New Far East Minister Named

Siberian Natural Scenery, with River, Trees, Hills

(Moscow Times – temhoscowtimes.com – Anatoly Medetsky – September 12, 2013) President Vladimir Putin on Thursday appointed business lobbyist Alexander Galushka as Far East Development Minister, completing the staff changes meant to spur investment in a region sitting next to major Asian powerhouses. A co-chairman of business association Delovaya Rossia, Galushka will work in tandem with Deputy Prime Minister Yury […]

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The Tortoise Revolution

Arm and Torso of Person in Brown Sweater Placing Paper Ballot into Ballot Box

(RFE/RL – rferl.org – Brian Whitmore – September 11, 2013) When Aleksei Navalny addressed thousands of supporters on Moscow’s Bolotnaya Square, he surprised many when he urged the crowd to go home peacefully after the rally ended. Earlier on September 9, the anticorruption blogger-turned-opposition leader appeared to implicitly be threatening mass unrest when he said he would call his supporters […]

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TV determines perspective, if not outcome, of mayoral race

Aerial View of Moscow From Beyond Stadium, file photo

(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Mark Teeter, special to RBTH – Mark H. Teeter teaches English and Russian-American relations in Moscow. He blogs daily for ‘Moscow TV Tonite’ on Facebook – September 11, 2013) Were you surprised by the results of the Moscow mayor election? The answer for Muscovites may depend on what media they consume. The unexpectedly […]

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Russians show certain support for military intervention in Syria – polls

Syria Map

(Interfax – September 11, 2013) The overwhelming majority of Russians (84 per cent) know or heard about the military conflict in Syria that has been continuing for over two years, privately-owned Russian news agency Interfax reported on 11 September quoting a poll conducted by the Public Opinion Foundation among 1,500 people in 43 constituent parts of Russia on 31 August-1 […]

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RIA Novosti: ‘Boots’ Essential for Security in Russia’s Syria Gambit – Experts

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

(RIA Novosti – Carl Schreck – WASHINGTON, September 11, 2013) The White House has vowed that no American boots will be on the ground in Syria, but a Russian proposal to seize and destroy Syria’s chemical weapons would almost certainly require an international security force, experts said Wednesday. “Boots on the ground will be necessary. The question is: ‘Where will […]

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Interfax: Russian Duma statement warns against Syria ‘aggression’, attacks USA

Russian Duma Building

(Interfax – Moscow, September 11, 2013) The State Duma on Wednesday (11 September) called on the international community not to allow aggression against Syria, where the conflict, in the opinion of deputies, can only be resolved as part of the Geneva conference. “In an effort to use all available means to avert a catastrophe, the State Duma appeals to the […]

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Russian and U.S. Authorities Could Look Into Extradition

Russian Jail File Photo Showing Outer Wall, Windows, Barbed Wire

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – September 12, 2013) Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office and the U.S. Justice Department have agreed to sign a memorandum on cooperation in order to work together on criminal matters, in a move that could put the thorny issue of extradition between the two countries up for discussion. The agreement was reached at a meeting that took […]

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RIA Novosti: U.S. Not to Boycott Sochi Olympic Games – Ambassador McFaul

Ambassador Michael McFaul file photo

(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, September 12, 2013) The United States will not boycott the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Russia in light of the recently adopted Russian legislation banning the promotion of non-traditional sexual relationships toward minors, the US ambassador said Wednesday. US athletes should not fall victim to politics, Ambassador Michael McFaul told the Dozhd TV channel as Russia […]

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How the Moscow mayoral election was stolen

Sergei Sobyanin file photo

(Business New Europe – bne.eu – MOSCOW BLOG, September 12, 2013) Everyone assumes that the Kremlin cheats when it comes to elections. Did the Kremlin steal the Moscow City election for mayor on September 8 from opposition blogger Alexei Navalny? Ballot stuffing has been par for the course. It is widely accepted that the authorities added about 12% to the […]

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Navalny to Submit ‘Truckload’ of Complaints to Elections Commission

Alexei Navalny file photo

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Allison Quinn – September 12, 2013) Opposition leader and former mayoral hopeful Alexei Navalny announced Wednesday that he would submit 951 separate complaints of voting violations to the Moscow City Elections Commission on Thursday. “There’s about 50,000 pages here, we’ll have to bring it in a truck,” Navalny wrote in a post on his LiveJournal […]

