Latest Articles about Russia
Russia Celebrates Past Victories: Parading an Image of “Strength”
Once again, celebrating the victory over Nazi Germany, veterans, serving Russian soldiers, equipment and weapons were displayed on Red Square for the May 9 Victory Day Parade. The 65th anniversary of that victory always promised to be staged on a larger scale than previous parades,... MORE
Shift to Soviet-Russian National Identity in Ukraine
The Viktor Yanukovych administration is undertaking a radical overhaul of Ukraine’s national identity that turns its back not only on the Yushchenko era, but also on two earlier presidents. All three presidents promoted Ukrainophile national identity that was based on the doyen of Ukrainian historiography,... MORE
Chechen Officials Press Moscow to Assist with Demining as Blasts Still Claim Lives
On May 6, the Kavkazsky Uzel (Caucasian Knot) website reported that the Chechen parliament resolved to address Moscow with a request to assist with clearing minefields in the republic. An estimated 24,000 hectares (59,000 acres) of land in Chechnya remain littered with landmines years after... MORE
Medvedev Presides Over the Victory Day Celebrations and Condemns Stalin
Sixty five years normally would not be considered a significant anniversary, but Victory Day is special for all Russians, so every official fanfare was blown last weekend and military parades were held from Sakhalin to Sevastopol. The holiday has always had a sad undertone because... MORE
Ukraine’s Leaders Trying to Resist Gazprom-Naftohaz “Merger”
Russian Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin’s, April 30 proposal to “merge” Ukraine’s national energy company Naftohaz with Gazprom (EDM, May 5) has stunned the new Ukrainian authorities. During an entire week after the proposal’s airing President, Viktor Yanukovych, and Prime Minister, Nikolai Azarov, have arrogated to... MORE
Russian Military Personnel Crisis: Medvedev and the General Staff Join the Fray
It has been officially acknowledged that the Russian military faces a serious personnel crisis: the federal program to hire more contract soldiers has failed and their number will be reduced from 150,000 to 90,000, while massive draft-dodging and demographic problems are reducing the number of... MORE
Putin Calls For Naftohaz Ukrainy-Gazprom Gas Merger
Russian Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, has proposed a “merger“of Ukraine’s national energy company Naftohaz Ukrainy with Russia’s Gazprom. The proposal emerged during Putin’s April 30 meeting with Ukrainian Prime Minister, Nikolai Azarov, in Sochi (ITAR-TASS, April 30). It was the seventh meeting, by most counts,... MORE
Kyrgyz Instability Presents Challenges for Russia, China and the SCO
On April 23, the Security Council secretaries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) met in Tashkent in preparation for the organization’s annual summit also scheduled to be held in the Uzbek capital in June. In the aftermath of the violent protests on April 7 that... MORE
Hungarian Government and MOL Positioning for a Solution With Surgut
At its annual meeting of shareholders on April 29, Hungarian MOL oil and gas company cemented its defense against a possible takeover move by Russian Surgutneftegaz. With corporate and legal defenses in place, and a new Hungarian government firmly installed after the landslide election victory,... MORE
US Embassy in Moscow Indicates Acceptance of Mistral Deal
On April 28 in Moscow, US Ambassador, John Beyrle, justified the proposed sale of four French Mistral warships to Russia. Interviewed by the Moskovsky Komsomolets daily newspaper, Beyrle stated: “The only question [about the Mistral sale] is the overall stability in the region. And I... MORE