Category: United States, U.S.-Russian Relations

RUSSIALINK: “Russia, U.S. reached understanding in Osaka on strategic stability – Ryabkov” – Interfax

United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Sergei Ryabkov file photo

MOSCOW. July 1 (Interfax) – Moscow and Washington have reached substantial understanding on strategic stability, and Russia expects dialogue at the expert level to be resumed soon, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said. “Strategic stability was one of the two areas on which substantial mutual understanding was reached in Osaka,” Ryabkov  said at the Valdai Discussion Club on Monday […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia Warns of Repeat of 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis” – Reuters

JRL NewsBlog, Nuclear, Missile Defense, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Iskander Missile with Launch file photo

“… [regarding] U.S. deployment of land-based missile systems near Russia’s borders …. ‘If things get as far as an actual deployment on the ground of these sorts of systems, then the situation won’t just get more complicated, it will escalate right to the limit,’ RIA news agency quoted [Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei] Ryabkov as saying. ‘We could find ourselves […]

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[NEW RESOURCE: U.S.-Russia Relations: Quest for Stability:] “Whiskey and Vodka: Distilling U.S.-Russia Relations” – Deana Arsenian/ Carnegie Corporation of New York International Peace and Security News

United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Stylized Russian and U.S. Flags, 200, 1807-2007

(Carnegie Corporation of New York International Peace and Security News – Deana Arsenian – June 19, 2019) Subject: Whiskey and Vodka: Distilling U.S.-Russia Relations Date: Wed, 19 Jun 2019 From: Deana Arsenian <communications@carnegie.org> Carnegie Corporation of New York International Peace and Security NEWS The stakes between the U.S. and Russia are greater than at any point since the Cold War. […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “White House’s Top Russia Adviser Fiona Hill to Leave Position; National Security Council’s non-proliferation director to succeed her” – Wall Street Journal/ Vivian Salama

JRL NewsBlog, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of White House with South Lawn and Fountain

“… top [Trump] Russia adviser [Fiona Hill] is leaving … in August … [to] be succeeded by … current … National Security Council … nonproliferation [head] Tim Morrison …. Hill, a … staunch [Putin] critic has held the position since March 2017 …. Hill had just assumed [the role] … when … Trump invited Russia[n] foreign minister … Lavrov[] and […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Michael Calvey Case Revisited: A Corporate Hit, a Bargaining Chip” – Kennan Institute/ Pavel Koshkin

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Cash, Calculator, Pen

(Kennan Institute – wilsoncenter.org/program/kennan-institute – Pavel Koshkin – wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/michael-calvey-case-revisited-corporate-hit-bargaining-chip) Pavel Koshkin is a research fellow of the Institute of U.S. and Canadian Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences (ISKRAN) and a contributor to Forbes Russia The American investor Michael Calvey, who was detained in February in Moscow on fraud charges, is back in the news again. Calvey, who has […]

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Putin Says Russia Prepared To Drop Arms Control Treaty If U.S. Not Interested In Renewal

Nuclear, Missile Defense, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Russian Mobile ICBM Parade File Photo

(Article text ©2019 RFE/RL, Inc., Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty – rferl.org – June 6, 2019 – article text also appeared at rferl.org/a/putin-says-russia-prepared-to-drop-arms-control-treaty-if-u-s-not-interested-in-renewal/29984790.html) In a far-ranging discussion on foreign policy, President Vladimir Putin said that Russia is prepared to drop the New START arms control treaty if the United States is not interested in renewing it. Speaking on June 6 at […]

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Russia’s National Projects: Economic Reboot or Mucky Bog?

Budget, Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections, Sanctions, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

(Russia Matters – russiamatters.org – Ben Aris – May 30, 2019) Ben Aris is editor in chief of bne Intellinews. He has been covering Russia as a journalist since 1993. While Moscow has been aggressively advancing its interests on the international stage, Russia’s stagnating economy means the country risks gradually falling behind the rest of the world and possibly facing […]

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Will The U.S. Slap Sanctions On Nord Stream 2?

