(Interfax Moscow, 1 November) Vladimir Ryzhkov, co-chairman of RPR-PARNAS (Republican Party of Russia – Party of People’s Freedom), has said that he has mixed feelings after hearing the news that the Velsk Town Court in Arkhangelsk Region on Thursday (1 November) reduced the prison sentence of Platon Lebedev, former MFO Menatep head (and business partner of jailed former Yukos oil […]
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(Jamestown Foundation – jamestown.org – Eurasia Daily Monitor: Volume 9, Issue 200 – Pavel Felgenhauer – November 2, 2012) Last week, the public standing of one of President Vladimir Putin’s most powerful cohorts — Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov — was seriously undermined when Russia’s Investigation Committee (Slyedstvenny Kommitet RossyeSKR) publicly accused the defense ministry-controlled holding company “Oboronservis” of corruption and […]
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(“The Putin Crackdown: First he went after the punk rockers. Then the activists.” – Wall Street Journal Editorial – November 1, 2012 – http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204840504578087152147315198.html) A Wall Street Journal editorial calls for Congresss to pass the Magnitsky Act: Congress should get over its gridlock and pass the Magnitsky Act that bars Russian human-rights offenders from traveling to or banking in the […]
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(Natalia Yudina – opendemocracy.net – Natalia Yudina is chief expert at the Moscow based SOVA hate crime monitoring agency – October 30, 2012 – charts here: http://www.opendemocracy.net/od-russia/natalia-yudina/runet-hate-crime-and-soft-targets-how-russia-enforces-its-anti-extremism-la) The internet is a tool that can be used for good, but it can also be manipulated by fanatics preaching violent hate propaganda. Policing is never going to be easy, but the Russian […]
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MOSCOW. Oct 31 (Interfax) – Civil Society Development Fund Head Konstantin Kostin thinks there is no reason to criticize the latest amendments to the Law on State Secrets. He called the negative reaction of certain human rights activists “emotional.” “I have seen nothing extraordinary in these amendments. Any country wants to protect its interests, including state secrets,” he told Interfax […]
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MOSCOW. Oct 31 (Interfax) – An inquiry into the abduction of Russian opposition figure Leonid Razvozzhayev in Ukraine has begun, Moscow Public Oversight Commission head and Moscow Helsinki Group member Valery Borshchev said. Commission members again visited Razvozzhayev at the Lefortovo detention facility on Wednesday. “A detective has been assigned to investigate the abduction. Razvozzhayev has met with him,” Borshchev […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Alexander Bratersky – November 1, 2012) The Federation Council on Wednesday passed amendments to the law on treason that could make it possible for law enforcement officials to target people collaborating with international organizations. The changes, which were passed by the State Duma earlier this month, were approved by 138 of 166 senators, despite appeals […]
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(Prospect of show trial stirs some Russians’ memories of Stalinism; Some Russian activists are drawing parallels between a potential ‘mega-trial’ for leftist leader Sergei Udaltsov and Stalin’s show trials in the 1930s. But the comparison remains controversial. – Christian Science Monitor – By Fred Weir – October 30, 2012 – http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Europe/2012/1030/Prospect-of-show-trial-stirs-some-Russians-memories-of-Stalinism) The Christian Science Monitor reports on concerns by some onlookers […]
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(Jamestown Foundation – jamestown.org – Eurasia Daily Monitor: Volume 9, Issue 197 – Pavel K. Baev – October 29, 2012) The Moscow rumor about President Vladimir Putin’s health problems appears well-informed and confirmed by several cancellations of long-scheduled visits and by the postponement of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) summit in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, but it is remarkable how little […]
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MOSCOW, October 31 (Dan Peleschuk, RIA Novosti) – The new anti-treason bill approved today by Russia’s upper house of parliament has prompted concern from experts, academics and human rights advocates, who say it could be used against almost anyone. “I see a lot of people around me who are experts and journalists who have become cautious, and who are becoming […]
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MOSCOW, October 26 (Marc Bennetts, RIA Novosti)-Russian protest leader Sergei Udaltsov was charged with plotting mass disorder on Friday and could face up to 10 years behind bars if found guilty. “If anyone expected me to flee abroad, they were mistaken,” Left Front leader Udaltsov, 35, said as he reported to investigators for questioning. “The Putin regime will be on […]
