Latest Articles about Russia
As Medvedev Fades Away, Russia Becomes a Major Issue
The G8 summit in Deauville, France last week was a forgettable event, and the series of bilateral high-level meetings on its margins added marginally to its insignificance; but the leaders of seven Western democracies had to acknowledge the fact that President Dmitry Medvedev was no... MORE
Russia’s Drive to Form Global Energy Partnerships Hits a Bumpy Road
Russia’s efforts to ameliorate its energy sector by pursuing international partnerships suffered a sensitive setback as a planned mega-deal ended in an apparent failure.Plans of Russia’s largest oil firm Rosneft to implement a share swap agreement with BP failed to materialize. Until mid-May, BP and... MORE
US Slaps Sanctions on Caucasus Emirate as Violence Continues in North Caucasus
The US State Department on March 26 designated the Caucasus Emirate under Presidential Executive Order 13224, which targets terrorists and those providing support to terrorists, terrorist organizations or acts of terrorism. The State Department said in a statement that the action would “help stem the... MORE
Arrests in Astrakhan Point to the Spread of Islamic Insurgency in Russia
The term “jamaat,” considered native to the North Caucasus in view of the operations undertaken there by the armed resistance, is clearly spreading beyond the region’s borders. The Russian special forces recently did not even attempt to hide the existence of an Islamic underground cell... MORE
Russians Oppose Any Ban on Arms Exports to Syria
On May 12, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) detained the Israeli military attaché in Moscow, Col. Vadim Leiderman, accused him of spying and expelled him within 48 hours. Leiderman, a former IDF pilot, immigrated to Israel in 1977 from Soviet Moldova at the age of... MORE
Militants or Civil Dissidents: Who are Moscow’s Key Enemies in Kabardino-Balkaria?
On May 22, the Russian security services killed one of the leaders of the Kabardino-Balkarian insurgency, Buzhigit Khadzhiev (aka “Musa, the emir of the northwestern front”). Magomed Zalikhanov, dubbed by the law enforcement agencies as an active supporter of the rebels, was also killed in... MORE
Ukraine Drifting Away From Customs Union With Russia
Ukraine has sent Russia a clear signal that it is unconvinced it would benefit from membership in the Russian-dominated customs union more than from free trade with the European Union. The Ukrainian parliament instructed the government to prioritize the association and free trade talks with... MORE
The Generational Crisis In Russia’s Defense Industry
The Russian State Arms Program [Gosudarstvennaya Programma Vooruzheniya–GPV] to 2020 sets as its primary goal achieving 70 percent new weapons and equipment in the military inventory. This target appears increasingly unrealistic. On May 10, President Dmitry Medvedev berated senior officials for glacial progress in implementing... MORE
Georgia’s Increasingly Assertive North Caucasus Policy Is Likely to Cause Waves Across the Region
On May 20, the Georgian parliament recognized the mass killings and deportations of Circassians from the North Caucasus in the nineteenth century as “genocide.” The resolution, which passed by a vote of 95 to 0, said that pre-planned “mass killings of the Circassians by Tsarist... MORE
Medvedev’s Commitment to Partnership with the West Wears Thin
The long press-conference that President Dmitry Medvedev held on May 18 was disappointing for every journalist and expert who had expected meaningful and substantive answers on the big questions that Russia is facing at this limbo-moment in the post-crisis-pre-crisis transition (Kommersant, Vedomosti, May 19; Nezavisimaya... MORE