(Moscow News – Anna Arutunyan, Editor and Correspondent at themoscownews.com – July 1, 2013) This article contains information not suitable for readers younger than 18 years of age, according to Russian legislation. I have a very good friend who is convinced that being gay is a curable disease. Or, at least, he was convinced, until we spoke about it. During […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – July 1, 2013) President Vladimir Putin has signed the so-called “blasphemy bill” and the “gay propaganda bill” two pieces of legislation that have outraged the liberal opposition. Both bills were passed unanimously by the State Duma on June 11, 2013, and their full texts appeared on the Kremlin’s site Sunday. The blasphemy law will […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, June 28, 2013) The ratings of Russian leaders remained stable in the first half of 2013, sociologists say. A total of 63% respondents gave positive evaluation to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s work in June and 36% said they trusted Putin, Levada Center told Interfax on Friday on the results of the all-Russia survey. The trust rating of […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, June 29, 2013) Prominent French actor Gerard Depardieu, who recently became a citizen of Russia, believes Russia needs such a leader as President Vladimir Putin. “Putin and I are friends. He is a very strong personality, and Russia needs exactly such kind of leader now,” Depardieu said at a press conference on Saturday following the press screening […]
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(RFE/RL – rferl.org – Robert Coalson – July 1, 2013) It’s not a great time to be a freethinker in Russia. Offending somebody’s religious sensibilities could get you prosecuted according to legislation signed this weekend by President Vladimir Putin. Criticizing the wrong person with a snarky comment on a social network could run afoul of a vaguely worded law criminalizing […]
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(Institute of Modern Russia – imrussia.org – Alexander Podrabinek – June 27, 2013) On September 8, Moscow will hold its first mayoral elections in a decade. Among those running for office are incumbent Acting Mayor Sergei Sobyanin and anticorruption campaigner Alexei Navalny. Author and analyst Alexander Podrabinek weighs the pros and contras of boycotting and participating in the vote. The […]
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MOSCOW. June 27 (Interfax) – The chronic non-fulfillment of privatization plans in Russia is related not just to the market situation but to lobbying also, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said at Thursday’s Cabinet meeting, which discussed a truncated version of the privatization program. “Let’s be honest, this also has something to do with the energy of lobbying by selected […]
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(RIA Novosti – June 27, 2013) Most Russians polled by the Levada Center stated that they are not afraid of any abuse of power by the government, world wars or natural catastrophes. Most respondents are, however, worried about the country’s future. The poll conducted by the Levada Center shows that Russians do not fear mass repressions (76 percent), criminals (81 […]
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(RIA Novosti – Moscow, June 26, 2013) The suspension by the Justice Ministry of the operation of the Golos (Voice, or Vote) association will not prevent its leaders from registering a new and similar organization; moreover, Golos has recently launched the winding-up procedure, deputy executive director of the association Grigoriy Melkonyants has told RIA Novosti. The Justice Ministry has suspended […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Marina Obrazkova, special to RBTH – June 26, 2013) The Russian president’s unexpected initiative may set back preparation of the law. The economic amnesty decree is almost ready, according to members of the lower house of Russia’s Federal Assembly. The State Duma deputies hope to get the bill passed by July 5. Yet, […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, June 27, 2013) Two more aspirants filed for registration as Moscow mayoral candidates on Thursday, the city elections commission told Interfax. “The documents were filed by two unemployed men: 53-year-old Andrei Kim and 43-year-old Sergei Golkin,” the commission representative said. The city elections commission denied registration to one self-nominee, unemployed Alexei Denisov earlier in the day. “There […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, June 27, 2013) Russian oil giant Rosneft, hydropower holding company RusHydro and the nation’s second-largest lender VTB Bank are among assets that should stay under state control, Economics Minister Alexei Ulyukayev said on Thursday after presenting the government’s new privatization plan for 2014-2016. “Proceeding from the current state of world markets and problems with the […]