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RIA Novosti: Pundits Look At Ways To Secure Acting Moscow Mayor’s Election Win

Sergei Sobyanin file photo

(RIA Novosti – September 11, 2013) Russian political analysts have offered suggestions to secure acting Moscow mayor Sergey Sobyanin’s victory at the 9 September election, the Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported on 11 September. Political scientist Vladimir Slatinov said that Sobyanin achieved an “insecure” victory and would need to compensate for “this shortcoming in legitimacy”. “Sobyanin has achieved an […]

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Russian citizens are not ready to live with people from central Asia in one country – VTsIOM

Map of Central Asia, Including Commonwealth of Independent States Members

(Interfax – September 11, 2013) Less than 10 percent of Russian citizens are ready to accept people from Central Asia who have lived in Russia for a long time as equals, VTsIOM General Director Valery Fyodorov said. “Tajiks, Uzbeks, and Kyrgyz – those who are in most cases called guest workers – only 8 percent of Russians agree to consider […]

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Russia Has Second Largest Number of Immigrants – UN Study

Migrant Workers file photo

(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, September 12, 2013) Russia hosts the world’s largest population of immigrants after the United States, according to a new UN study showing that the number of people living abroad across the globe has reached a record high. New figures released Wednesday by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN-DESA) in New York indicated that […]

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Russia’s Disabled ‘Face Uphill Battle’

File Photo of Back of Wheelchari with Line of Persons in Business Dress in Background

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Natalya Krainova – September 12, 2013) With the upcoming Paralympic Games in Sochi set to laud disabled athletes for their accomplishments, ordinary members of Russia’s disabled population are still “facing an uphill battle” every day due to a lack of proper infrastructure and general discrimination, Human Rights Watch said in a report released Wednesday. The […]

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Roizman Called In for Questioning 2 Days After Mayoral Win

Yekaterinburg file photo

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – September 11, 2013) Opposition politician Yevgeny Roizman, who won Sunday’s mayoral vote in Yekaterinburg, was scheduled to be questioned by investigators Tuesday as a witness in a criminal case against a former employee of his City Without Drugs foundation. Roizman, an outspoken critic of the Kremlin, was one of the few opposition members to win […]

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TRANSCRIPT: [Putin] Meeting with elected Russian regional leaders

Putin Descending a Staircase file photo

(Kremlin.ru – Novo-Ogaryovo, Moscow Region, September 10, 2013) Vladimir Putin chaired a meeting with heads of Russian regions voted in during regional elections held on the single election day. PRESIDENT OF RUSSIA VLADIMIR PUTIN: Dear colleagues, good afternoon, Voting has closed and you have won your elections; naturally I must congratulate you on your victory and wish you success. I […]

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Putin Lauds Elections as Most Transparent Ever

File Photo of Vladimir Putin Sitting at Desk

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Allison Quinn – September 11, 2013) President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday hailed the recent regional elections as “more transparent than ever” as Moscow’s elections commission announced acting Mayor Sergei Sobyanin as the official winner of the city’s mayoral vote and set his inauguration ceremony for Thursday. Describing the elections as “legitimate, transparent and regulated,” Putin […]

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How much does the rest of the world hate Russia?

World Map Showing Continents, Greens, Browns, Ice

(Business New Europe – bne.eu – Ben Aris – September 11, 2013) How much does the rest of the world hate Russia? Answer: a lot. This excerpt below is part of an internal memo by a major US bank, which will remain nameless, to clients on the results of the Moscow mayoral elections at the weekend. What is supposed to […]

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Increasingly Defined by Negation, Russian Nation Fraying at the Edges and Even at the Core

Kremlin and St. Basil's

(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble – Staunton, September 11, 2013) Their identity increasingly defined not by what they are or want to be but by what they fear and view as alien, Russians as a nation are fraying at the edges with some like the Siberians identifying in terms of a region, others like the Cossacks in terms of […]

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RIA Novosti: Putin Urges Governors to Strengthen Relations With Opponents

Map of Russia

(RIA Novosti – NOVO-OGARYOVO – Moscow Region, September 10, 2013) ­ Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday called on newly elected heads of Russian regions to get in contact with their former opponents and use their proposals. “I am urging you to build relationships not only with your support groups but with all your opponents as well, bearing in mind […]

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RIA Novosti – Sexual Orientation, Ethnicity Key for Russian National Identity – Poll

