On May 16 while Moscow was captivated by the spectacle of the "Eurovision" song contest, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin escaped to Sochi to devote himself to gas politics. Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was his first guest, followed by the ceremony marking the signing of... MORE

The Russian authorities have long been dismissive of the growing neo-nazi movement within the country. However, on March 11 the National Anti-Terrorist Committee (NAK, the high-level inter-departmental agency that coordinates the anti-terrorist activities of the security services) named neo-nazi youth groups as "one of the... MORE

The Russian National Security Strategy until 2020, approved by President Dmitry Medvedev on May 12, has been portrayed as innovative while clarifying the nature of the strategic environment facing the country. Much attention was devoted to the potential risk of future energy wars, in regions... MORE

On May 16 Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Moscow and met with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, as part of Ankara's ongoing efforts to normalize its relations with Armenia. Reportedly Putin and Erdogan discussed finding a sustainable solution to the Karabakh issue as... MORE

On May 12 Russian President Dmitry Medvedev approved the latest version of the "National Security Strategy of the Russian Federation up to 2020" (www.scrf.gov.ru, May 12). The text of the 7,300 word document was posted on the website of the Russian Security Council and is... MORE

Despite optimistic official pronouncements, Russia appears to be struggling to secure any significant economic commitments from Tokyo to develop energy projects including the East Siberia-Pacific Ocean (ESPO) oil pipeline. Meanwhile, both sides remain divided over their long-standing territorial dispute.As Prime Minister Vladimir Putin visited Tokyo... MORE

On April 27, Police Major Denis Yevsyukov, chief of the Tsaritsino district precinct in Southern Moscow, opened fire in a supermarket, killing two and injuring six -with four critically injured (www.publicverdict.org, April 27). The major also shot dead the taxi driver who had driven him... MORE

The Victory Day military parade in Moscow on May 9, marking the 64th anniversary of the Soviet defeat of Nazi Germany, offered a curious mixture of pomp, myth and nostalgia -all vital elements for the Russian leadership. As the Spassky Tower on Red Square struck... MORE

Barely nine days after the Hungarian gas trader Emfesz KFT announced that it will begin receiving supplies of 3 billion cubic meters annually from the Zug (Switzerland) based company RosGas AG, rather than the now inactive RosUkrEnergo (RUE) the Russian press reported that Emfesz has... MORE

President Dmitry Medvedev marked the end of his first presidential year exactly the same way as he started - by presiding over the military parade on Red Square. There was, however, a different feeling about this picture-perfect display of military muscle, not only because Medvedev... MORE