Europe, EU, Germany, Oil, Gas, Energy, Sanctions, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Gas Flame file photo

(Oilprice.com – Nick Cunningham – May 23, 2019) There is a growing push in the U.S. Congress to slap sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. The pipeline under construction would carry Russian natural gas to Germany, and has been a lightning rod of controversy both in Europe and across the Atlantic. Many governments and officials from Eastern Europe fear […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH VIDEO: “The U.S. Department of Energy’s Rebranded ‘Freedom Gas’ Is a Not-So-Subtle Dig at Russia” – Fortune

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Europe, EU, JRL NewsBlog, Oil, Gas, Energy, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Gas Flame file photo

[scroll down for video] “… the Department of Energy … [has] touted the expansion of [a] liquid natural gas … facility … by saying that it would spread ‘freedom gas’ to the world. … giv[ing] ‘America’s allies a diverse and affordable source of clean energy’ …. Not only has the U.S. become largely energy independent … the shale boom has […]

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Fred Weir: “[Re NYT ‘Potential Clash Over Secrets Looms Between Justice Dept. and C.I.A.’]” – facebook/fred.weir

Media, Internet, Social Media, Television, Spies, Spy Allegations, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of Kremlin Tower, St. Basil's, Red Square at Night

(Fred Weir, Christian Science Monitor Correspondent – Facebook post – May 30, 2019 – facebook.com/fred.weir/posts/10218476254873823) “Here is one of those stories, in this case a huge NYT exclusive, that make my jaw drop with disbelief. I don’t know much about the intelligence biz — it’s not really my beat — but I do know that there is virtually no chance […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Top U.S. and Russian Diplomats Discussed Ways to End Syria War” – AP

JRL NewsBlog, Syria, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Syria Map

“Top U.S. and Russian diplomats discussed step-by-step implementation of a 2012 roadmap to U.N.-supervised elections in Syria that could allow a Syrian government ‘to move back into the international community’ … [Ambassador James Jeffrey] said … indicat[ing] a new U.S.-Russian engagement on efforts to end the eight-year Syrian conflict that has killed over 400,000 people …. But Jeffrey cautioned that […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Still possible to prevent Tehran’s possible withdrawal from JCPOA, NPT – Russian ambassador to Iran” – Interfax

Iran, Middle East, North Africa, Nuclear Proliferation, Nuclear, Missile Defense, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Iran Map and Flag

MOSCOW. May 30 (Interfax) – Moscow will deeply regret Iran’s potential withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), but there is still a chance to avert this negative scenario, Russian Ambassador to Iran Levan Dzhagaryan said in an interview published in the newspaper Izvestia on Thursday. “Doubtlessly, Iran’s […]

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Toward the Possibility of a New U.S.-Russian “Reset”: Does Their Hot & Cold Past Foretell Their Future?

United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Vladirmir Putin and Donald Trump Sitting in Chairs with Flags Behind, adapted from image at whitehouse.gov

(PONARS Eurasia Policy Memo – Ivan Kurilla – May 28, 2019 – Ivan Kurilla is Professor at the European University at St. Petersburg) Relations between Russia and the United States have been known to change, for the better or for the worse, within a relatively short period of time. Drawing on historical examples, I analyze cases when relations improved and […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “U.S. Says Russia Likely Conducting Low-Yield Nuke Tests, Defying Test Ban Treaty” – Wall Street Journal/ Michael R. Gordon

JRL NewsBlog, Nuclear, Missile Defense, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Montage of Radioactivity Symbol and Russian Map with Russian Flag, adapted from images at .gov sites

“Intelligence assessment marks first time U.S. has said Kremlin failed to observe Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty commitments” “Russia has likely been secretly carrying out very low-yield nuclear tests to upgrade its nuclear arsenal, according to a new U.S. intelligence assessment, challenging Moscow’s claims …. the first time the U.S. has said the Kremlin has failed to strictly observe its […]