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(Interfax – October 24, 2012) The resolution on the Magnitskiy (Magnitsky) list passed by the European Parliament is “designed to undermine contacts between Russia and Europe”, Russian Interfax news agency reported on 24 October, quoting head of the State Duma International Affairs Committee Aleskey Pushkov. Politicians On 23 October the European lawmakers passed a resolution requiring the EU to draw […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Nikolaus von Twickel, Yekaterina Kravtsova – October 25, 2012) Opposition leaders and human rights groups on Wednesday lambasted the apparent kidnapping and torture of Left Front activist Leonid Razvozzhayev as a return to Stalinist political repression and an unprecedented escalation in the crackdown against dissenters. “Our country has entered a new era of Stalin-like repressions,” […]
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(Business New Europe – bne.eu – Ben Aris in Moscow – October 25, 2012) Boris Titov would eschew the title “Russia’s Corruption Tsar”, but if he achieves half of what he is setting out to do, then that is what he will become. Appointed Russia’s new ombudsman for business by President Vladimir Putin in July, Titov’s job is to try […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – October 24, 2012) Opposition leader Sergei Udaltsov has no intention of violating the travel restrictions that currently bar him from leaving the country, his lawyer said Wednesday. Defense attorney Violetta Volkova said that her client a prominent organizer of anti-Kremlin protests was under constant surveillance, Interfax reported. Explaining why Udaltsov cannot be reached […]
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MOSCOW, October 24 (RIA Novosti) – Russian firebrand opposition leader Sergei Udaltsov, who could face up to ten years in jail over charges that he plotted to spark nationwide mass disorder, has no plans to flee the country, his lawyer said Wednesday. “On Friday, October 26th, I am planning, along with Sergei, to be at the Investigative Committee,” lawyer Violetta […]
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(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Natalia Antonova – October 22, 2012) Last week, we at The Moscow News hosted a debate on legal reform in Russia and while the topic itself is a hot one, we were reminded of the fact that real reform is always pretty boring and prosaic. In our discussion, which involved the UN’s Senior Human […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Alexander Bratersky – October 23, 2012) A senior Foreign Ministry official harshly criticized United States authorities Monday for alleged human rights abuses while presenting a report on human rights in foreign countries. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov condemned what the report described as the often harsh conditions in American prisons, the use of the death […]
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(Interfax – October 22, 2012) Alexei Navalny, the founder of an anti-corruption fund, said the opposition will make a new “Magnitsky list” if the information on the torture of opposition activist Leonid Razvozzhayev is confirmed. “If the torture is confirmed, the Razvozzhayev case should become the first case on which we will do such serious work. We will take specific […]
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MOSCOW, October 18 (RIA Novosti) – Pope Benedict XVI has agreed with the Russian Orthodox Church’s position regarding acts of vandalism in downtown Moscow’s Christ the Savior Cathedral, the Church said. “Pope Benedict XVI has expressed solidarity with the Russian Orthodox Church’s position on the issue and perplexity over the reaction of a number of media to these events,” the […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – October 18, 2012) Left Front leader Sergei Udaltsov, who investigators suspect of plotting mass riots on Russian soil, called on supporters to picket law enforcement agencies on Thursday in support of his assistant charged in the same case. “We must struggle to free Lebedev,” Udaltsov told Interfax on Thursday, referring to his aide Konstantin Lebedev, […]
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MOSCOW. Oct 16 (Interfax) – Moscow’s Tverskoi Court on Tuesday will continue hearings of the criminal case against a former deputy head of Butyrka prison, Dmitry Kratov, who is the only suspect thus far to have been accused of negligence leading to Hermitage Capital lawyer Sergei Magnitsky’s death. Evidence is expected to be provided by investigator Oleg Silchenko, who probed […]
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MOSCOW. Oct 16 (Interfax) – The people accused of murdering Novaya Gazeta journalist Anna Politkovskaya will ask for a jury trial. “We will certainly make a motion for a trial by jury. Legislation allows us to do so,” Alexei Mikhalchik, a defense lawyer for one of the suspects, told Interfax. According to the Russian Code of Criminal Procedure, a request […]
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(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Scott Rose – October 16, 2012) Russia needs a better business climate to bolster economic growth and win an upgrade of its investment-grade credit rating, according to Standard & Poor’s. The government must deal with “structural impediments” to growth by fighting corruption, scaling back the state’s role in the economy and improving the judiciary, while moving […]
