Murder in the North Caucasus
Vitaly Karayev, mayor of the city Vladikavkaz in North Ossetia, was assassinated today, presumably by sniper fire. His death is the latest in an increasingly unstable wave of violence across the region.
Archive
Norilsk as the Grand Prize of the Crisis
The greatest prize from the new “Shares for Loans” scandal looks to be Norilsk Nickel, as the Wall Street Journal reports on the creeping nationalization of one monster of a metals company. Neither Potanin or Deripaska are willin...
Delusions of Politically Convenient Pipelines
A great new energy blog called The Crude View has been launched by our friends Derek Brower and Tom Nicholls. Below is an excerpt of a recent piece they did about a speech at Chatham House by a fundraiser for the Nabucco pipeline – the...
Concerns over Russia’s Interest in Latin America
Insofar as the official reaction, both military officials and the U.S. State Department appear to be handling Russia’s increased activism and showmanship in Latin America with measured dismissals – no big deal, nothing to worry about.&...
Energy Blast – Nov 26, 2008
‘Russia’s role as a potential hazard to the post-2012 climate-change negotiations is being dramatically underestimated.‘ Ukraine has agreed to pay back its gas debts to Gazprom and rescue plans to secure next year’s s...
Today in Russian Business – Nov 26, 2008
The government has published its strategic plan for economic development until 2012, which supposedly ‘puts human capital and the Russian citizen at the forefront‘. In an attempt to implement its ‘aggressive‘ three-ye...
RA’s Daily Russia News Blast – Nov 26, 2008
TODAY: A new twist – Politkovskaya case to be open to the media; Samara judge and North Ossetian mayor both shot; Georgian diplomat accuses government of plotting war; will NATO’s refusal to Ukraine look like Russian victory? It is bei...
Justice in Suspended Animation
It’s remarkable how often I come across stories from other lawyers working in faraway foreign jurisdictions, sharing tales of frustration and disbelief over the lack of due process and independence of the courts, and finding myself face-to-f...
Video: Zbigniew Brzezinski on Georgia
Russia’s “Fishy” Constitutional Changes
Vladimir Frolov of Russia Profile is not one known to be very critical of Russian government policies, but even among the most restrained and measured observers of the Kremlin there appears to be a gathering consensus over the lack of grounding fo...