Stanovaya: Behind the Surkov-Volodin Shuffle
In this exclusive translation, Russian political analyst Tatiana Stanovaya takes a look at the critical cabinet shuffle which saw Vladislav Surkov moved to Deputy Prime Minister and the promotion of long-time Putin loyalist Vyacheslav Volodin to essentially head up the presidential campaign.
Zyuganov Strikes a Deal with Udaltsov
In a fascinating development, long-time Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov has announced that the party has formed a solidarity pact with Left Front, headed by opposition Sergei Udaltsov, who most recently rose to fame while serving a 25-day prison sentence following the first major protests (our gratitude to a reader that sent us the story). […]
Welcome to Moscow, Ambassador McFaul
The new U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul has released a video introducing himself to the Russian people. Interesting use of direct diplomacy.
Kudrin Acknowledges Election Fraud
The defection of long-time state official Alexei Kudrin to the “opposition” may in fact be a Kremlin ploy, but some of his latest statements are quite interesting. From the Associated Press: “Without the acknowledgment that the parliamentary election was unfair, the fairness of the presidential vote will be thrown into doubt, irrespective of how honest […]
Russia’s Human Rights Joke
As many readers know, Russia decided to play a bit of a gag by releasing a scathing “human rights report” aimed at criticizing the United States over Guatanamo and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, while leaving aside anything having to do with Russia, China, or any other authoritarian regimes that are known as the […]
Boris Akunin Interviews Alexei Navalny
Boris Akunin’s interview with opposition darling Alexei Navalny enters into hostile territory, as the novelist confronts him on questions of nationalism.
After Putin, Democracy Not a Guarantee
Today’s news is packed with all sorts of opinion articles speculating on what sort of brave new world we are looking at after the December 10th protests. Naturally, much of this stargazing is wildly premature, but still irresistible nonetheless. Writing on The New Republic, Paul Starobin becomes the first guy to reach what we can […]
Well-Fed Cattle
There’s an interesting and revealing quote tucked away at the bottom of Ellen Barry’s piece in the New York Times today: There seemed little concern about that in the huge, swirling crowd, where university students chanted alongside elegantly dressed pensioners. Galina Bogunets, 74, a retired factory worker, said she wanted fair elections and was willing […]
Poland Denies Impact of Nord Stream
You think that for a country relying on Gazprom for about 61% of its natural gas imports, that Poland would be somewhat distressed by the circumventing Nord Stream pipeline going online this week, allowing Russia the possibility to cut or curtail supplies during price disputes without sacrificing delivery of gas further west. Not so, says […]
Putin’s Popularity Down, Populist Spending Goes Up
Some interesting developments in Russian politics in the months since President Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said that they would swap jobs – a decision that they say that had made several years prior. A new Levada poll shows that the popularity of the United Russia party, Medvedev, and even Putin are all […]
Russia News Blast
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RA’s Daily Russia News Blast – February 24, 2022
Today in Russia: Invasion. Will the world respond?
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RA’s Daily Russia News Blast – February 23, 2022
Today in Russia/CIS: Ukraine calls up reservists; Levada Center Director Volkov on public opinion in Russia; Erdogan says Turkey won’t accept Russian moves in Ukraine; EU and US latest sanctions; Russia-Ukraine crisis as viewed Uzbekistan; Israel walks a tightrope on its Ukraine position
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RA’s Daily Russia News Blast – February 22, 2022
but which borders?;’ History professor (and President) Putin delivers fiery speech; Lavrov re-writes the rules of international sovereignty; UK and EU roll out initial sanctions, and Washington plans big moves; Nord Stream 2 finally meets its end after a slow, painful death; Zelensky’s speech; White House: On second thought, that’s an invasion; How will China respond?; Russia to evacuate all diplomatic staff from Ukraine
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