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(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Yulia Ponomareva – October 15, 2012) In the wake of high-profile road accidents in Moscow, United Russia is pushing ahead with a tougher drunk driving bill. On Monday, representatives of United Russia, which holds the absolute majority in Russia’s parliament, confirmed that the party is moving ahead with its set of amendments toughening the DWI […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Howard Amos – October 12, 2012) Vladimir Ashurkov Education 1989-1993 Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology 1994-1996 Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania Work Experience 1993-1994 PepsiCo Holding, financial analyst 1997-1999 Renaissance Capital, investment banking department 1999-2001 Saint Petersburg Sea Port, financial director 2001-2003 National Container Co., president 2003-2004 TransCare logistics […]
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RFE/RL – Tom Balmforth – October 11, 2012 MOSCOW — Ever wanted to see an interactive map of all the bribes that change hands in Russia? Well, soon you may be able to, thanks to a new smartphone application released for free download by a group of entrepreneur activists. “Bribr,” a smartphone app designed by a team of 20 volunteer […]
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MOSCOW. Oct 11 (Interfax) – The Moscow City Court has evaluated the degree of every Pussy Riot member’s participation in the stunt in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. The court found that Yekaterina Samutsevich did not shout in the cathedral and she was freed. “Samutsevich, like the others, put on a cap, took out her guitar, got into a […]
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(Interfax – October 9, 2012) The development of land relations in Russia is being obstructed by corrupt officials, Russian President Vladimir Putin said. “Arbitrariness and corruption of officials is hampering and obstructing proper development of land relations in Russia, and, as a result, this slows down the country’s progress on the whole,” Putin said at a session of the Russian […]
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Natalia Antonova is the deputy editor of The Moscow News. (RIA Novosti – Natalia Antonova – October 8, 2012) When the tragic details of the final days of Russian bard Ada Yakusheva emerged on Facebook I was stunned. I had heard that Yakusheva was battling cancer, but what I hadn’t realized is that her doctors had denied her pain […]
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(Alexander Bratersky – Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – October 8, 2012) Prosecutor General Yury Chaika has ordered an investigation into claims in a television expose that opposition leader Sergei Udaltsov received funding from an ally of Georgia’s president and the former head of Bank of Moscow aimed at sowing discord in Russia. It was unclear Sunday what the investigation might […]
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Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Alexander Bratersky – October 5, 2012 The Foreign Ministry on Thursday complained that it had not been properly informed by United States authorities that a group of Russian citizens had been arrested on charges of smuggling microelectronics, raising “serious concerns” for Russia. “A lot is unclear in this story. It raises serious concerns, and we […]
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MOSCOW, October 4 (Dan Peleschuk, RIA Novosti) – A prominent human rights worker in Moscow has reported receiving anonymous threats on her cell phone. Tanya Lokshina, a senior Russia researcher for Human Rights Watch, said she received direct and severe threats via text messages mentioning specific details of her life, including her pregnancy. She also said the contents of the […]
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Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Howard Amos and Irina Filatova – October 3, 2012 Signaling the start a long-awaited overhaul at Gazprom, President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday called for corruption to be eliminated at the state-controlled gas giant and said its business model should be improved. Gazprom has been criticized for years by minority investors who believe their lucrative shares […]
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Why I Lost My Right To Speak in the Duma – Ilya Ponomaryov- Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – October 1, 2012 – click here to read full text of original article Ilya Ponomaryov is a State Duma deputy with A Just Russia. Ilya Ponomaryov writes in his Moscow Times op-ed about being banned from speaking in the Russian State Duma […]
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RFE/RL – October 2, 2012 A report debated on October 2 by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe strongly criticized Russia, highlighting limitations on free speech, political meddling in the judiciary, and multiple violations of human rights. The report was the first produced by the Strasbourg-based body to address Russia’s obligations and commitments to the Council of Europe […]
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MOSCOW, September 28 (RIA Novosti) – More members of the anti-Putin punk rock group Pussy Riot have been unmasked, pro-Kremlin youth group Nashi’s head Konstantin Goloskokov claimed on Friday. Nashi earlier announced that they had set up a “prize fund” which would go to anyone sharing reliable information with them regarding the identities of the remaining activists. Three members of […]
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Date: Fri, 28 Sep 2012 From: Sergei Roy <SergeiRoy@yandex.ru> Subject: rejoinder to Alexander Rahr Attached is my rejoinder to Alexander Rahr’s statements posted on JRL 25 September. West Is Punk?! By Sergei Roy [Former editor of Moscow News] Recently I was invited to take part in a panel discussion on US-Russia relations (reported on JRL 25 September 2012, item #36). […]
