TODAY: Medvedev calls for release of imprisoned Pussy Riot members, Berezovsky denies funding the group; Lavrov expresses shock over Libya deaths; Russia pressures Moldova over Europe gas plans; Dvorkovich opposes Rosneft-BP tie-up; Ukraine introduces car recycling fee.

At a meeting with activists yesterday, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev called for the early release of the jailed members of Pussy Riot, saying that their already-completed jail time was a serious punishment in itself – despite his own disgust at their actions.  Medvedev said he was ‘sickened by what they did, by their looks, by the hysteria that followed what happened.’  The group’s lawyer responded by noting that Medvedev’s comments on criminal cases have never led to action.  Meanwhile, a state-run television channel has claimed that exiled businessman Boris Berezovsky financed the band in order to foment Russian unrest, and that their international supporters have been paid to speak up in their favour, using his funds.  Berezovsky denied the claims: ‘But if I had thought up such a project, I would have been very proud.’  President Vladimir Putin has defended his new media censorship laws, saying that their main aim is to ‘protect children’.  Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has expressed shock over the death of the U.S. ambassador to Libya in Benghazi yesterday, saying it underscored the need for ‘joint efforts of our countries’.