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(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Scott Rose & Olga Tanas – June 27, 2013) Russia will raise a third less than previously estimated from asset sales in the next three years, downsizing the program as Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev criticized the lobbying that’s putting a brake on plans. Revenue from asset sales will bring the budget about 630 billion rubles ($19 […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Natalya Krainova – June 26, 2013) A Moscow court on Tuesday opened the trial of 12 people suspected of taking part in “riots” and clashing with police at a now-infamous anti-government rally on Bolotnaya Ploshchad last May. More than 400 people were detained at the protest on May 6, 2012, and at least 14 participants […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, June 25, 2013) Russia’s new economic development minister, Alexei Ulyukayev, considers farfetched a contradiction between “modernizers” and “conservatives.” “Sometimes you read about a contradiction between stability and development. There are modernizers, who are for development, and there are conservatives, who are for stability,” Ulyukayev said as he met with ministry staff. “But it doesn’t happen that way. […]
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(Stratfor.com – June 24, 2013 – “Russia After Putin: Inherent Leadership Struggles is republished with permission of Stratfor.”) Editor’s Note: This is the first part of a three-part series on Russia’s leadership after President Vladimir Putin eventually leaves office. Part 1 revisits Putin’s rise to power; Part 2 will examine Russia’s demographics, energy sector and Putin’s political changes; and Part […]
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Date: Mon, 24 Jun 2013 Kennan Institute <kennan@WILSONCENTER.ORG> Subject: Kennan Institute – Last Call for RSVPs Kennan Institute/Wilson Center Last Call for RSVPs Our June 26 half-day conference cosponsored with the Henry M. Jackson Foundation, Generation Next: Emerging Civic Leaders in Russia Today, is almost full. If you wish to attend, make sure to respond today so we can accomodate […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Alexander Bratersky – June 25, 2013) The newly appointed Economic Development Minister Alexei Ulyukayev said Monday that his main task was to prevent a recession, while Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said the government expected a 400 billion ruble ($12 billion) budget deficit in 2014. Ulyukayev, who served as first deputy chairman of the Central Bank […]
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(RFE/RL – rferl.org – Brian Whitmore – June 24, 2013) A lot of things that people say never happened before suddenly seem to be happening. When news agencies incorrectly reported — based on a forged government press release — that President Vladimir Putin had sacked his longtime ally, Russian Railways chief Vladimir Yakunin last week, some analysts called the incident […]
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(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble – Staunton, June 24, 2013) Russia’s liberals played a key role in pushing through the economic reforms which made a return to communism impossible, but they failed to help the country to make the transition from an empire to a nation and thus must bear part of the blame for continuing strength of Moscow’s […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, June 24, 2013) The appointment of Alexei Ulyukayev as new Russian economic development minister will not alter the fundamental objectives of economic policy, but could alter the tactics by which those aims are achieved, experts told Interfax. Do jobs change people? Ulyukayev’s appointment in place of Andrei Belousov will not result in major changes in economic policy, […]
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(Interfax – June 21, 2013) The Kremlin is not increasing pressure on the Russian government; President Vladimir Putin is simply changing the principles governing the work of the executive authorities, Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov has said. Shuvalov was speaking in an interview to internet and satellite broadcaster Dozhd TV on 21 June on the sidelines of the St Petersburg […]
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(Interfax – June 21, 2013) A total of 76 per cent of Russians say they are happy about the life they lead at present, while a mere 8 per cent complain “they still cannot adapt themselves to the current state of affairs”, private-owned Russian news agency Interfax reported on 19 June, quoting the latest Levada Centre opinion poll. The poll […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Alexander Bratersky – June 21, 2013) Opposition lawmakers and businessmen said at a panel Thursday that Russia had lost billions of dollars due to cuts in import tariffs after its accession to the World Trade Organization. The panel was attended by groups lobbying the interests of the engineering, agriculture and clothing industries but was ignored […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – June 21, 2013 – themoscowtimes.com/news/article/live-blog-spief-2013-day-2/482039.html) It’s day two of the 17th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, the annual conference dedicated to economic and business issues that draws several thousand political and business leaders, leading scientists, and public figures from around the world. President Vladimir Putin will open a plenary session at 3 p.m. that will […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Natalya