(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber – May 29, 2014) Amid deadly clashes between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian security forces in eastern Ukraine, reports that militants from the Russian republic of Chechnya have joined the insurgents have been buzzing on Russian social media for weeks. As videos and photos purportedly showing Chechen militants in Ukraine emerged on the web, […]
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(Business New Europe – bne.eu – May 29, 2014) Gazprom, which earlier sent a prepayment bill to Ukraine, will limit gas supplies on June 3 if Kiev does not pay the advance bill for June, Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller said Wednesday at a meeting of President Vladimir Putin with the government, Prime reported. According to Miller, Ukraine purchased 3.5 billion […]
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(Interfax – Moscow, May 28, 2014) The Federation Council [Russia’s upper chamber of parliament] has approved a draft law giving the Justice Ministry authority to include a noncommercial organization [the usual Russian phrase for what is referred to elsewhere as NGOs] on the register of foreign agents, even if that same NGO has not applied for inclusion on the register. […]
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[“Ferocity of Ukraine clashes increases risks for Putin” – Reuters – Timothy Heritage – May 27, 2014] Reuters covers Ukraine’s efforts to use force to put down separatist militants in eastern Ukraine, and Russia’s potential reaction: An army assault on pro-Russian rebels in east Ukraine will not have taken Vladimir Putin by surprise, but the ferocity of the clashes may have – and […]
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[check back for updates, including more links; links also posted to facebook and twitter] Johnson’s Russia List :: 2014-#119 :: 28 May 2014 E-Mail: davidjohnson@starpower.net A project of the Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies (IERES) at The George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs: www.ieres.org JRL homepage: russialist.org JRL on Facebook: facebook.com/russialist JRL on Twitter: twitter.com/JohnsonRussiaLi Support JRL: russialist.org/funding.php To subscribe to the JRL email version, email David Johnson at davidjohnson@starpower.net 1. Wall Street Journal: […]
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(RFE/RL – rferl.org – Robert Coalson – May 28, 2014) It’s full steam ahead for the Moscow-backed Eurasian Economic Union — even as its prospective members express serious reservations. At the May 29 summit of Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan in Astana, the three are expected to sign a treaty to transform their tripartite Customs Union into a Eurasian Economic Union (EES) by January 2015. […]
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(Business New Europe – bne.eu – INVISIBLE HAND – Liam Halligan in London, Editor-at-Large of BNE – May 28, 2014) The St Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), now in its 18th year, was less well attended than usual. The absence of various US and Western Europe CEOs, responding to pressure from their governments following sanctions on Russia, was heavily commented […]
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(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble – Staunton, May 28, 2014) Russians are now far more concerned about defending what they have than in getting something better, Lev Gudkov says. Consequently, if the Kremlin does try to take away something the majority thinks is rightfully theirs, such a step would almost certainly put the survival of the current regime at […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – May 28, 2014) Rosneft head Igor Sechin has filed a lawsuit against journalists and publishers of the Russian edition of Forbes and Komsomolskaya Pravda for an article he says threatens to damage his business reputation. The lawsuit, filed on May 15, demands that the journalists and publishers behind a November report describing him as the […]
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MOSCOW, May 28 (RIA Novosti) – Russia’s known oil reserves are enough to provide a yearly extraction of 600 million tons of oil for the next 30 years, Natural Resources Minister Sergei Donskoi told lawmakers on Wednesday, reaffirming the country may continue to heavily rely on natural resources to sustain its economy. “The Russian Federation has a substantial potential to […]
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(Moscow Time – themoscowtimes.com – May 28, 2014) As Russians brace themselves for a public smoking ban to come into effect on Sunday, lawmakers have submitted a new draft law hiking the minimum price on cigarettes in the latest bid to change the country’s attitude to smoking. The new law would see a 41-percent increase in the minimum price for […]