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The U.S. Is Losing The Nuclear Race To Russia And China

Nuclear Energy, Oil, Gas, Energy, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Russian Nuclear Power Plant file photo

(Oilprice.com – May 23, 2019 – Tsvetana Paraskova) While nuclear power plants in the U.S. are retiring as they face stiff cost competition from cheap and abundant natural gas, America has also been struggling to keep its leadership on the global nuclear power market as state-sponsored programs in China and Russia have started to dominate the world’s nuclear plant construction […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “American Hustle; What Mueller Found – and Didn’t Find – About Trump and Russia” – Foreign Affairs/ Stephen Kotkin

Cybersecurity, Media, Internet, Social Media, Television, Spies, Spy Allegations, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of White House with South Lawn and Fountain

“… Russian intelligence organizations … could manage entirely on their own to hack e-mail accounts, line up cutouts such as WikiLeaks to disseminate damaging material, impersonate Americans on social media, and study elementary research available in open sources about battleground states and swing voters. * * * … The sections of the report that treat what Russia intended and achieved […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Trump Suggests He Authorized Cyber Attack on Russia: ‘It Happened During My Administration'” – Mediaite/ Connor Mannion

Cybersecurity, JRL NewsBlog, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

“[In an interview to air Sunday,] … Trump hinted to Fox[] … that he authorized a cyber attack against Russia …. ‘It’s been reported this year that you personally authorized a cyber attack on Russia around the time of the midterms last year in order to stop them meddling in the midterm election,’ [Steve] Hilton asked referring to a report […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Trenin: Pompeo’s visit wasn’t about a reset or even detente” – Meduza

JRL NewsBlog, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations

“… Carnegie Moscow Center director Dmitri Trenin says U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s visit to Sochi this week was about reducing misunderstandings and miscalculations in Russian-American relations, not developing full-fledged cooperation …. [carnegie.ru/commentary/79133] Trenin says Pompeo’s meetings with … Lavrov and … Putin were the latest steps in the White House’s push to reestablish high-level contacts. … “What each […]

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Sharon Tennison: “Russia: Travel with a Purpose”

United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Stylized Russian and U.S. Flags, 200, 1807-2007

“… Never has up-to-date data about Russia been more crucial. … Join a delegation of 100 Americans … who will question Russian VIPs in Moscow, travel in two or three-person mini-groups to 30 Russian cities across 11 time zones …. as ‘citizen diplomats’ listening, learning, collecting impressions to bring back to city/state officials and to the U.S. Congress. ….”

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Trump, Russia seek to use end of Mueller investigation as pivot point in relationship; Putin calls Mueller investigation ‘objective'” – Washington Post/ Anne Gearan, Anton Troianovski

JRL NewsBlog, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of White House with South Lawn and Fountain

“… the special counsel investigation of Russian election interference now complete, the Trump administration cautiously offered a fresh start with Russia … as the two countries find their interests colliding on a range of international issues. … Trump dispatched Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to meet with … Putin, bearing a message that the United States is ready to renew […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Overextending and Unbalancing Russia; Assessing the Impact of Cost-Imposing Options” – RAND

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Europe, EU, JRL NewsBlog, Military, NATO, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Mercator Projection Satellite Image of Earth

“This brief summarizes a report that comprehensively examines nonviolent, cost-imposing options that the United States and its allies could pursue across economic, political, and military areas to stress – overextend and unbalance – Russia’s economy and armed forces and the regime’s political standing at home and abroad. …”

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Ukraine and NATO: Disconnect Between State Policy and Public Opinion Is Less Dangerous Than Russia

NATO, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
NATO Meeting File Photo

“… Zelenskiy has repeatedly reaffirmed his predecessor’s policy of bringing Ukraine ever closer to Europe and has said that, as a citizen, he supports … accession to NATO. However, unlike … Poroshenko, Zelenskiy insists the question of joining the Western military alliance should be decided by a popular referendum. …”

