Tag: Russian News
NEWSLINK Wall Street Journal/Joshua Yaffa: “The Leader Russia Deserves. Hundreds of years of history-especially the experience of the Soviet century and the trauma that followed-have made Putin inevitable” [Re: IMPERIAL GAMBLE by Marvin Kalb]
NEWSLINK New York Times: “Russian Military Uses Syria as Proving Ground, and West Takes Notice”
NEWSLINK Time/Eugene Rumor: “A Way Forward for Obama and Putin in Syria. The Iran deal offers lessons to address the crisis.”
NEWSLINK New York Times/Julia Ioffe: “Why Russia’s Alternate History of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 Matters”
$50 Oil for 15 Years Isn’t What Scares Bank of Russia Governor
(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Evgenia Pismennaya, Anna Andrianova, Ryan Chilcote – October 14, 2015) Fifteen years of oil at $50 a barrel isn’t the worst nightmare for Russian central bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina. “What worries me more is the pace of reforms in the economy that could stimulate private investment,” Nabiullina, 51, said in a Bloomberg Television interview on Tuesday. […]
» Read moreRussian Branch of Ecology NGO Bellona Closes Over ‘Foreign Agent’ Status
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – October 14, 2015) Bellona Murmansk, a Russian branch of the Norwegian environmental organization, has closed down but hopes to re-establish itself soon in a new legal form, the NGO said on its website this week. “Bellona Murmansk will continue its work under a different kind of bureaucratic structure that will free it from the yoke […]
» Read moreForeign media companies leaving Russia as new ownership law looms
With a new law limiting foreign ownership of media in Russia to 20 percent due to come into force on Jan. 1, 2016, many international companies are already leaving the market due to loss of revenue (Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Maria Karnaukh, special to RBTH – October 13, 2015) With less than half a year left until […]
» Read more75% of Russians see Western countries as adversaries
(Interfax – October 14, 2015) Russian citizens negatively assess the U.S. role in the world and feel critical about the level of Russian-U.S. relations, Levada Center told Interfax on Oct. 14. In the opinion of 71 percent of the respondents, the United States is generally playing a negative role in the contemporary world (50 percent in September 2013). Only 4 […]
» Read moreInfowar Continues as Russian, MH17 Investigations Reach Different Conclusions
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Matthew Bodner, Eva Hartog – October 14, 2015) The Dutch Safety Board and Russians arms manufacturer Almaz-Antey on Tuesday told a similar story about what caused the downing of flight MH17 in eastern Ukraine last year, but had a politically charged crucial difference of opinion on what type of warhead was used – and consequently, […]
» Read morePutin looks back to West as China swing chokes
(Business New Europe – bne.eu – Jason Corcoran in Moscow – October 14, 2015) Russian President Vladimir Putin is abandoning his much-vaunted pivot to Asian sources of finance, judging by the prominence given to Anglo-American investors during his question & answer session at the VTB Capital conference in Moscow on October 13. A year ago, Western investors were largely absent […]
» Read morePutin informed Obama of plans to strike ISIL in Syria at meeting in New York – Lavrov
MOSCOW. Oct 14 (Interfax) – Russian President Vladimir Putin informed U.S. President Barack Obama of plans to strike Islamic State targets in Syria during their recent meeting on the sidelines of a UN General Assembly session in New York, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday. “When we were ready, after the Federation Council’s decision, to start striking ISIL […]
» Read moreRUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2015-#200 :: Wednesday 13 October 2015
[check back for updates, including more links; links also posted to facebook and twitter] Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2015-#200 Wednesday – 14 October 2015 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. JRL homepage: russialist.org JRL […]
» Read morePutin Says Russian Economy Stabilizing
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Peter Hobson – October 14, 2015) President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday strove to deliver a positive message on the economy, even as output continues to shrink. “We have generally reached the peak of the crisis and overall our economy is gradually adapting to these new economic circumstances,” Putin said during a speech at the VTB […]