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Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Nikolaus von Twickel – September 27, 2012 Kremlin critic and billionaire Alexander Lebedev has been charged with hooliganism over a fistfight on a television show last year, the Investigative Committee said Wednesday. The charge, which carries a five-year prison sentence, is for “hooliganism motivated by political, ideological, racial, ethnic or religious hatred or enmity,” the […]
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Deadly Hobby of Dog Hunting Gains Popularity – Moscow Times/AP – September 24, 2012 – http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/deadly-hobby-of-dog-hunting-gains-popularity/468660.html The Moscow Times features an AP story about Moscow dog-killers, with reports of at least 70 dead dogs in a week prompting police action. Psychopaths who poison dogs apparently are using the internet and social networking to share information about the killings and their […]
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Yekaterina Kravtsova – Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – September 24, 2012 The State Duma tentatively approved a bill on Friday to broaden the legal definition of high treason, seen by human rights groups as part of a continuing crackdown on foreign-funded organizations in Russia. While lawmakers contend that the bill would make the work of law enforcement authorities more effective, […]
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Evgeniya Chaykovskaya – Moscow News – themoscownews.com – September 24, 2012 Seven people were killed and four more were injured at a bus stop in Moscow when a car hit it at 190 km per hour. The drunk man behind the wheel of a Toyota lost control of the car and crashed into a bus stop where people were waiting. […]
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(Interfax Moscow, 20 September) As early as two years ago Russia warned the USA about its grievances over the Agency for International Development (USAID), head of the State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee Aleksey Pushkov has said. “We warned the US side a long time ago – I think this story is already two years old – that we were not […]
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(Interfax – September 19, 2012) The head of the Russian presidential administration, Sergey Ivanov, has said there is no need “to make a tragedy out” of the fact that Russia holds the top position in various international corruption ratings, Interfax news agency reported on 19 September. “There is no need to feel outraged or to make a tragedy out of […]
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MOSCOW. Sept 19 (Interfax) – Members of all four State Duma factions have submitted a draft resolution in defense of the religious feelings of members of all creeds which the lower house may mull next Tuesday. “We will make the decision on behalf of the committee and submit the issue to the Duma Council so that it (the draft resolution) […]
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WASHINGTON. Sept 19 (Interfax) – The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has provided financial support in drafting the Russian Constitution and a number of federal codes over the 20 years of its work in Russia, USAID said in a statement posted on its website. “USAID-funded Rule of Law implementers helped draft the Russian Constitution, Part I of the Russian […]
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MOSCOW, September 16 (RIA Novosti)-The Prosecutor General’s Office has declared the film “Innocence of Muslims” extremist and will seek a court ruling to ban the controversial video in Russia, its spokeswoman said on Monday. Before a court ruling the Prosecutor General’s Office has instructed the federal mass communications watchdog “to take measures to prevent media distribution of the information contained […]
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Putin ‘Tightening Screws’ – Nezavisimaya Gazeta – September 10, 2011 – Article by Ivan Rodin, Nezavisimaya Gazeta political observer: “In Politics: Vladimir Putin’s Universal Screwdriver. Russian President Once Again Demonstrates His Signature Harshness.” [no link available to English-language version of original article] Nezavisimaya Gazeta observes that recently “the Russian president once again demonstrated his traditional harshness.” … specifically before […]
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Putin’s perks: Nice work – The Economist – September 1, 2012 click here to read original article The Economist covers a report by Boris Yeltsin deputy prime minister, and current opposition leader, Boris Nemtsov, addressing or alleging the life of wealth and luxury enjoyed by Russian President Vladimir Putin. Nemtsov and journalist Leonid Martynuk suggest Putin is motivated to maintain […]
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Search at factory of Navalny’s parents underway in Kirovles case – Itar-Tass – August 28 click here to read the orginal article Russian source Itar-Tass reports that authorities pursuing an investigation of Alexei Navalny have now conducted a search of his parents’ willow-weaving factory in the Moscow region. [Navalny is an opposition leader and anti-corruption lawyer-blogger.] The factory was first […]
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