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Putin and Trump’s Ominous Nostalgia for the Second World War” –  The New Yorker/ Masha Gessen

History, Soviet Union, JRL NewsBlog, Military, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of Donald Trump and Putin Standing Side-by-Side at Helsinki Summit, adapted from image at whitehouse.gov

“… Victory Day is undoubtedly Russia’s most important, most grandly celebrated, and most political holiday. … not observed … immediately following the Second World War, in which the Soviet Union lost an estimated twenty-seven million people; it became a holiday a generation later … gain[ing] in prominence as the U.S.S.R. unleashed less righteous battles abroad …. After the Soviet Union […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Comey says it’s possible the Russians have something compromising on Trump” – CNN/ Kate Sullivan

JRL NewsBlog, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
James Comey file photo, adapted from image at fbi.gov

[first portion of CNN post:] “Former FBI Director James Comey said Thursday that it is possible the Russians have leverage over President Donald Trump. CNN’s Anderson Cooper asked Comey at a town hall in Washington, ‘Do you think the Russians have leverage over President Trump?’ ‘I don’t know the answer to that,’ Comey responded. ‘Think it’s possible?’ Cooper asked. ‘Yes,’ […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH “Russia ramps up bond sales ahead of possible U.S. sanctions; Moscow’s $1.1bn issuance comes after April fundraising smashed records” – Financial Times/ Max Seddon, Nikou Asgari

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, JRL NewsBlog, Sanctions, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of Facade of Russian Finance Ministry

“… [Russia’s] finance ministry sold Rbs73bn ($1.1bn) in rouble-denominated bonds … Wednesday[,] … part of a plan to raise Rbs600bn in domestic debt this quarter. … [after] a record Rbs400bn in April – four times [Russia’s] monthly average – feeding strong investor appetite for high-yielding emerging market debt. … [Analysts regard the efforts] as a pre-emptive stockpiling … [against] the […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia’s Venezuela motives: It’s about the U.S., not Maduro.” – Christian Science Monitor/ Fred Weir

JRL NewsBlog, Latin America, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations, Venezuela
Venezuela Map, adapted from image at cia.gov

“Historically, when Washington and Moscow have butted heads over a power struggle in a third-party nation, it’s been in a Cold War context. But the core issue over their divide on Venezuela today is simpler: staking out turf.” “… Russian affinity for former Venezuelan leader Hugo Chávez’ Bolivarian Socialism has no part in it. … The U.S. demands that Russia […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Inside the West’s Plans for Arctic War Against Russia” – DailyBeast/ Nico Hines

Arctic, Britain, UK, United Kingdom, Environment, JRL NewsBlog, Military, NATO, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Map of Arctic Highlighting Permafrost, adapted from image at nasa.gov

“Moscow is growing belligerent in its quest to pry open the icy route to the Atlantic. The U.S. and Britain are racing to catch up, but is it too late?” “… deep in the Arctic Circle, some of the world’s best-trained commandos … struggl[e] to complete an ambush exercise knee-deep in … snow. Britain’s Royal Marines make painfully slow progress […]

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Have Sanctions on Russia Changed Putin’s Calculus?

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Sanctions, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Portion of U.S. Treasury Department Building Facade, North Side, with Sculpture of Alexander Hamilton

Since Russia’s 2014 invasion of Ukraine, Western powers have hit Moscow with economic sanctions, hoping to put a stop to President Vladimir Putin’s aggression. Have they worked? (Council on Foreign Relations – Andrew Chatzky – May 2, 2019 – cfr.org/article/have-sanctions-russia-changed-putins-calculus – Andrew Chatzky covers economics, energy, and geopolitics, and helps edit the Daily News Brief.) The United States and the […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “How the US could push Russia’s defense spending to the brink” – Stars and Stripes/ William Howard

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, JRL NewsBlog, Military, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Russian Jet Buzzing U.S. Navy Destroyer, adapted from U.S. Navy photo

