Archive

September 9, 2010

McFaul on Democracy and the Market

Back in 2008, Stanford professor Michael McFaul wrote an article in Foreign Affairs along with Kathryn Stoner-Weiss which upset the Putin-supporting camp.  Then, following the election of Barack Obama, McFaul was appointed as the key Russia a...
September 9, 2010

The Russian Roosevelt?

It’s an argument so simple and obvious that I actually haven’t seen all that many people bothering to make it.  Nevertheless, the Financial Times is running an editorial gently suggesting that it might not be such a good idea for ...
September 9, 2010

Energy Blast – Sept 9, 2010

BP has released the report of its internal probe into the Deepwater explosion and oil disaster, acknowledging its own culpability but also blaming its partners, provoking an immediate backlash. ‘Of their own eight key findings, they only exp...
September 9, 2010

Today in Russian Business – Sept 9, 2010

China and Russia could start trading in rubles and yuan ‘within weeks‘ in a bid to diminish dependence on the dollar in global trade, Bloomberg reports. ‘It makes sense for two large economies to exclude a third, overly dominant ...
September 9, 2010

RA’s Daily Russian News Blast – Sept 9, 2010

TODAY: US officials speak out about human rights in Russia; Pomonarev imprisonment criticized; Fink jailed; United Russia deputies head all regional parliaments? Altai journalist charged with defamation; Altai village loses all of its homes in wil...
September 9, 2010

Grigory Pasko: Ranking Russia’s Constitutional Court

During a meeting on improving the judicial system this past July, President Dmitry Medvedev noted that “the modern-day court must be open for public control and in a greater degree accessible for citizens.” The president also spoke abo...
September 8, 2010

Putin’s Rethink on Georgia?

Interesting comments from the prime minister in the Wall Street Journal.  However this seems about as believable as Skidelsky’s observations that Putin’s interest in power is waning…  Voluntary retirement and minimal co...
September 8, 2010

South Caucasus: The Arms Basket of Europe

Amanda Paul has a wake-up call in Today’s Zaman on the escalating arms race among the four countries of the South Caucasus. The West seems to have become very complacent that this “no war, no peace” situation is sustainable and g...
September 8, 2010

Energy Blast – Sept 8, 2010

China has agreed that it will increase its consumption of Russian coal by two-thirds, and supply Russia with a $6 billion loan to ensure that it can uphold the supply side of the bargain.  The CIS Economic Court wants Russia and Belarus to fi...
September 8, 2010

Today in Russian Business – Sept 8, 2010

President Dmitry Medvedev has hired an investment banker as an adviser on social issues, says Reuters.  A new, ‘liberal‘ package of anti-monopoly legislation being put forward by the Duma includes price control measures and rules ...