Russia

June 9, 2010

The Pageantry of the Strategy-31 Protest Movement

A Good Treaty has posted a translation of an interesting article by Oleg Kashin recounting his visit to the “Strategy-31” opposition rally in Triumfal’naia Square on May 31 in Moscow.  The perennial question of the Kremlin&#...
June 9, 2010

Corruption Hinders Russian Rearmament

Alexander Golts has a pretty cutting op/ed in the Moscow Times today which points out how many times Russian officials have claimed different goals for rearmament, but then fell far short as the generous budgets disappeared.  It’s happe...
June 9, 2010

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

TODAY: Russia falls in GPI index; Georgia talks held; Saakashvili fears over Mistral; France asserts commitment on sale to Russia.  Medvedev orders civil service cuts; outrage over Ekho Moskvy radio chief’s suggestions for rallies; vict...
June 8, 2010

Putin’s Democratic Makeover

Charles Glover has some interesting quotes from polittechnologist Aleksei Makarkin in this FT blog post. “Putin is very pragmatic, he has got political intuition” he said. “Putin knows he needs to re-brand himself in order to be ...
June 8, 2010

Stuck on Jackson-Vanik

As noted in today’s news blast, Lara Iglitzin and John Hempelmann of the Henry M. Jackson Foundation have published an op/ed in the Seattle Times urging the Obama administration not to cancel the 1975 Jackson-Vanik Ammendment, citing Russia&...
June 8, 2010

RA’s Daily Russian News Blast – June 8, 2010

TODAY: Russia confirms allegations of soldiers plundering Polish crash site; Medvedev breach with Putin on ecology? Gazprom tower appeal rejected; Yabloko active on Gen Plan and Lake Baikal; anniversary of journalist murder.  Georgia threaten...
June 7, 2010

Growing Up in the Gulag

Writing in the New Republic, Anne Applebaum reviews the book Children of the Gulag. When the propagandists said that Soviet citizens were becoming ever richer and better fed, many people were inclined to think that this could be true, even though ...
June 7, 2010

The Monday Moment of Zen

We’re unlikely to get a better photo out of Russia this week.  Jump over to Oil & Glory to read about this one and see the video.  But don’t think that Putin has gone soft … just pop over here to see how they deal w...
June 7, 2010

Gorbachev’s Vision and Regrets

You may know Mikhail Gorbachev best as the last leader of the Soviet Union, as a critic of the Putin government, or maybe as a Louis Vuitton ad man.  But you probably didn’t know that he can read minds!  At least that’s what ...
June 7, 2010

RA’s Daily Russian News Blast – June 7, 2010

TODAY: Coverup regarding mine disaster? Protests in Samara against police; injured journalist to sue; Russia’s ecology record lambasted; trouble looming over Sochi Games; small parties given voice in Duma.   Ukraine will not recognize G...