“The United States should … drive Russia to spend money in a tit-for-tat power game that its smaller economy can’t support [a RAND study] said …. The West can exploit factors … making Russia more vulnerable, such as economic sanctions, fuel prices falling below peak levels, an aging population and increasing authoritarianism under … Putin … [but the study] also […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “The Russia Investigation Will Continue; Counterintelligence agencies must find it hard to believe the cupboard is already bare” – The Atlantic/ John Sipher

JRL NewsBlog, Spies, Spy Allegations, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of White House with South Lawn and Fountain

“… Mueller’s Russia probe is over, and … Trump on Friday again described the probe as a ‘Witch Hunt,’ [yet] the FBI is almost certain to continue its counterintelligence investigation into Russian espionage efforts related to the 2016 election. …”

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Herzog Says Gorbachev Documentary Has a ‘Subversive Message'” – AP

History, Soviet Union, JRL NewsBlog, Life in Russia, Culture, Arts, Nuclear, Missile Defense, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of Mikhail Gorbachev and Ronald Reagan at Table Signing Documents

“Werner Herzog says there’s a ‘subversive message’ to his new documentary ‘Meeting Gorbachev’: Talk to your geopolitical enemies. Herzog interviewed former Soviet Union President Mikhail Gorbachev three times in a six-month span to make the new film. He highlights … the reunification of Herzog’s native Germany as well as the groundbreaking 1986 arms control summit with U.S. President Ronald Reagan. […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH VIDEO: “The Russia story cannot die — CNN, the Democratic Party, others have too much invested in it” – Fox/ Tucker Carlson

Cybersecurity, Spies, Spy Allegations, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
U.S. Capitol in Bright Sunlight

“… Barr first served as Attorney General in the George H.W. Bush administration. That was 1991. … Then this February, purely by process of elimination, basically as he was the one guy could get confirmed, Barr became Attorney General of the United States once again. The Mueller investigation was nearly over when he got the job. Barr probably didn’t expect […]

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Getting Somewhere With Russia: A Q&A With Angela Stent

United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Vladirmir Putin and Donald Trump Sitting in Chairs with Flags Behind, adapted from image at whitehouse.gov

(Russia Matters – russiamatters.org – RM Staff – May 1, 2019 – russiamatters.org/analysis/getting-somewhere-russia-qa-angela-stent) Georgetown University professor Angela Stent is one of the West’s foremost Russia experts, with an impressive career in both academia and government service. She currently directs the university’s Center for Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies and also teaches in the department of government, which she joined […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “U.S. rolls ‘100K tons of international diplomacy’ into the Med. Will Russia get the message?” – Defense News/ Matthew Bodner

JRL NewsBlog, Military, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of Portions of U.S. Navy Carrier Groups Lincoln and Stennis in Mediterranean, adapted from defense.gov image relating to defense.gov video

“…. ‘Each of the carriers operating in the Mediterranean as this time represent 100,000 tons of international diplomacy,’ Huntsman said …. ‘Diplomatic communication and dialogue, coupled with the strong defenses these ships provide, demonstrate to Russia that if it truly seeks better relations with the United states, it must cease its destabilizing activities around the world.’ …”

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “How the Obama White House engaged Ukraine to give Russia collusion narrative an early boost” – The Hill/ John Solomon

JRL NewsBlog, Ukraine, Russo-Ukrainian War, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of Susan Rice and Barack Hussein Obama in St. Petersburg Russia, with Mural of St. Petersburg Scene in Background, adapted from image at whitehouse.gov

“As … Trump began his meteoric rise … the Obama White House summoned Ukrainian authorities to Washington …. Ukrainian participants said it didn’t take long … to realize the Americans’ objectives included two politically hot investigations: one that touched … Biden’s family and one that involved a lobbying firm linked closely to then-candidate Trump. … [O]ne of the earliest documented […]

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‘Track 2’ Talks Take U.S.-Russian Relations Where Official Channels Won’t

Military, Nuclear, Missile Defense, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Russian Mobile ICBM Parade File Photo

“… With relations between Moscow and the alliance all but frozen, ‘Track 2’ discussions between the U.S. and Russia have become especially important. ….”