» Read moreWashington declines proposed visit of Medvedev-led delegation to U.S., visit of its delegation to Moscow – Lavrov
MOSCOW. Oct 14 (Interfax) – The United States has rejected the Russian proposal to send a delegation led by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev to Washington and a U.S. delegation to Moscow in order to discuss interaction in the Syria situation, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said. “Actually, we received a formal reply today. It seems the public speech delivered […]
» Read moreInterfax: Ukraine rebels say they “did not have” Buk missile system at time of MH17 crash
(Interfax – October 13, 2015) Eduard Basuryn (Basurin), the deputy defence minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, has once again said that the east Ukrainian insurgents did not have access to a Buk surface-to-air missile system at the time when Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 was shot down, privately-owned Russian news agency Interfax reported on 13 October. Earlier in the […]
» Read moreNEWSWATCH New York Times: “Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 Most Likely Hit by Russian-Made Missile, Inquiry Says”
October 13, 2015 The New York Times covers the Dutch investigation of the shoot-down of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over an area of Ukraine controlled by Russia-backed rebels. A 15-month inquiry into the disintegration of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 in the skies over eastern Ukraine has concluded that the aircraft was most likely attacked from the ground by a Russian-made […]
» Read moreEU said close to lifting sanctions on Belarus as Lukashenko’s landslide win satisfies
(Business New Europe – bne.eu – bne IntelliNews – October 13, 2015) The EU is close to lifting sanctions on Belarus after its authoritarian president, Alexander Lukashenko, won a fifth term in polls on October 11 with 83% of the vote, making some concessions to the political opposition in the process. While there hasn’t yet been any formal announcement of […]
» Read moreMost Russians Want Homosexuals ‘Liquidated’ or Ostracized – Poll
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Peter Hobson – October 12, 2015) More than half of Russians think that gay people should be either “liquidated” or isolated from society, according to a poll published Friday that showed a hardening of attitudes toward many minority groups in Russia in recent years. The survey by the Levada Center, an independent pollster, is the […]
» Read moreLawmakers Move to Force Russian Media to Report Foreign Funding
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Daria Litvinova – October 13, 2015) Russian media will be obliged to report funding they receive from abroad to the media watchdog Roskomnadzor, if an inter-party group of deputies get their way. A bill to that effect was introduced to the State Duma, the lower chamber of the country’s parliament, last week by deputies from […]
» Read moreOnline reading of Tolstoy’s ‘War and Peace’ to be open to all; Any Russian speakers can apply to take part in December event
(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Oleg Krasnov, RBTH – October 12, 2015) Anyone on the planet who speaks Russian will be able to read a chapter from Russian writer Lev Tolstoy’s classic War and Peace directly online as part of an upcoming event The “War and Peace: Let’s Read The Novel” event will take place between Dec. 8 […]
» Read moreJustice Ministry Wipes 10 NGOs Off ‘Foreign Agents’ List
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – October 13, 2015) Russia’s Justice Ministry has deleted 10 NGOs from the list of “foreign agents,” the Gazeta.ru news website reported Monday. Four of them were excluded from the list because they “stopped performing the functions of a foreign agent,” while the other six were removed because they had closed down for good. The report […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK The Hill: “Caught between nationalists and Yanukovych alums, Ukraine’s future more uncertain than ever”
NEWSLINK New York Times: “U.S. Weaponry Is Turning Syria Into Proxy War With Russia”
NEWSLINK Reuters/Josh Cohen: “How to respond to Russia in Syria while avoiding World War Three”
NEWSLINK AP: “A Putin craze takes hold in the Middle East, praising his ‘personality and charisma'”
NEWSLKINK Moscow Times/Alexander Golts: “War Is Peace: Russia’s Orwellian Propaganda”
NEWSWATCH Washington Post: “Did U.S. weapons supplied to Syrian rebels draw Russia into the conflict?”