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(Oilprice.com – Robert Bensh – May 27, 2014) Kiev is feeling emboldened by the successful election of a new Ukrainian president and a bloody surge against separatists in the east, but in just a few days, Russia says it will twist the gas spigot, and there’s very little Kiev can do to stop that. On June 3, Russia plans to […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Alexander Panin – May 28, 2014) Acting Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said Tuesday that Russia should return the $1 billion worth of gas that he said it stole while annexing Crimea, and accused Moscow of not being trustworthy when it comes to negotiating. “We would like to hear an explanation from Russia, including the […]
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(opendemocracy.net – Mikhail Molchanov – May 27, 2014) Mikhail A. Molchanov was born and raised in Ukraine, where he worked as Head of the Department of Public Administration at the National Academy of Public Administration under the President of Ukraine. He currently works as Professor of Political Science at St. Thomas University, Canada. He is the author of Political Culture […]
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(democracynow.org – May 27, 2014) At least 30 pro-Russian rebels have reportedly died in fierce fighting at the airport in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk. The Ukrainian government bombarded the airport with air strikes, then paratroopers, after rebels seized it on Monday. The fighting began just hours after the pro-European billionaire candy tycoon Petro Poroshenko won Ukraine’s first presidential […]
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(Business New Europe – bne.eu – Tim Ash, Standard Bank – May 28, 2014) Ukraine’s Central Electoral Commission has confirmed that Petro Poroshenko has in effect won the presidential election, with over 54% of votes, after 95% of votes have been tallied. The president elect has promised to engage in talks to bring peace to Ukraine Ð but not with […]
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MOSCOW, May 28 (RIA Novosti), Daria Chernyshova – Six months after protests began in Ukraine, the crisis in the country appears to be far from solved. In an attempt to adopt policies that could help deescalate the conflict and find a constructive path forward, top diplomats from Russia, the US, EU and representatives of Ukraine’s interim government met in April […]
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MOSCOW, May 28 (RIA Novosti) – Food giants Mars and Nestle have been tipped as favorites to buy Ukraine’s leading chocolate firm Roshen, currently owned by likely president-elect Petro Poroshenko, for as much as $1.5 billion. The candy-maker-turned-politician earlier vowed to sell his biggest asset if elected president, and summoned investment advisors and bankers to assess a best price. Poroshenko’s […]
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MOSCOW. May 28 (Interfax) – Russia will decide on whether or not to congratulate Petro Poroshenko on winning the presidency in elections in Ukraine only after the final results of the voting are officially announced, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov said. “When the final results are officially specified, then a decision will be made,” Ushakov said at a news conference in […]
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KIEV, May 28 (RIA Novosti) – Tycoon Petro Poroshenko has scored 54.7 percent of the vote in Ukraine’s presidential election with 99.05 percent of ballots counted, the country’s Central Election Commission announced Wednesday. Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko came second with 12.82 percent. Oleh Lyashko, the leader of the Radical Party of Ukraine, came third with 8.33 percent of […]
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(Interfax – May 28, 2014) The Ukrainian State Border Service has observed a withdrawal of Russian troops from the bilateral border but is wary of the remaining infrastructure. “Our information suggests troops’ withdrawal from our border is under way, but with certain peculiarities. Intelligence radio units, radio interception units remain in place, so does the logistical infrastructure of the camps. […]
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KYIV. May 28 (Interfax) – Maidan activists said they would not leave the Independence Square in central Kyiv until all their demands are met. According to the declaration of Maidan communities on the situation development after May 2014 released at a news conference in Kyiv on Wednesday, “Maidan will not disperse until the demands – punishing criminals, purging, changing the […]
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… 1. Youtube.com: FEEM Lecture by Anatol Lieven, King’s College London: “The Ukraine Debacle.”
