Over the last five years, Vladimir Putin has moved to rein in or even destroy a dozen of Russia’s formerly more independent media outlets, most recently RBC. And that prompts the question: whom will the Kremlin leader go after next?
Three developments over the last few days – a clash in Dagestan that ISIS has taken responsibility for, Russian interest in an alliance with the Afghan Taliban, and Patriarch Kirill’s statement that Orthodox Christians and Muslims must stand together against the Christian West — raise some disturbing questions
Staunton, VA, May 16, 2016 – For obvious reasons, polls of Russian attitudes are anything but a good indicator of where Russians are heading; but there is a more reliable bellwether: the way that the Kremlin uses its pocket opposition figures such as Vladimir Zhirinovsky of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR) as elections […]
Russian media have expressed unhappiness with the fact that Ukraine won the EuroVision song contest with Jamala, a Crimean Tatar singer who sang about her people’s deportation under Stalin in 1944.
Russian Strategy and Tactics Give Moscow ‘the Edge’ over NATO, Moscow Analyst Says 2016-05-15 23:56:48 Staunton, VA, May 13, 2016 – The Russian way of war is very different from the American way, Yevgeny Krutikov says. In the past, the weaknesses of one side were balanced by those of the other. But now, as even some […]
Most commentators have dismissed as overblown suggestions that Moscow is preparing to occupy Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania because they are members of NATO and the EU and because such a Russian action would lead to a major military conflict between Moscow and the West.
Ten New Studies on Russian Realities Not to Be Missed 2016-05-13 01:51:10 Staunton, VA – May 12, 2016 – Last month, at the 14th annual conference of Moscow Higher School of Economics, more than 900 scholarly papers were presented on various aspects of social, economic and political life. Journalist Boris Grozovsky selected and summarized 24 of […]
To save money, the Russian finance ministry has proposed to raise the retirement age to 65, end pension payments to those who are still working, and otherwise reduce the amount Moscow has to pay out. Many are horrified.
Many Russian commentators have pointed out that the way in which Vladimir Putin is exploiting Victory Day is about the legitimation of the Soviet past, but a Ukrainian analyst says that the most important function of this day is to exploit victory over Germany as the only positive thing linking the former Soviet republics together.
Four years ago today, tens of thousands of Russians protested in what was one of the largest demonstrations in Moscow since Vladimir Putin came to power. They demanded that Russia allow honest elections in which all candidates would have a chance in place of “the managed democracy” the Kremlin had offered.