October 12, 2015 The Washington Post covers Russia’s entry in the Syrian Civil War and the impact of U.S. military transfers to some Syrian rebel groups. American antitank missiles supplied to Syrian rebels are playing an unexpectedly prominent role in shaping the Syrian battlefield, giving the conflict the semblance of a proxy war between the United States and Russia … […]
» Read moreRUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2015-#199 :: Tuesday 12 October 2015
[check back for updates, including more links; links also posted to facebook and twitter] Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2015-#199 Tuesday – 13 October 2015 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. JRL homepage: russialist.org JRL […]
» Read moreRUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2015-#198 :: Monday 12 October 2015
[check back for updates, including more links; links also posted to facebook and twitter] Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2015-#198 Monday – 12 October 2015 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. JRL homepage: russialist.org JRL […]
» Read moreLukashenko Victory Set to Stoke EU Rapprochement, Moscow Unease
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Howard Amos – October 12, 2015) Autocratic Belarussian leader Alexander Lukashenko looked set to win a fifth term as president Sunday in a largely uncontested and protest-free election that is likely to pave the way for a thaw in relations with European countries and a possible confrontation with neighboring Russia, traditionally a staunch ally. Exit […]
» Read moreTRANSCRIPT: Has Russia Gone Rogue? – Stephen Sestanovich Senate Testimony
October 8, 2015 Prepared statement by Stephen Sestanovich, George F. Kennan Senior Fellow for Russian and Eurasian Studies Council on Foreign Relations Before the Committee on Armed Services United States Senate Hearing on Russian Strategy and Military Operation Chairman McCain, Senator Reed, Members of the Committee: Thank you for the opportunity to join your discussion today on Russian policy in […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK The National Interest/Andrey Sushentsov: “Lowdown: Making Sense of Russia’s Syria Strategy. A view from Moscow on Russia’s strategy behind its Syrian move”
Russia Sees First Capital Inflow in 5 Years
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Peter Hobson – October 12, 2015) Russia has recorded its first quarterly net capital inflow in five years, with $5.3 billion flowing into the country from July to September, according to preliminary Central Bank data published Friday. The inflow reverses a period of record capital flight following last year’s sharp fall in the price of […]
» Read moreTRANSCRIPT: Victoria Nuland Senate Testimony on Ukraine
(US Department of State – Testimony on Ukraine- Victoria Nuland, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs – October 8, 2015) Statement Before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Washington, DC October 8, 2015 As prepared Thank you Chairman Corker, Ranking Member Cardin, members of this committee for the opportunity to join you today and for the personal investment so […]
» Read moreInterfax: Moscow hopes Minsk peace accords for Ukraine will be extended – source
MOSCOW. Oct 9 (Interfax) – Moscow believes that it would be advisable to extend the validity period of the Minsk peace agreements for Ukraine to 2016, a Russian diplomatic source told Interfax on Friday. “We hope that the ‘Minsk-2’ [accords] will be prolonged. This stems from the very course of the settlement [process], in particular the decision of the DPR […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK Reuters: “‘Czar Putin’: as secure as he seems?”
RBTH: Sochi forum: Sanctions curbing foreign investment in innovation in Russia
Participants of the recent International Investment Forum in Sochi say that U.S. and EU sanctions on Russia are impeding international investment in innovative start-ups, with foreign companies not aware of what they can do under the new conditions. Meanwhile, according to Russian observers, several new innovative clusters may be created in Russia, including in Sochi. (Russia Beyond the Headlines – […]
» Read moreRussia asks UK for assistance in establishing contacts with FSA
MOSCOW. Oct 9 (Interfax) – Russian Ambassador to the UK Alexander Yakovenko has asked for assistance in establishing contacts with the Free Syrian Army (FSA) to coordinate efforts in the fight against the group Islamic State (ISIL, which is banned in Russia). “Dr Yakovenko also said that the Russian side would appreciate British assistance in establishing contacts with the “Free […]
» Read moreFinance Ministry’s Nesterenko: retirement age increase ‘inevitable’
KRASNOGORSK. Oct 9 (Interfax) – The interim decisions approved for next year in light of the budget deficit do not eliminate the need to raise the retirement age. The draft budget for 2016 approved by the government this week indexes pensions by just 4%, rather than the actual inflation rate in 2015 (about 12%), with an option to conduct a […]
» Read moreRUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2015-#197 :: Friday 9 October 2015
[check back for updates, including more links; links also posted to facebook and twitter] Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2015-#197 Friday – 9 October 2015 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. JRL homepage: russialist.org JRL […]
» Read moreUkraine crisis: Is there a light at the end of the tunnel?
