Latest Articles about Russia
Russia Signals Support for Moldovan Presidential Candidate Lupu
On November 21-22 in St. Petersburg, the Moldovan governing alliance’s candidate for head of state, Marian Lupu, attended the congress of Russia’s party of power, United Russia, which is officially headed by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. Lupu initialed together with Duma Chairman Boris Gryzlov a... MORE
Moldovan Prime Minister Filat Reaches Out to Putin
Moldova’s simultaneous crises –economic and constitutional– have opened a door for Russia to influence politics in Chisinau and arbitrate the power struggles there. The dual crisis, ongoing since early spring, has deepened after two inconclusive parliamentary elections, four failed attempts to elect the head of... MORE
Strategic Countdown and Russia’s Escalating Instability
This week is the last in the life of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START I) that was signed on July 31, 1991 by Presidents George Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev. This most complex treaty in the history of arms control expires on December 5, and... MORE
Hazing Scandal Highlights Russian Military’s Complex Relationship with the North Caucasus
On November 17, the news of mass hazing incidents in the Russian Baltic fleet broke in the media. According to the reports, a group of Dagestani conscript soldiers had harassed their ethnic Russian –or Slavic, as some media outlets preferred to call them– peers for... MORE
“New Look” Russian Military: 2009 Training Year and Beyond
On November 17 the Collegium of the Ministry of Defense met to review progress on the new look for the Russian Armed Forces. To no one’s surprise, Defense Minister Anatoliy Serdyukov gave the new look a passing grade for the 2009 training year. However, his... MORE
“New Look” Russian Army Officially Formed
On November 17, an expanded session of the Russian defense ministry board met to review the results of the training year and consider future plans. The annual meeting, however, was dominated by the current reform of the armed forces and inevitably discussion gravitated towards reflecting... MORE
Medvedev Smiles to Europe, While Putin Stamps his Authority
The Russia-EU summit in Stockholm last week was hailed by commentators on both sides as friendly beyond expectations and the most successful in the long series of tense and content-free summits. A few months back, Moscow –irritated by the strong Swedish condemnation of the Georgian... MORE
Moscow Backtracks From Strategy to Bypass Ukraine’s Gas Transit System
Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko declared on November 16 that the Nord Stream pipeline on the Baltic seabed would not be used for diverting gas volumes away from Ukraine’s transit pipelines to Europe. In effect, this statement acknowledges that the Nord Stream pipeline, from Russia... MORE
Medvedev’s Questionable Plan to Form a Government Post in Charge of the North Caucasus
In his annual State of the Nation address to the Federal Assembly on November 12, President Dmitry Medvedev spent a whole section of his speech talking about the situation in the North Caucasus. The president admitted that the region is still a threat to peace... MORE
Time Running Out to Achieve New Arms Control Treaty
The Barack Obama administration began nuclear arms control negotiations with Moscow this year, eager for swift progress to help “reset” bilateral relations and achieve progress on more sensitive issues such as Iran and Afghanistan. The expiry date of the 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty or... MORE