stocks have almost given up on seeing any of the cash the country’s leading companies generate. The valuation of what should be some of the world’s richest companies are in the basement, as would-be minority investors don’t believe the management will share the billions of dollars in revenue these companies make every year. Russia’s stock market boomed […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Foreign Direct Investment Into Russia Is Falling; Russia is at the bottom of the Institute of International Finance’s list of emerging markets.” – Moscow Times

Men Sitting Around Long Oval Boardroom Table, File Photo of FIFA Officials Meeting with Vladmir Putin

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – May 22, 2019) Foreign direct investment (FDI) into Russia accounted for only 0.2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) from 2015-2018, putting it at the bottom of the list of emerging markets, the RBC news website reported, citing the Institute of International Finance (IIF). The IIF figures exclude reinvested earnings to focus on “real” GDP. […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia’s GDP growth slows in 1Q19, challenging the policy framework” – bne Intellinews/ Dmitri Dolgin (Russia ING)

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

“Russian GDP growth slowed from 2.7% year on year in 4Q18 to just 0.5% y/y in 1Q19, well below expectations. Unlike most commentators, we attribute this slowdown to a pause in the state CAPEX rather than to the VAT hike. We also believe a policy response is more likely to come from the Finance Ministry rather than the Central Bank […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH “Russia ramps up bond sales ahead of possible U.S. sanctions; Moscow’s $1.1bn issuance comes after April fundraising smashed records” – Financial Times/ Max Seddon, Nikou Asgari

File Photo of Facade of Russian Finance Ministry

“… [Russia’s] finance ministry sold Rbs73bn ($1.1bn) in rouble-denominated bonds … Wednesday[,] … part of a plan to raise Rbs600bn in domestic debt this quarter. … [after] a record Rbs400bn in April – four times [Russia’s] monthly average – feeding strong investor appetite for high-yielding emerging market debt. … [Analysts regard the efforts] as a pre-emptive stockpiling … [against] the […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Hegemony of state in Russian economy deepens, warns watchdog” – bne Intellinews

Men Sitting Around Long Oval Boardroom Table, File Photo of FIFA Officials Meeting with Vladmir Putin

“… the state is no longer simply setting the rules of engagement, but attempts to regulate the whole economic system of the country, Federal Anti-Monopoly Service (FAS) watchdog warns …. [as is] evident on both federal and regional levels, where authorities are interfering in local business relations and engage in regional protectionism. … Before the 1998 crisis the state’s share […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Calvey to stay under house arrest till mid-summer” – Interfax

Kremlin and River

MOSCOW. April 12 (Interfax) – The Basmanny District Court in Moscow has extended the period of house arrest of Baring Vostok investment fund founder and senior partner Michael Calvey, who is charged with fraud, until July 14, an Interfax correspondent reported from the courtroom. “The court will grant the request of investigators. The court will also extend the period of […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “The UK executives helping Putin burnish Russia’s image; Meeting with top British businessmen could not come at a better time for the Kremlin” – Financial Times/ Henry Foy

File Photo of British Parliament Building, Big Ben, Thames, adapted from image at loc.gov

“Eleven years ago [BP’s] Bob Dudley … fled [Russia] citing ‘sustained harassment of the company and myself’ and threats to his life allegedly directed by politically connected oligarchs and Russia’s security services. Last month … Dudley, now head of the British oil group, was back, telling … Putin … at the Kremlin that he and the British company ‘deeply appreciate […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Ford Will Pay Out $200M to Laid-Off Russian Workers” – Moscow Times

Ford Van file photo, adapted from image at gsa.gov

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – March 28, 2019) Ford will pay around $200 million in cash to workers and suppliers who lose their jobs when the company closes three of its plants in Russia in June, the company said in a statement. The U.S. automaker is closing two assembly plants and one engine factory because it says the passenger vehicle […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Ombudsman Titov Appeals to Russian Authorities Over Detained Businessmen” – Moscow Times

File Photo of Outdoor Electronic Sign with Russian Exchange Data

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – March 22, 2019) Business ombudsman Boris Titov has appealed to federal prosecutors over a group of Russian businessmen currently being held in pre-trial detention. Russia’s business community has expressed growing concern over the pre-trial detention of U.S. investor Michael Calvey, who has been held on embezzlement charges since Feb. 14. President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday […]

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Putin Tells Prosecutors To Protect Rights Of Business Owners

Men Sitting Around Long Oval Boardroom Table, File Photo of FIFA Officials Meeting with Vladmir Putin

(Article text ©2019 RFE/RL, Inc., Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty – rferl.org – March 19, 2019 – article text also appeared at rferl.org/a/putin-tells-prosecutors-to-protect-rights-of-business-owners/29830693.html) President Vladimir Putin has urged Russian prosecutors to protect the rights of businesspeople “with a view to improving the business climate.” Speaking to a gathering of prosecutors in Moscow on March 19, Putin said that a “more effective […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “U.S. investor jailed by Russia tells Washington to keep distance: prison monitor” – Reuters

File Photo of U.S. Embassy Moscow, with Russian Foreign Ministry Building in Distance

“The detention … of Michael Calvey, founder of the Baring Vostok private equity group, has strained U.S.-Russia ties and stoked talk of a possible U.S. boycott of an annual economic forum in June attended by … Putin. Calvey was detained along with three other executives from Baring Vostok after investigators accused them of stealing 2.5 billion roubles ($38.09 million), a […]

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‘Unorganized’ Change at the Top in Russia a Small but Real Risk to Country’s Economy, Moody’s Says

