Latest Articles about Russia
Russia Struggles to Modernize its Military
Russia’s attempts to rearm and modernize its military have run out of money as its defense industry is ailing. Last month President, Dmitry Medvedev, announced plans to spend 13 trillion Rubles ($420 billion) in ten years (from 2011 to 2020) to rearm the armed forces.... MORE
Russia Struggles to Settle Kyrgyz Unrest
As Russia hosted the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and the Eurasian Economic Commonwealth (EEC) meetings of heads of governments, the gathering appeared to be overshadowed by the continued instability in Kyrgyzstan. On May 21, Kyrgyzstan’s interim government did not attend the CIS and EEC... MORE
Crisis Looms for Moscow’s Policies in the Northwest Caucasus
On June 6, the Caucasus Times reported a massive influx of Russian security forces into Kabardino-Balkaria. According to the website, an estimated 2,000 servicemen were deployed overnight in the republic, with the principal city of Kabardino-Balkaria, Nalchik, being patrolled by Russian military intelligence (Glavnoye Razvedyvatel'noye... MORE
More Disagreements Emerge Between Abkhaz and Russian Interests
On June 1, the head of Abkhazia’s state committee on tourism, Tengiz Lakerbaya, lashed out at Sochi Mayor, Anatoly Pakhomov, for publicly diminishing Abkhazia’ touristic value. The criticism followed comments made by Pakhomov on May 28, when he said that Abkhazia had once been popular... MORE
Medvedev’s Visit Shows Slackening of Russian-German Special Relationshp
In official reporting, there was nothing unusual about President, Dmitry Medvedev’s, working visit to Germany last weekend, except perhaps the rather short notice. German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, greeted him in her official residence in Meseburg outside Berlin and politely expressed agreement on a wide range... MORE
EU Disappointed by Medvedev’s “Modernization”
The 25th Russia-EU summit this week in Rostov-on-Don had a new format as the President of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso, was for the first time accompanied by the President of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy. There were all the usual handshakes, friendly... MORE
Moscow Objects to Patriots in Poland
Last week US-Russian relations were dominated by the arrival and deployment of US soldiers with Patriot missiles in Poland near the Russian border. The Patriot deployment was agreed between Warsaw and Washington to offset possible Russian threats to station Iskander ballistic missiles in Kaliningrad in... MORE
Russian Military Prepares for Vostok 2010
Preparations are intensifying ahead of the Russian operational-strategic military exercise, Vostok 2010, scheduled for June 29 to July 8 in the Siberian and Far East military districts involving more than 10,000 servicemen under the command of Army-General, Nikolai Makarov, the Chief of the General Staff.... MORE
Dark But Short: Russia’s Shadow on Georgia’s Elections
Russia is casting its dark shadow on Georgia’s electoral campaign, but it is not the proverbial long shadow. Rather, it affects Georgia’s internal politics at its outer fringe, far short of beclouding the political system or any significant voter constituency. Russia’s recently acquired allies in... MORE
Multiple Problems Plague Kremlin Plans for 2014 Sochi Olympic Games
On May 21, protest actions and tributes to the war victims of the Russia-Circassian war took place worldwide. Marking 146 years since the end of the war in 1864, Circassian activists took to the streets in Turkey, the United States, Europe and Israel, where there... MORE