Latest Articles about Middle East
PUTIN’S CONSENSUS AMONG THE ELITE TESTED BY THE DEEPENING CRISIS
For the vast majority of Russians the idea of a global financial crisis remains entirely foreign and the shocking figures about the meltdown on the domestic stock exchange are meaningless. The legendary Klim Petrovich—the Russian cousin of Joe the Plumber created 40 years ago by... MORE
RUSSIAN TV DOWNPLAYS THE FINANCIAL CRISIS AT HOME
The world financial crisis, which has hit Russia’s stock market harder than those of most other countries, is starting to trickle down to the average Russian. As Nezavisimaya gazeta reported on October 20, repeated crashes of Russia’s main stock market indices in recent weeks and... MORE
IRAN GAINS FROM GEORGIAN CONFRONTATION
In the aftermath of the August Georgian-Russian confrontation, a new Caspian geopolitical reality is slowly emerging from the fog of war. The clash highlighted the vulnerability of Western-funded and built Caspian export pipelines, which, by transiting the Caucasus, avoided both Russian and Iranian territory. During... MORE
A RADICAL MILITARY REFORM PLAN
After a meeting of Russia's top brass this week, Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov disclosed drastic plans to reform and cut the Russian military. The executive decision to begin the reform was signed by President Dmitry Medvedev on September 15, but most details were kept secret... MORE
RUSSIAN CONSUMER PRICES STILL RISING DESPITE PLUNGING SHARE PRICES
Russia’s stock markets have recently been hammered along with those elsewhere in the world, and perhaps even more so, with Russian markets having lost two-thirds of their value (or about $1 trillion) since June. It is, however, rising prices, not falling share prices or teetering... MORE
RUSSIA COUNTS ITS BLESSINGS IN THE GLOBAL FINANCIAL CRISIS
A distinct note of triumph is entering the statements of Russian officials on the scale and possible consequences of the global economic crisis. It is President Dmitri Medvedev who was doing most of the talking last week, while his “senior partner” Prime Minister Vladimir Putin... MORE
THE FINANCIAL CRISIS MAY CURTAIL KREMLIN PLANS FOR MODERNIZING ARMED FORCES
On September 15 President Dmitry Medvedev announced ambitious plans to rearm and modernize Russia’s armed forces. Medvedev announced that by 2020 Russia had to guarantee continued nuclear deterrence as well as precision attack capability on land and sea (See EDM, October 3). Indeed, by 2020... MORE
DMITRY MURATOV: POLITKOVSKAYA MURDER CASE HAS BEEN DELIBERATELY UNDERMINED
October 7 marked the second anniversary of the murder of Novaya Gazeta journalist Anna Politkovskaya. According to The Moscow Times, several hundred people, including Politkovskaya’s colleagues and children, human rights activists, and political opposition leaders, gathered on central Moscow’s Pushkin Square to remember her. In... MORE
MOSCOW PLEDGES PROACTIVE KOREAN POLICY
Russia and South Korea pledged to upgrade their relationship to a strategic partnership and to strengthen energy ties, but the latest spate of optimistic official pronouncements came as a reminder of similar earlier pledges. Following summit talks in the Kremlin, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and... MORE
RUSSIAN GENERALS RAISE QUESTIONS ABOUT THE GENERAL STAFF AT START OF THE WAR WITH GEORGIA
On October 1 an article appeared in the Russian newspaper Moskovskiy Komsomolets, which appeared to delineate a controversy within Russia’s General Staff about forthcoming cuts planned to reduce its overall size. Yet, for those with an understanding of the huge importance of the General Staff... MORE