TODAY: Putin and Yanukovych meet, no decision reached on gas price; anniversary of Stalin’s death; Rusal’s plans to shrink output could cause unrest; Putin allies increase wealth; Alyokhina denied suspended sentence; first lesbian magazine published; suspect arrested in Filin attack.

Following a meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart, Viktor Yanukovych, President Vladimir Putin said that there are ‘no closed issues’ between the two, and indicated that he wanted Ukraine to join Russia’s Customs Union. Yanukovych said that nothing immediate was planned, but acknowledged ‘economic losses’ and ‘negative processes’ stemming from Ukraine’s abstention.  There was no mention of the two having resolved their dispute over the current price that Ukraine pays for Russian gas.  The editors-in-chief of both Gazeta.ru and Kommersant-FM have both resigned, but deny that their resignations are the result of political pressure over editorial policy.  On the 60th anniversary of the death of Josef Stalin, many have pointed out the ways in which the Soviet leader’s regime is still present in Russia today. ‘Some say Stalin even lives in the language and mentality of the country’s officials, whom critics accuse of a Stalin-like tendency to use violence to solve problems.’  Most Russians are against the idea that Volgograd could take up its former name, Stalingrad.  Ann Applebaum talks to RFE/RL about current perceptions of Stalin: ‘I think to imagine that what Stalin achieved was some kind of triumph is to ignore how Russia could have developed differently.’