2. Washington Post: Jackson Diehl, Ukraine’s Poroshenko says he wants direct U.S. military aid.
3. The Times (UK): Battle is on to stop foe at border with Russia. (Estonia) ….
MOSCOW, May 27 (RIA Novosti), Rick Rozoff – This past week the North Atlantic Treaty Organization continued its ongoing efforts to prepare the nation of Georgia for full membership in the military bloc. A meeting of the NATO Military Committee, consisting of military representatives and the chiefs of defense of the 28 full members of the alliance, and the chief […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Anna Dolgov – May 27, 2014) Russia’s media watchdog has drafted a resolution that would allow it to block foreign websites in the country for failing to register with the Kremlin’s monitors, a news report said. The proposed government resolution, drafted by media regulator Roskomnadzor, would cover all websites that allow their users to exchange […]
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(Business New Europe – bne.eu – COMMENT: Jennifer Freedman of Borderlex – May 17, 2014) Less than two years after becoming a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Russia has filed two complaints with the dispute settlement body in Geneva that target the EU, Russia’s main trading partner. These complaints concern antidumping duties and a package of EU laws […]
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(Business New Europe – bne.eu – COMMENT: Lord Peter Mandelson of Global Counsel – May 27, 2014) Peter Mandelson was European Trade Commissioner between 2004 and 2008. He is now Chairman of Global Counsel Despite Russia’s recent underperformance, the size and potential of its economy has made it an attractive prospect for global companies. From German manufacturers to French and […]
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(Interfax – May 27, 2014) Russia will be prepared to continue negotiations with Ukraine concerning gas prices if Ukraine pays off $2 billion worth of its debt before the end of the week, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said at a press conference after talks with his Ukrainian counterpart Yuriy Prodan and European Commissioner for Energy Gunther Oettinger. During the […]
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(opendemocracy.net – JOHN MCGARRY and NEOPHYTOS LOIZIDES – May 22, 2014) Neophytos Loizides is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Kent. His book Designing Peace Process: Institutional Innovations in Cyprus and Divided Societies is forthcoming with the University of Pennsylvania Press. John McGarry is Professor in Political Studies and Canada Research Chair in Nationalism and Democracy at Queen’s University […]
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WASHINGTON, May 27 (RIA Novosti), Lyudmila Chernova – Last Sunday’s presidential election in Ukraine replaced one Ukrainian oligarch with another, former Assistant Secretary of the Treasury Paul Craig Roberts told RIA Novosti Tuesday. “The only difference between Poroshenko’s and Yanukovich’s governments is that Poroshenko might choose to ally with Washington and become richer by participating in the West’s looting of […]
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(Interfax – May 26, 2014) Ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has said he respects the choice that the Ukrainian people made in the presidential election on 25 May, privately-owned Russian news agency Interfax reported on 26 May. “An early presidential election has been held in Ukraine. Irrespective of what per cent of people in which region took part in the […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Darya Lyubinskaya, special to RBTH – May 26, 2014) RBTH brings together a selection of views from leading Russian media on Petro Poroshenko’s victory in the presidential vote in Ukraine, with comment on the fate of Yulia Tymoshenko, election turnout, the problems experienced by voters in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, and the […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Elizabeth Kaplunov – May 27, 2014) As the Soviet Union fades from the memories of the youngest generations of Russians, it still underpins the consciousness of their parents. The play “Donkey Heart,” written by Moses Raine and directed by his sister Nina Raine, focuses on the psychological setup of a family in post-Soviet Moscow, describing […]
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(opendemocracy.net – John Weeks – May 26, 2014) John Weeks is Professor Emeritus, School of Oriental & African Studies, University of London, and author of ‘Economics of the 1%: How mainstream economics serves the rich, obscures reality and distorts policy’, Anthem Press, published earlier this year. The collapse of the USSR was the occasion for much rejoicing. But 25 years […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Christopher Brennan – May 27, 2014) Once the darling of Russia’s opposition movement, Alexei Navalny has seen his reputation fall in recent months as he has made more headlines for the criminal cases launched against him than for his political activities. The number of Russians who have “nothing good to say about him,” increased from […]
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MOSCOW, May 27 (RIA Novosti) – The victory of Russian team at the 2014 Ice Hockey World Championship is significant for the development of hockey and other sports within the country, President Vladimir Putin said during a prize-giving ceremony for team members in the Kremlin. “Our triumph in Minsk is very important for promoting hockey and sport within the country,” […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Ivan Nechepurenko – May 27, 2014) When demonstrators occupied central Kiev at the end of last year, they called for a radically changed Ukraine with reformed political institutions and the replacement of the old political guard with new faces that would lead the country to a prosperous future in Europe. But as Petro Poroshenko, 48, […]