File Photo of Kremlin Tower, St. Basil's, Red Square at Night

(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, Feb. 25, 2019) In a new survey of risks facing the Russian economy, Moody’s Investors Service says that “unorganized” regime change is “a distant but tangible one,” simultaneously sending warnings to both Vladimir Putin and to any who might seek to push him out of office before 2024. Many commentators have taken […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Spokesman suggests Putin unhappy with prosecution of businesspeople” – Interfax

Dmitry Peskov file photo adapted from image at kremlin.ru/wikimedia commons

(Interfax – February 21, 2019) Russian President Vladimir Putin is unhappy with the continuing practice of arresting businesspeople suspected of committing economic crimes, his spokesman has suggested. His remarks come after US financier Michael Calvey was detained and later charged with fraud in a move that has caused disquiet among investors. “The president is dissatisfied with how effectively his orders […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Calvey’s arrest sends chill through Russia’s foreign investors; U.S. founder of Moscow-based Baring Vostok was seen as savvy operator” – Financial Times/ Max Seddon, Anne-Sylvaine Chassany

File Photo of Outdoor Electronic Sign with Russian Exchange Data

“Kremlin officials were touting Russia’s investment opportunities at a [Sochi resort] conference … when news trickled out that one of the country’s last remaining American investors had been thrown behind bars. Michael Calvey … founder of Moscow-based private equity fund manager Baring Vostok, remained one of the last Russia bulls at a time when most of his contemporaries had left […]

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Russia’s Kudrin Calls Detention Of American Investor ‘Emergency’ For Economy

File Photo of Kremlin Tower, St. Basil's, Red Square at Night

(Article text ©2019 RFE/RL, Inc., Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty – rferl.org – February 19, 2019 – article text also appeared at rferl.org/a/russian-official-calls-us-investor-s-detention-emergency-for-economy-/29778434.html) A longtime former finance minister who is close to President Vladimir Putin has called the arrest of a prominent American investment-fund manager an “emergency” for the Russian economy, suggesting it could further damage the country’s image and harm the […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Is the arrest of US fund manager Michael Calvey a litmus test for Russia?” – bne Intellinews/ Ben Aris

File Photo of Outdoor Electronic Sign with Russian Exchange Data

“The arrest of Michael Calvey on February 14 on ‘large-scale embezzlement’ charges sent shockwaves …. Calvey has been both a savvy investor and at pains to keep his head down. He never comments on politics and is known as a straight shooter. … What is unusual is that a court issues an arrest warrant and a leading fund manager and […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Top American investor detained in Moscow” – BMB Russia/ Bear Market Brief

Cash, Calculator, Pen

“Michael Calvey … was detained in Moscow … on charges of fraud. … Since founding Baring Vostok in 1994, Calvey has been one of the preeminent foreign investors in Russia. … [T]he fraud allegations may be fallout from an ownership dispute over Vostochny Bank …. a blow to Russia’s already cold investment climate. … one journalist noted, the Kremlin must […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Officials get somber on GDP growth” – BMB Russia/ Bear Market Brief

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

“… Oreshkin cited … one-off factors such as an increase in oil production and a dangerous boom in consumer borrowing as unsustainable sources of 2018 growth. … tr[ying] to refocus the discussion on structural reforms …. [and] a massive investment drive via national projects in infrastructure, demography, health, education, and exports …. Nevertheless, to the extent that the high 2018 […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “With Savings to Burn, Russia Turns (Again) to a State-Led Spending Plan” – New York Times/ Andrew E. Kramer

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

“… So much gold has piled up in its central bank that Russia surpassed China last year to become the world’s fifth-largest holder of gold. … Russia has $472 billion in reserves, more than the country’s combined public and foreign debt of $453 billion and nearly three times what the I.M.F. recommends. … the lode is also making for an […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia’s Constitutional Court decides to ease limits on foreign involvement in the media – a bit” – Meduza/ Mikhail Zelensky, translation by Hilah Kohen

Russian Constitutional Court file photo

“Russia’s Constitutional Court issued a decision … regarding Article 19.1, a law that governs mass media. The law prohibits foreigners from founding or controlling media outlets in Russia, but the Court ruled that it requires correction. The new ruling indicates that the prohibition itself is just ‘because that sort of influence might threaten the security of state information,’ but the […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Pragmatic Paternalism: The Russian Public and the Private Sector” – Carnegie Moscow/ Andrei Kolesnikov, Denis Volkov

Men Sitting Around Long Oval Boardroom Table, File Photo of FIFA Officials Meeting with Vladmir Putin

“Russians have a dream for their children and their grandchildren of a different environment that is favorable for entrepreneurship and private initiatives. This is where the true interests of Russians and their perceptions about the future diverge radically from the interests and perceptions of the state in which they live. …”

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RUSSIALINK TRANSCRIPT: “Russia Calling! Investment Forum (excerpt/with Q&A)” – KremlinRu

Kremlin and Saint Basil's File Photo

(Kremlin.ru – November 28, 2018) [Full text en.kremlin.ru/events/president/transcripts/59216] Vladimir Putin took part in the annual Russia Calling! Investment Forum hosted by VTB Capital. The plenary session is entitled “Building Partnerships. Bridging Differences.” Russia Calling! Forum is a leading platform for drawing capital to the Russian economy, improving the investment climate and promoting the country’s international economic and business ties. President […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “IMF, World Bank see little progress in fight against corruption in Ukraine” – Interfax-Ukraine

International Monetary Fund Logo Over Ukraine Flag

“… key donors of Ukraine – the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank – note low effectiveness of the Ukrainian authorities in the fight against corruption. ‘We see good and important progress in setting out institutions for tackling investment …. Shortcomings in the judicial system and corruption are some of the key reasons why investment is so low […]

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