Krainova and Alexander Panin – June 21, 2013) Russian Railways chief Vladimir Yakunin on Thursday attributed rumors of his voluntary resignation to a fight for control over large-scale projects of his company. But experts said Yakunin may have angered regional authorities by receiving huge subsidies for his agency and failing to significantly improve railway […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, June 20, 2013) Russian State Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin believes it is important that society should understand that the legislation on NGOs is not restrictive in nature and the state is interested in increasing the number of NGOs and their unimpeded work. “As for NGOs, it is, of course, important that society should understand that the law […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Yekaterina Kravtsova – June 21, 2013) Vladimir Putin took the stage to speak at last year’s St. Petersburg International Economic Forum as president for a third time, having been inaugurated a month before, but facing perhaps the fiercest political opposition in his 12 years as Russia’s top leader. Despite the ongoing street protests, Putin focused […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, June 20, 2013) The hunt is on to find those behind hoax claims that the CEO of Russia’s railroad monopoly had been dismissed, which caused a flurry of confusion in the Russian media. On Wednesday evening, Russian news outlets received a press statement saying that Vladimir Yakunin had been dismissed as head of Russian Railways […]
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(RFE/RL – rferl.org – Brian Whitmore – June 19, 2013) [Video here: rferl.org/content/navalny-game-russia-opposition-moscow-trial/25022010.html] Aleksei Navalny may be on the ropes, but at the same time he’s also on something of a roll. The on-the-ropes part was in full display in Kirov on June 18 when Judge Sergei Blinov flat-out refused to allow Navalny to call any defense witnesses in his […]
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(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble – Staunton, June 19, 2013) Strikingly low levels of inter-personal trust among Russians, the result of the experiences of Soviet times, explain both their xenophobic reactions to immigrants and their high rates of support for Russian leaders because “distrust in institutions is transformed into trust in the president and prime minister,” according to a […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Guennadi Moukine – June 20, 2013) The State Duma has approved a list of people nominated by political parties for auditor positions at the Audit Chamber but postponed nomination of the head until later in the year, Vedomosti reported Thursday. There were reports that former Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin may be one of the nominees, […]
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(Moscow TImes – themoscowtimes.com – Anatoly Medetsky – June 20, 2013) St. Petersburg is drawing scores of business leaders to a forum where they are hoping to get the latest tips on the course that the government and major companies might take. Opening Thursday at the exhibition center LenExpo, the three-day event will host President Vladimir Putin for a keynote […]
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(opendemocracy.net – Sergey Khazov – June 18, 2013) Sergey Khazov is a New Times journalist and a writer based in Moscow. What is life like for gay men and women in Russia? Sergey Khazov looks at the country’s gay infrastructure, and discovers a very fragmented picture. Until a couple of years ago homosexuality was, if not a forbidden topic (it […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, June 19, 2013) Russian prosecutors have charged opposition activist Leonid Razvozzhayev with plotting mass riots during a demonstration in Moscow last May, his lawyer Dmitry Agranovsky told RAPSI on Wednesday. Razvozzhayev, who had previously been accused by investigators of attempting mass disturbances, has been now formally charged with having organized riots, followed by violence, property destruction, […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, June 17, 2013) Russia’s privatization plan, which has been very ambitious in the past two years but slow to be implemented, will become more realistic. The government came up with its big plans to divest a number of key assets in the summer of 2011, when current Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev was still president. Last June the […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, June 17, 2013) Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny, founder of Anti-Corruption Foundation, wrote on Twitter on Monday that detectives were currently searching his brother’s apartment. Interfax has been unable to obtain confirmation of Navalny’s words. In December, brothers Alexei and Oleg Navalny were charged with fraud and money laundering. “Alexei Navalny set up a limited liability company […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Natalya Krainova – June 18, 2013) Opposition leader Alexei Navalny took the stand in court on Monday, denying charges that he stole 10,000 cubic meters of timber from KirovLes in 2009 and saying he had tried to fight corruption at the state-owned company. Navalny, who is also a prominent anti-corruption blogger and a lawyer, began […]