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Sarah Lindemann-Komarova: “Russiagate, There are No Winners”

Belarus, History, Soviet Union, Human Rights, Military, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of American Soldier Meeting Soviet Soldiers in Berlin in 1945, adapted from image at army.mil

Subject: Russiagate, There are No Winners Date: Thu, 25 Apr 2019 From: Sarah Lindemann-Komarova <echosiberia@gmail.com> Russiagate, There are No Winners Sarah Lindemann-Komarova [Sarah Lindemann-Komarova has been a community development activist in Siberia since 1992. Currently she is focusing on research and writing about civil society in Russia.] medium.com/@ECHOSiberia/russiagate-there-are-no-winners-4de2dd97acbc Baby boomers, Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z, we are now into the […]

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With North Korea, Russia Knows It Can Only Play Second Fiddle to China and US

China, North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation, Nuclear, Missile Defense, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
North Korea Map and Flag, adapted from .gov image

(Russia Matters – russiamatters.org – Simon Saradzhyan – April 25, 2019 – russiamatters.org/blog/north-korea-russia-knows-it-can-only-play-second-fiddle-china-and-us) This week’s summit between Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un—the first between the Russian and North Korean leaders—has proved to be as underwhelming as expected. While the two spent twice as much time talking face-to-face as had been planned, they neither announced any major agreements nor appeared […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “It’s Time to Rethink Russia’s Foreign Policy Strategy” – Carnegie Moscow/ Dmitri Trenin

China, Europe, EU, Foreign Policy, Security, Visas, JRL NewsBlog, Russia & the West, Ukraine, Russo-Ukrainian War, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Mercator Projection Satellite Image of Earth

“A broad public discussion on Moscow’s foreign policy goals and objectives is long overdue. International issues are affecting the interests of Russian society as a whole more and more, making it necessary for private citizens to take a greater interest in their country’s conduct abroad, especially in the single continental space that is Greater Eurasia.” “It has been just over […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russian Memes Didn’t Steal the Election; Being influenced by foreign propaganda doesn’t cost a citizen his right to vote” – Wall Street Journal/ Crispin Sartwell

Cybersecurity, JRL NewsBlog, Media, Internet, Social Media, Television, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Multilingual Polling Place Sign from U.S. Election Polling Place

“… It’s worth pondering what really would throw an election’s legitimacy into question. Directly compromising the vote by hacking voting machines or disposing of absentee ballots does the job – the latter triggered the invalidation of a North Carolina House race …. So does jailing opponents, banning political parties, or threatening or bribing voters. But a social-media campaign, even coordinated […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Helping Ukraine to Help Ourselves; Russia and the international community should take advantage of this window of opportunity.” – Moscow Times/ Igor Ivanov

Europe, EU, JRL NewsBlog, Military, Ukraine, Russo-Ukrainian War, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of Igor Ivanov, adapted from image at defense.gov by Steven C. Welsh, www.stevencwelsh.info and www.stevencwelsh.com

“It is common knowledge that Russia and the leading Western states have wildly different assessments of the Ukrainian crisis with regard to its causes, nature and driving forces. Some of these differences will be very hard to overcome, particularly in the short term. … notwithstanding, it is absolutely clear that both Russia and the West should be extremely interested in […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “What the Mueller Report Tells Us About How Russia Works; Please, put away those onion-dome-on-the-White-House graphics and abandon those excitable claims of Trump as a Russian agent.” – Moscow Times/ Mark Galeotti

JRL NewsBlog, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of White House with South Lawn and Fountain