Kremlin and St. Basil's

(RIA Novosti – Howard Amos – MOSCOW, September 11, 2013) ­ Besides drunks, who do Russians not want most as neighbors or work colleagues? The answer: homosexuals, according to new research examining national identity released by a state-run pollster, the Russia Public Opinion Research Center, on Tuesday. According to the survey, 51 percent of Russians would not like “under any […]

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The Syrian Alternative/ “A Plea for Caution From Russia” [Putin New York Times Op-Ed]

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

(kremlin.ru – September 12, 2013, also posted by the New York Times on September 11, 2013, as “A Plea for Caution From Russia” at http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/12/opinion/putin-plea-for-caution-from-russia-on-syria.html) The article by Vladimir Putin published in The New York Times. Recent events surrounding Syria have prompted me to speak directly to the American people and their political leaders. It is important to do so […]

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Russia’s Syria Plan Gains Momentum

Syria Map

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Ivan Nechepurenko – September 11, 2013) Britain, France and the U.S. are set to table a resolution on Syria’s chemical weapons in the UN Security Council on Tuesday evening as a Russian plan to avert a U.S.-led military strike against Syria has garnered overwhelming global support. The announcement came after Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on […]

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Putin Seizes on Syria to Cement Russia Middle East Sway

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Henry Meyer – September 11, 2013) Vladimir Putin is seizing the chance to keep Russia’s foothold in the Middle East. President Barack Obama yesterday postponed a decision on military action in Syria after Putin proposed to put Syria’s chemical weapons under international control, shifting the global debate. It allows Putin to keep a role in molding […]

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Russia passes proof of chemical weapons use by Syrian militants to UN Security Council – Duma deputy

UN Building file photo

(Interfax – September 11, 2013) Syrian insurgents possess chemical weapons, and Russia has given proof that they have used these weapons on Syrian territory to the UN Security Council, Russian State Duma international affairs committee head Alexei Pushkov said at a Duma plenary session on Wednesday. The Duma plans to issue a statement on the situation in Syria later in […]

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Economic aid to Central Asian states strategic investment – Russian diplomat

Map of Central Asia, Including Commonwealth of Independent States Members

(Interfax – MOSCOW, September 10, 2013) The Central Asian region is important for Russia, just as Russia is important for Central Asia, Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin said in an interview published by the business daily Kommersant on Tuesday. “In some instances our relations were elevated by mutual agreement to the level of strategic partnership and even allied relations. […]

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Mega financial regulator has been created in Russia

Russian Central Bank file photo

(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Tatyana Lisina, special to RBTH – September 9, 2013) A mega regulator of the entire financial market began work in Russia on Sept. 1. According to experts, this will have a positive impact on the economy as a whole and increase Russia’s investment attractiveness. On Sept. 1, the Central Bank of the Russian […]

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Russia’s call: Austerity versus spending

Kremlin and St. Basil's

(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Pavel Vasiliadi, Analyst at the UFS Investment Company, special to RBTH – September 10, 2013) Economist Pavel Vasiliadi describes how Russia has more options than most of its G20 peers in choosing to either save or spend its way out of the crisis. In the debate on international financial architecture, Russia, having picked […]

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Report Sees Possible Economic Upturn

File Photo of Cash, Coins, Line Graph

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Irina Filatova – September 10, 2013) The Russian economy might see a slight pickup by the end of this year driven by expanding investment and a possible easing of monetary policy by the Central Bank, according to the latest forecast by Morgan Stanley presented Monday. The GDP growth is likely to expand by 2.2 percent […]

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TRANSCRIPT: [Putin] Comments on the chemical weapons situation in Syria

Syria Map

(Kremlin.ru – September 10, 2013 – Novo-Ogaryovo, Moscow Region) QUESTION: Mr President, everybody’s talking about Syria, chemical weapons and bringing Syria’s chemical arsenal under international control. We have just received a report from Washington saying you discussed this matter with President Obama at the G20 summit in St Petersburg. Is it true? Did you talk about this? And if so, […]

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Interfax: Foreigners worried about North Caucasus ‘had better look at themselves’ – Putin

File Photo of Vladimir Putin Sitting at Desk

(Interfax – Novo-Ogarevo, September 9, 2013) Russian President Vladimir Putin believes that it is necessary, while defending human rights and freedoms in the North Caucasus, not to ignore sweeping accusations of allegedly widespread violations of human rights in the region. “Attempts by foreign states to use the existing problems in the North Caucasus to the detriment of Russia should be […]