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(Interfax – June 18, 2013) Russia’s United Popular Front (ONF) supports the idea of economic amnesty. “We support amnesty for businessmen on economic counts,” Alexander Galushka, co-chairman of the ONF’s central staff and co-chairman of the Business Russia organization said at a press conference at Interfax on Tuesday. “The presumption of guilt” for businessmen must be scrapped and this chapter […]
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(Moscow News – Anna Arutunyan, editor and correspondent at themoscownews.com – June 17, 2013) Remember the season finale of “Game of Thrones,” when Daenerys Targaryen liberates thousands of slaves, and then tells them that she didn’t give them their freedom because it’s not hers to give? The people are so struck by her gesture that they physically rally around her, reaching […]
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(Alexey Eremenko, RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, June 18, 2013) Last week President Vladimir Putin took the helm of a quasi-political movement officially meant to help ordinary Russians inform the Kremlin of problems that need solving. But analysts remained skeptical about the organization’s stated aims, wondering why genuine feedback from society should have to go through the president’s office. More […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Yulia Ponomareva, RBTH – June 18, 2013) Vladimir Putin welcomes wary supporters of United Russia to the Russian Popular Front. The pro-Kremlin United Russia party has been taking blow after a blow to its reputation, as several of its high-ranking members have been accused of plagiarizing their postgraduate degree theses; others have been […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, June 17, 2013) Boris Nemtsov, Yulia Tymoshenko and Stanislav Shushkevich top “no confidence” rankings lists compiled after recent opinion polls taken in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. Respondents in the polls, conducted by Integratsiya Foundation, were shown lists of opposition politicians in their respective countries and asked whether they trusted any of them, the foundation said in a […]
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(Interfax – June 18, 2013) The Law on Nongovernmental Organizations will be adjusted and its provisions dealing with unscheduled inspections will be amended, the Russian government said on its website citing its resolution of June 17. Article 32 will be amended and it will list the following reasons for ordering unscheduled inspections on nonprofit organizations: expiration of the deadline for […]
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(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble – Staunton, June 17, 2013) Siberia and the Russian Far East are supposed to come up with the money to pay for Vladimir Putin’s promise to develop those regions, an arrangement officials say that in the absence of new revenues they will not be able to do and that is undermining support for Moscow […]
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(Institute of Modern Russia – imrussia.org – Donald N. Jensen – June 13, 2013) The fundamental driver of Russian elite politics is the clan: a network of personal contacts that cuts across facile divisions between “state” and “oligarchs,” liberals” and “conservatives,” and “reformers” and “siloviki.” According to Donald N. Jensen, Resident Fellow at the Center for Transatlantic Relations at the […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Natalia Bespalova, special to RBTH – June 14, 2013) Russia is witnessing the revival of Rodina, whose members consider themselves Putin’s “black-ops”. In early June, the conservative party Rodina, whose unofficial leader heads the national defense industry, held a congress at a location outside Moscow. Disbanded in 2006, the party is today enjoying […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – June 17, 2013) Billionaire politician Mikhail Prokhorov has challenged the candidacy of lawyer Alexei Navalny for the Moscow mayoral election, saying that he wouldn’t be able to cope with the demands of the job, a news report said Monday. The Civil Platform party leader Prokhorov, who last week pulled out of the mayoral race, also […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Oleg Sukhov and Natalya Krainova – June 17, 2013) In a preview of what to expect in the fight for post as Moscow mayor, several opposition candidates presented their campaign platforms to municipal deputies on Saturday in an effort to gather the required amount of deputies’ signatures to run in the election set for Sept. […]
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(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Anna Arutunyan – June 17, 2013) Acting Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin has registered with the Moscow Election Commission as a candidate for the upcoming mayoral elections scheduled for September 8. Sobyanin, who officially resigned from his post earlier this month in order to stand for mayor, will be running as an independent candidate, meaning that […]
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