Latest Articles about Elite
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Have Russia’s Rich-and-Powerful Become Tired of Mr. Putin?
In the first week of the New Year Russia started winding down on the vacation period, but Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, was not shown on any ski slopes and remained in charge of urgent problems. Putin controlled the rescue operation in the Sea of Okhotsk... MORE
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Russia Enters Year of Elections in the Shadow of a Shameful Verdict
The year 2010 could have been marked as “not-so-bad” in the still short annals of Russia’s post-Soviet history. It was the scorching summer heat and massive fires that would be remembered as the main feature of the year, but it also witnessed the return of... MORE
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Xi Jinping’s Chongqing Tour: Gang of Princelings Gains Clout
Vice-President Xi Jinping’s brief visit to the western-China metropolis of Chongqing earlier this month has given important clues about the “crown prince’s” political orientations and his relations with key Chinese Communist Party (CCP) factions. After his induction into the Central Military Commission (CMC) last October,... MORE
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Popularity Matters: Russian “Macho” Prime Minister and “Tech” President Image Contest
With the presidential elections in Russia scheduled for 2012, the media presence of President, Dmitry Medvedev, and Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, has increasingly appeared as an image contest, as if the election campaign had already started. Yet, with the elections’ outcome widely expected to be... MORE
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Growing Nationalism and Maritime Jurisdiction in the East China Sea
In early September, a Chinese fishing boat that collided with a pair of Japan Coast Guard (JCG) vessels near the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands reignited a longstanding dispute between Beijing and Tokyo over the East China Sea. The captain of the Chinese trawler was detained by the... MORE
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PLA Gains Clout: Xi Jinping Elevated to CMC Vice-Chairman
The appointment of Vice-President Xi Jinping as vice-chairman of the Chinese Communist Party's Central Military Commission (CMC) has confirmed the Fifth-Generation cadre's status as heir-apparent to President and General Secretary Hu Jintao. Xi's induction into the policy-setting CMC, which was decided by the just-ended plenum... MORE
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Hu Revives Quasi-Maoist Tactics to Stem Social Instability
President Hu Jintao has revived a key Maoist concept—"correctly handling contradictions among the people"—so as to more effectively tackle China’s growing socio-political instability. In a speech to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Politburo on the eve of the October 1 National Day, Hu urged party... MORE
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Ukrainian Journalists Feel Unprotected 10 Years After Gongadze’s Murder
Ten years after the murder of the opposition journalist, Georgy Gongadze, Ukrainian prosecutors announced that the investigation was completed and the case will shortly be referred to court. The investigation said the police killed Gongadze on the orders of the interior minister. Both at home... MORE
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Ukraine’s Oligarchs and Democratic Regression: Why Are They Silent?
The image of the Viktor Yanukovych administration continues to deteriorate in the eyes of Ukrainians and Europe, as seen in opinion polls and a September 13 statement by the Political Assembly of the center-right European Peoples Party, the most influential political group in the European... MORE
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Premier Wen’s “Southern Tour”: Ideological Rifts in the CCP?
Two years before he is due to retire from the Chinese Communist Party’s Politburo, Premier Wen Jiabao has issued his boldest-ever call for liberalization. While in the Guangdong boom town of Shenzhen in late August, the premier raised national eyebrows by playing up the pivotal... MORE