Month: February 2008

February 28, 2008

Spotlight on Medvedev’s Style

Several stories in the US press today have focused on Dmitry Medvedev. The Wall Street Journal has compiled a series of extracts translated from Medvedev’s campaign appearance in Nizhny Novgorod, together with soundbites from past interviews and s...
February 28, 2008

Russians “Greatly Disappointed” by Obama’s Stance?

It seems that strong US foreign policy rhetoric regarding Russia is not finding itself well received. A reporter at Russian newspaper Kommersant believes that Russians observing the US election debates this week would likely have been “greatly dis...
February 28, 2008

Energy Blast, Feb. 28, 2008

The Russia-Ukraine gas saga continues. Although 2007 gas debts have been paid, Gazprom now says it will cut off supplies next week unless the government signs documents on debt payment and future deliveries. Ukraine refuses to pay some $80 million...
February 28, 2008

Today in Russian Business

Russian electricity producer TGK-13 plans to float new shares in Russia and abroad. Mining firm Norilsk Nickel has been named in a $178 million pollution suit filed by Rosprirodnadzor, Russia’s environment agency, in its largest ever claim a...
February 28, 2008

RA’s Daily Russia News Blast – Feb. 28, 2008

TODAY: Medvedev accusing of monopolizing airtime; inflation still a major issue; Russian MBAs increasing in popularity; Natalia Morari refused entry to Russia; billions of dollars to go into boosting Russia’s defense industry. Central Election Com...
February 28, 2008

WSJ on YouTube Censorship

We got a write up in the Wall Street Journal on the YouTube censorship experience – thankfully the Lev Ponomarev video has now been reinstated. See previous coverage here. More commentary is forthcoming. YouTube Restores Video Appearing to S...
February 27, 2008

Audio: Lev Ponomarev Interview

WBEZ in Chicago is running their interview with Lev Ponomarev. Listen here. Lev Ponomarev is with the All-Russian Movement for Human Rights and works with the “The Other Russia” coalition. Lev is a harsh critic of the Putin regime’s repression of ...
February 27, 2008

Nothing Left to Say about Russia’s Dictatorship

Today the New York Times is running a rather unremarkable editorial on Russia, which seems to suggest that the newspaper has nothing left to say about this new authoritarian state. President Bush, and soon his successor, will have to come to terms...
February 27, 2008

Springtime for Putin on Russia Today

In Russia, all the world is green – at least that’s the impression you’re left with from watching the Kremlin mouthpiece news channel Russia Today. Founded in 2005 by state news agency RIA Novosti, the government funded 24-hour c...
February 27, 2008

Video: Clinton Struggles to Name Medvedev

A news report from Russia Today focuses on a debate last night between US Democratic Presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, which strayed into the territory of the upcoming Russian presidential elections. The Russia Today report...