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MOSCOW. May 27 (Interfax) – If Petro Poroshenko succeeds in establishing dialogue with citizens of Ukraine, including with residents of the southeastern regions, he will find a serious and reliable partner in Russia, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. “We hope he will act in the interests of the Ukrainian people as a whole. If this is the case, he […]
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MOSCOW. May 27 (Interfax) – A Russian visit of Ukrainian President Elect Petro Poroshenko is not on the table, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said. “A Russian trip of Poroshenko is not being considered or discussed by diplomatic or any other channels,” Lavrov told a press conference on Tuesday while answering an Interfax question. Interfax asked whether the situation in […]
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KIEV, May 27 (RIA Novosti) – Ukraine has issued a surrender-or-die ultimatum to self-defense forces in the restive city of Donetsk, in eastern Ukraine, a spokesperson at the headquarters of the ongoing special operation told journalists Tuesday. “The command of the Anti-Terrorist Operation has guaranteed safety to those who are ready to lay down their weapons,” said Vladislav Seleznyov. He […]
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Anatol Lieven, Chair of International Relations in the War Studies Department of King’s College London, and senior fellow of the New America Foundation in Washington, D.C., addresses recent developments in the Ukrainian crisis, and a series of long-neglected problems impacting unfolding events. The presentation took place in Milan, Italy, on May 14, 2014 under the auspices of the Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
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(RFE/RL – rferl.org – May 25, 2014) There are still plenty of ways Russia can continue to meddle in Ukraine’s affairs. But with Petro Poroshenko’s apparent victory in the May 25 presidential election amid a solid turnout, Kyiv may have turned a corner. RFE/RL’s Brian Whitmore speaks to longtime Russia-watcher Edward Lucas, senior editor of the British weekly “The Economist.” RFE/RL: What is your […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – John Freedman – May 26, 2014) I forced myself to read the entire article. It was not easy to do. But it had to be done. The Culture newspaper, which made headlines in April by attacking 29 contemporary Russian writers and directors as propagators of “sleaze, obscenities and perversion,” is at it again. This time […]
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Subject: The Speech I Hope Ukraine’s New President Gives at the Inauguration Ceremony Date: Sun, 25 May 2014 From: Tom Thomson <tom.thomson@tthomsonassociates.com> The Speech I Hope Ukraine’s New President Gives at the Inauguration Ceremony By Tom Thomson, Principal, T. Thomson & Associates, LLC. As I think about Sunday’s presidential election in strife torn Ukraine, I am reminded of US President […]
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MOSCOW, May 26 (RIA Novosti, Daria Chernyshova) – The Third Maidan or another Orange Revolution is unlikely to happen in Ukraine, now that that the Western-backed candidate has won the presidency in Ukraine, President of the American University in Moscow Edward Lozansky told RIA Novosti. “The victory of “Chocolate King” in the first round was to be expected,” Lozansky said. […]
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MOSCOW, May 26 (RIA Novosti) – Russian State Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin said Monday that Sunday’s presidential election in Ukraine was a step away from lawlessness and toward a lawful government in Kiev. “In general, the election is a step forward to return the legal environment to the state,” said Naryshkin, the speaker of Russia’s lower house of parliament. “This […]
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MOSCOW. May 26 (Interfax) – Alexander Brod, a member of the Human Rights Council, who also co-chairs of Civil Control, the association of nonprofit organizations protecting voting rights, has concluded on the basis on distance monitoring that the early presidential election in Ukraine was held with violations and the actual exclusion of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions from the voting […]
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MOSCOW, May 26 (RIA Novost, Daria Chernyshova) – The future of dialogue between Moscow and Kiev depends on likely incoming Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko’s policy towards the country’s eastern regions, Nicolai Petro, a professor of international politics at the University of Rhode Island told RIA Novosti Monday. “Very much will depend on whether or not Petro Poroshenko can establish effective […]
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MOSCOW. May 26 (Interfax) – Russia has not yet felt the effect of the West’s sanctions, but if they are applied to whole sectors of the Russian economy, European businesses will be harmed equally, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said. “The effect of the sanctions on the Russian economy is absolutely minimal at the moment, if there is any at […]
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KIEV, May 26 (RIA Novosti) – Ex-boxing champion Vitali Klitschko, who claimed victory Sunday in Kiev’s mayoral vote, said that the Maidan protests have fulfilled their task and barricades in downtown Kiev must be dismantled. “I firmly confirm that the key task of the Maidan is fulfilled,” Klitschko told journalists Monday. “I am convinced that the barricades, to date, have […]
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