TODAY: Russia rejects idea of Libya sanctions; Putin cautions EU against Western meddling; 7 sacked from interior ministry; Domodedovo death counts rise to 37.  Russia embarks upon major military spending program; Mistral warships to go to Kuril islands?  Judge Viktor Danilkin denies whistleblower’s claims; Nemtsov lined up for TV appearance; new film on murdered journalist; conductor praises Putin’s commitment to culture

As EU member countries mull over sanctions against Colonel Gaddafi’s shaking regime in Libya, a somewhat scathing Vladimir Putin told a press conference with European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso that Western efforts to influence the rebellions currently underway could have counter-productive results, citing previous interventions in Palestine and Iran as proof of Western temerity.  Chrystia Freeland, the global editor of Reuters, reports that in a Russian opinion poll, one-third of respondents thought the Egyptian scenario of mass protests was possible in Russia: ‘That is the kind of thinking that can tip a potential for rebellion into a revolution’, she adds.  A Moscow Times editorial considers how Medvedev’s comments on potential rebellion in Russia, specifically his oblique reference to an unspecified enemy, echo a similar ‘conspiracy’ based approach to attacks on the state previously employed by Putin.  AFP reports that the President has fired seven senior interior ministry generals, without immediate explanation.  A victim of the Moscow airport suicide bombing has died in a hospital, raising the death toll to 37.  Grigory Shvedov, chief editor of Caucasian Knot, describes the Winter Olympics in Sochi as a ‘dream come true for terrorists’, in an interview quoted by Bloomberg.