De-escalation measures have begun in eastern Ukraine as the sides start to withdraw light weaponry from the frontlines – a move expected to be accompanied by political steps in accordance with the Minsk peace agreements signed in February. But are the parties to the conflict ready for this? (Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Alexey Timofeychev, RBTH – October […]
» Read moreRBTH: Further progress in Ukraine as Donbass agrees to postpone elections
The governments of the self-proclaimed republics in eastern Ukraine have agreed to postpose their local elections, thus fulfilling the wishes expressed by the leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France Normandy at talks in Paris on Oct. 2. (Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Alexey Timofeychev, RBTH – October 8, 2015) The unrecognized Donetsk and Lugansk “people’s republics” (DNR […]
» Read moreNon-Battle Casualties Make Up Third of Ukraine Military Deaths
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – October 8, 2015) Nearly a third of Ukraine’s military losses over the past two years were non-battle casualties, according to the country’s Defense Ministry figures cited by news reports. In total, 2,027 servicemen deaths have been recorded in 2014-2015 so far, according to the Defense Ministry report released Wednesday. Among them, 597 were non-battle casualties, […]
» Read moreRussia, U.S. slow down pace of strategic weapons reduction under START Treaty
(Interfax – October 7, 2015) The United States and Russia shared the data on the condition of strategic offensive weapons according to the 2010 START Treaty, ex-chief of the General Staff of the Russian Strategic Missile Forces Col. Viktor Yesin told Interfax-AVN on Oct. 7. “The information published by the U.S. State Department, it’s a pity that it was not […]
» Read moreRBTH: Is Moscow planning ground operations in Syria?
The Kremlin has declined to comment on a CNN report on the Russian Federation’s possible preparations for a ground operation in Syria. However, Russian observers interviewed by RBTH assert that Moscow will not want to get involved too deeply in the conflict and will limit itself to air strikes. (Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Nikolay Surkov, RBTH – […]
» Read moreRussian incursion into Turkish airspace “embarrassing mistake” – Kremlin
(Interfax – Moscow, October 7, 2015) The Kremlin considers the violation of Turkish airspace by Russian aircraft an embarrassing complication and confirms readiness to hold consultations between the military. “I would like to recall yesterday’s statement of the Russian Defence Ministry where the readiness to immediately begin consultations with the military, including the Turkish military, was voiced to clear up […]
» Read moreAntony Penaud: How the Economist changed its map of the Syrian conflict to make it look like Russia is bombing moderate rebels rather than al-Nusra
Subject: How the Economist changed its map of the Syrian conflict to make it look like Russia is bombing moderate rebels rather than al-Nusra Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2015 From: Antony Penaud <antonypenaud@yahoo.fr> Antony Penaud completed his DPhil at the University of Oxford in 2000. His essays on Russia and Ukraine are on www/scribd.com/antonykharms. He is French and lives in […]
» Read moreSberbank CIB Ivanov consumer confidence tracker shows mood blackens in Russia
(Business New Europe – bne.eu – Ben Aris in Moscow – October 8, 2015) With temperatures plunging more than 30C in a week, as an Indian summer gives rapidly away to snow, maybe it is no wonder the latest installment of Sberbank CIB’s Ivanov Consumer Confidence Index shows Russian are feeling increasingly glum about their lives. The thirteenth issue of […]
» Read moreJustice Ministry Refuses to Remove Elections Monitor Golos from ‘Foreign Agents’ List
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – October 8, 2015) Russia’s Justice Ministry has refused to exclude independent elections watchdog Golos from the list of “foreign agents,” the Vedomosti newspaper reported Wednesday. Golos said on Twitter back in July that the ministry had begun the process of removing it from the list. Ruling that its inclusion was an “error,” the ministry also […]
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