TODAY: Putin praises Chavez legacy, ministers say that contracts will not be affected; Gorbachev criticises Kremlin ‘thieves’; Georgian wine imports to resume; Russian-speakers fighting in Syria; Chinese and Czech investments; Udaltsov house arrest upheld; journalist’s bravery commended.

President Vladimir Putin praised the legacy of ‘close friend’ Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, calling him ‘an unorthodox and strong person’ who devoted his life to ‘justice and equality’.  Analysts are speculating about the future of Russia’s oil contracts with Venezuela amid the latter’s new political uncertainty, as it was announced that Rosneft president Igor Sechin will head the Russian delegation at Chavez’s funeral.  Trade and Industry Minister Denis Manturov, who will also attend, said that a change in Veneuelan leadership will not affect ongoing contracts and agreements with Russia.  Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov supported this, asserting that ‘a constructive, positive and mutually beneficial agenda will remain a constant for any government, as it will from the Russian side’.  In a new interview, Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev criticised the Kremlin’s ‘thieves and corrupt officials’, denounced new laws as an attack on citizens’ rights, and urged Putin ‘not to be afraid of his own people’.  Russia is to allow 36 Georgian wineries and four makers of mineral water to register their products, marking the end of a seven-year ban on Georgian imports.  According to the Volga Center think tank, Russian speakers are fighting against Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria: ‘The presence of Russian-speaking militants in Syria could be a serious cause for concern for the Russian government, the experts said, given the likelihood that they could return to Russia battle-toughened.’