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Three Who Lost the Russian Election

Arm and Torso of Person in Brown Sweater Placing Paper Ballot into Ballot Box

(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble – Staunton, September 10, 2013) Even as Russians debate whether Aleksey Navalny won by losing, it is already clear that three groups lost the Russian revolution: the KPRF which suffered its worst defeat ever, the Russian people whose political alienation led to an extraordinarily low turnout, and the Kremlin itself which demonstrated its incapacity […]

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Back to the 90s – Russia to freeze energy tariffs

File Photo of Blue Flame from Natural Gas

(Business New Europe – bne.eu – Ben Aris in Moscow – September 10, 2013) In the face of persistently high inflation and capital outflows, the Russian government has decided to freeze energy tariffs, which will give the economy a short-term boost, but will also stymie the long-term development of the economy. Times are tough in Russia after economic growth dropped […]

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Eighteen Russian Universities Placed in Top World Rankings

Moscow State University

(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, September 10, 2013) ­ Eighteen Russian universities made the list of the best 800 educational institutions in the world this year, according to the tenth annual World University Rankings compiled by QS Quacquarelli Symonds. Moscow State University remained in the top 200 despite moving back four spots compared with last year, from 116 to 120. In […]

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Roizman’s Victory a Blow to United Russia, Analysts Say

Yekaterinburg file photo

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Natalya Krainova – September 10, 2013) Yekaterinburg, Russia’s fourth-largest city, elected outspoken opposition politician Yevgeny Roizman as its mayor on Sunday, in a move that dealt a blow to pro-Kremlin forces but gave little actual power to the winner, pundits said. Roizman’s success likely stems from voters’ disappointment with regional authorities and Roizman’s reputation as […]

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Vorobyov wins gubernatorial election in Moscow region with nearly 79% of vote – final data

Andrei Vorobyov file photo

(Interfax – MOSCOW. September 9, 2013) Andrei Vorobyov won the gubernatorial election in the Moscow region with 78.94% of the vote, Moscow regional elections commission chairman Irek Vildanov told Interfax. “A. Vorobyov won the election of the Moscow region’s governor upon processing of 100% of voting result reports. He gained 78.94% of the vote,” Vildanov said. Konstantin Cheremisov (the Communist […]

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Prokhorov: Navalny’s performance phenomenal but I would have won in first round

Mikhail Prokohrov file photo

(Interfax – MOSCOW, September 9, 2013) Election performance of opposition candidate Alexei Navalny was phenomenal, Civil Platform party leader Mikhail Prokhorov said, adding that he could have defeated Acting Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin already in the first round. “The preliminary result of Alexei (Navalny) makes me think that they (the authorities) must have realized there would have not been any […]

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Moscow Voters Explain Their Choices

Aerial View of Moscow From Beyond Stadium, file photo

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – September 9, 2013) Moscow held its first mayoral election in nearly 10 years on Sunday, and voter turnout amounted to less than 30 percent, according to exit polls. The contenders included acting Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, opposition leader Alexei Navalny, Communist Ivan Melnikov, Liberal Democrat Mikhail Degtyarev, Yabloko party chairman Sergei Mitrokhin, and A Just Russia’s […]

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Officials look to end aggressive driving in Russia

Moscow Traffic file photo

(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Marina Obrazkova, RBTH – September 4, 2013) Starting Sept. 1, new penalties are in effect for Russian drivers. Sanctions were modified for 46 violations, and maximum fines will increase by 10 times, going up to roughly $1,500. Changes that are taking effect in Russia’s Code of Administrative Offenses (CAO) involve increasing liability for […]

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Russia Climbs 8 Spots in World Happiness Report, Ranks 68th of 156

File Photo of Crowd of Russians with One Waving Russian Flag

(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, September 9, 2013) ­ Russia has become a relatively happier country, but it still ranks below its autocratic neighbor Belarus, according to a UN-sponsored study released by Columbia University on Monday. Russia climbed eight positions in the second annual World Happiness Report, ranking 68th of 156 countries ­ just behind Belarus (66) and the island nation […]

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EVENT: Thursday, September 12 – “Reset the Reset? The Future of U.S.-Russia Relations,” at George Washington University in Washington, D.C.