“… Putin’s Russia is … an ‘adhocracy’ … in which the true elite is defined by service to the needs of the Kremlin rather than any specific institutional or social identity. They may be spies, or diplomats, journalists, politicians, or millionaires; essentially they are all ‘political entrepreneurs’ who both seek to serve the Kremlin or are required to do so, […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH AUDIO: “Former U.S. Ambassador To Russia Discusses Findings Of Mueller Report”- NPR/ Michael McFaul

Audio, JRL NewsBlog, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of Michael McFaul Standing and Barack Hussein Obama Sitting at Desk, adapted from image at whitehouse.gov

“MCFAUL: … I’ve actually been dealing with Russian trolls and Russian real people on social media since I was ambassador in 2012, and I think it just underscores how sophisticated this operation was by Russia. I still fear that a lot of Americans have underestimated both their capacity to interfere in our elections and their will to do it. And […]

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Trump and Russia: ‘Quid Pro Quo’ or Quid Pro Talk?

Sanctions, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Vladirmir Putin and Donald Trump Sitting in Chairs with Flags Behind, adapted from image at whitehouse.gov

(Russia Matters – russiamatters.org – RM Staff – April 18, 2019 – russiamatters.org/blog/trump-and-russia-quid-pro-quo-or-quid-pro-talk) A few weeks before today’s release of the voluminous Mueller report, a former New York Times executive editor, Max Frankel, argued in an op-ed that the Trump campaign and “Vladimir Putin’s oligarchy” had reached an “obvious bargain” in the run-up to the 2016 presidential election: The “overarching […]

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Sergey Rogov: “Russian-American Conference on Arms Control”

Nuclear, Missile Defense, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Russian Mobile ICBM Parade File Photo

Subject: Russian-American Conference on Arms Control Date: Mon, 15 Apr 2019 From: Sergey Rogov <sergeyrogov@hotmail.com> To: davidjohnson@starpower.net I think you might be interested in this information: On April 9-10 the Institute of USA and Canada Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences organized in Moscow a Russian-American workshop on nuclear arms control with participation of many well known experts from […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Former ambassador: U.S. should stop trying to make friends with Russia” – Missoula Current (Montana)/ Laura Lundquist

JRL NewsBlog, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Ambassador Mike McFaul file photo

“… Putin, suspecting the U.S. of trying to overthrow him, targeted McFaul for … two years. Russian state media discredited McFaul using propaganda and political harassment. … Obama pulled McFaul out. … [I]s Putin, the man who controls … Russian government and media, really so popular? McFaul isn’t so sure. … Russia is the most highly surveilled country in the […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Military Drills in Arctic Aim to Counter Russia, but the First Mission Is to Battle the Cold” – New York Times/ Helene Cooper

Arctic, Canada, Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, JRL NewsBlog, Military, NATO, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Arctic Map

“… the melting polar ice cap has opened up the Arctic, disappearing what used to be an impenetrable barrier between North America and Russia. … NATO is rushing to try to catch up. … ‘Russia is increasing its military presence in the Arctic,’ said … a [NATO] spokesman … [NATO is] ‘monitoring Russia’s Arctic buildup carefully.’ In fact, Russia has […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Calvey to stay under house arrest till mid-summer” – Interfax

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Human Rights, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Kremlin and River

MOSCOW. April 12 (Interfax) – The Basmanny District Court in Moscow has extended the period of house arrest of Baring Vostok investment fund founder and senior partner Michael Calvey, who is charged with fraud, until July 14, an Interfax correspondent reported from the courtroom. “The court will grant the request of investigators. The court will also extend the period of […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “The Threat of Nuclear War Is Still With Us; The U.S. must re-engage with Russia to ensure the ultimate weapon doesn’t spread and is never used” – Wall Street Journal/ George P. Shultz, William J. Perry, Sam Nunn

JRL NewsBlog, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Nuclear Mushroom Cloud

“… A bold policy shift is needed to support a strategic re-engagement with Russia …. The most difficult task facing the U.S. is also the most important – to refocus on America’s most vital interests even as we respond firmly to Russia’s aggressions. … The U.S. and other nuclear states have yet to take decisive steps toward the goal of […]

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