File Photo of George Washington Bust at George Washington University

Date: Wed, 4 Sep 2013 From: IERES <ieresgwu@gwu.edu> Subject: Thursday, September 12 – Reset the Reset? The Future of U.S.-Russia  Relations Elliott School of Internation Affairs The George Washington University IERES – The Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies Reset the Reset? The Future of U.S.-Russia Relations Part of IERES’s Behind the Headlines Series with Kimberly Marten Barnard College, […]

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Generation N: How Navalny Shook Up Politics With His Army Of Volunteers

Alexei Navalny file photo

(RFE/RL – rferl.org – Tom Balmforth – MOSCOW, September 9, 2013) For Aleksei Shagal, it all began when he read one of Aleksei Navalny’s blog posts. The 27-year-old freelance journalist was deeply inspired by Navalny, an anticorruption blogger with a nationalist streak, and was propelled for the first time in his life into political activism. Shagal joined the throngs who […]

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Navalny: this election gives birth to genuine Russian opposition

File Photo of Alexei Navalny Being Grabbed by Police at Protest

(Interfax – September 10, 2013) No incidents occurred during the Monday rally staged by supporters of opposition activist Alexei Navalny, who ranked second in the Moscow mayoral elections, on Bolotnaya Square. “This election has finally molded politics in Russia,” Navalny said at the rally. He called his election result a victory. “I know that a third of Moscow voters cast […]

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Moscow Election Hints at New Political Reality

Arm and Torso of Person in Brown Sweater Placing Paper Ballot into Ballot Box

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Ivan Nechepurenko – September 10, 2013) Kremlin-backed candidate Sergei Sobyanin got a victory at Moscow’s mayoral election Sunday, but opposition star Alexei Navalny walked away with a symbolic victory by getting more than he or the government bargained for, analysts said. According to official results, Navalny garnered 633,000 votes in a city with 7.25 million […]

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Sobyanin vs Navalny: One wins, did the other lose?

Alexei Navalny file photo

(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Anna Arutunyan – September 10, 2013) The pro-Kremlin Moscow mayor-elect Sergei Sobyanin may have won a firm victory in Sunday’s polls, but unexpectedly high results for his rival, opposition activist Alexei Navalny, suggest authorities got more than they bargained for when they called for snap elections. Instead of a mayor legitimized by the first competitive […]

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Moscow elections commission endorses ballot results: 51.37% for Sobyanin, 27.24% for Navalny

Arm and Torso of Person in Brown Sweater Placing Paper Ballot into Ballot Box

(Interfax – MOSCOW, September 10, 2013) The Moscow city elections commission endorsed official results of the mayoral election on Tuesday. Acting Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin was proclaimed the winner. He gained 51.37% of the vote while the voter turnout stood at 32.07%. RPR-PARNAS candidate Alexei Navalny ranked second with 27.24% of the vote. Ivan Melnikov (the Communist Party) was third […]

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Home voting could have distorted outcome of Moscow mayoral elections – Golos movement

Aerial View of Moscow From Beyond Stadium, file photo

(Interfax – MOSCOW, September 9, 2013) Human rights activists call the organization of the Sunday mayoral elections in Moscow exemplary but quoting their own sources say that a runoff could be held to determine the mayor. “There were no crude breaches of law, but there were subtle irregularities which we still have to study,” cochairman of Golos movement council Grigory […]

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Interfax: Pushkov hopes Obama won’t reject Russian initiative on Syria

Alexei Pushkov file photo

(Interfax – MOSCOW, September 10, 2013) The Russian proposal to put Syrian chemical weapons under international control is advantageous for the U.S. administration and Russia hopes the U.S. president will confirm his support of this initiative, State Duma International Affairs Committee Chairman Alexei Pushkov told reporters on Tuesday. “Let us hope that President Obama will confirm the support that he […]

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Russia Promises to Unveil ‘Workable’ Syria Plan Soon

Syria Map

(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, September 10, 2013) ­ Russia will soon put forward a “workable” plan for placing Syrian chemical weapons under international control, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday, following up on a day-old Russian proposal that has shifted the international debate on military intervention in war-torn Syria. “The Russian side is currently busy preparing a workable, clear, concrete […]

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Johnson’s Russia List :: 2013-#164 :: 10 September 2013

Map of Russia

[check back for updates, including more links; links also posted to facebook and twitter] Johnson’s Russia List :: 2013-#164 :: 10 September 2013 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 […]

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