Archive for the ‘News from Russia’ Category
Posted on December 1, 2009 - by Venik
The Russia That Was
I am not even Russian, but I cannot help being overcome by a sense of melancholy, nostalgia and loss when I see these glorious century-old color photographs of Imperial Russia and her people. These were taken in the decade before the First World War ruined so much that is here presented. The pictures by the [...]
Posted on November 30, 2009 - by Venik
Anti-Iran Resolution on Nukes Marks New Russian Stance
Iran is now more isolated than at any time in over three years as the International Atomic Energy Agency Board of Governors, meeting in Vienna, rebuked the theocratic Muslim regime for its disregard of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and efforts of the international community to find a peaceful resolution. Russia and China voted with the [...]
Posted on November 30, 2009 - by Venik
Several Foreign Policy and Media Takes
A spoof on the 19th century Anglo-Russo “Great Game” rivalry in Central Asia An October 13 RT (no longer officially known as Russia Today) segment discussed some international issues regarding Afghanistan and Russia. The following viewpoint is expressed in that segment: “When the Soviets invaded Afghanistan they were viewed as being hostile by everyone, while [...]
Posted on November 23, 2009 - by Venik
22-Year-Old Russian Wrecks Lamborghini in Switzerland Causing $1. …
Economic crisis might have affected those who are old, wise, and worked hard for their money. However, it hasn’t done much damage to young, reckless Russians who simply don’t know what money is or where it comes from. Lake Geneva, Switzerland, November 21, 11:30 PM: Four Russians in their mid-twenties decided to find out through [...]
Posted on November 16, 2009 - by Venik
Medvedev Signals Kremlin Policy Shift
Two trends of Russian government policy seem to be shifting, as witnessed by President Medvedev’s major address today in Moscow. The first is the tendency in recent years for government to punish those individuals and companies deemed guilty of economic misbehavior. Now, it seems, the Kremlin is taking a more free market approach. In foreign [...]
Posted on November 16, 2009 - by Venik
President Medvedev's Follow-up On Disassembling State Companies
The Kremlin may well want to encourage speculation as to whether President Medvedev was truly instructing Prime Minister Putin on making state enterprises “comptetitve”, but it is wholly unlikely that the two would do anything that wasn’t pre-arranged between them. If it were otherwise, a political rupture would be underway, with wide repercussions, and nothing [...]
Posted on November 16, 2009 - by Venik
Courting Russia on the Iranian Nuclear Issue?
Photo Source: Associated Press If you’re looking for behind-the-scenes insight, one of the better places to find it is through reports and assessments from STRATFOR, a leader in geopolitical intelligence, analysis and research. Yesterday, in its “Geopolitical Diary,” the company’s analysts took on the issue of Moscow-Tehran relations. Against a backdrop of the Iranian regime’s [...]
Posted on November 16, 2009 - by Venik
Russia's European Dreams
In the past two decades, the world has witnessed yet another historical opportunity missed: the fall of the Berlin Wall has not led to a logical conclusion – Russia’s full economic, political and even military integration with Europe and the West in general. In the recent past, Russia’s Westernizers’ centuries-old dream of joining Europe was [...]
Posted on November 10, 2009 - by Venik
Fedor Emelianenko Knocks Out the Undefeated Brett Rogers, Thanks Russian Orthodox for Their Prayers
On Saturday, November 7, Fedor Emelianenko proved one more time that he is the best fighter in the world by knocking out the undefeated Brett Rogers in the second round. For the first time in Russian history, the First Channel (main government TV station) showed an MMA fight, just 12 hours after CBS aired it [...]
Posted on November 5, 2009 - by Venik
Killers of a Lawyer and a Journalist Arrested in Moscow
The murder of Novaya Gazeta’s journalist Anastasiya Baburova and attorney Stanislav Markelov has been solved. The killers were found and arrested; they are members of the RNU (Russian Nationalistic Union) known in Russia as RNE. While Western media presented the murder that took place on January 19, 2009 as a Russian government’s attack on the [...]
Posted on November 5, 2009 - by Venik
A Kinder, Gentler Cuban Missile Crisis
Russia is once again outflanking America in the space race — the space tourist race. On November 3, 2009, humans killed their first space tourist. Laika, we at Russia Blog salute you, “Bow-wow old friend, bow-wow.” While the Russian government looks around for a spare $600 million to build their nuclear wessel by 2021 (hopefully [...]
Posted on November 2, 2009 - by Venik
Putin: Census 2010 Is a Go
In his recent article, Bruce Chapman—Discovery Institute’s President and former Director of the White House Census Bureau—rightly criticized the Russian government for cancelling the scheduled 2010 Census. (The census was moved to 2013). We want to believe that it was Russia Blog’s criticism that forced prime-minister Vladimir Putin to revisit the issue. The original official [...]
Posted on October 28, 2009 - by Venik
The Russo-Polish History Coverage and Some Related Matters
Prime ministers Vladimir Putin (Russia) and Donald Tusk (Poland) Several recent occurrences, in conjunction with each other, have been contributing factors to the increased commentary about the history between Russia and Poland. The recent instances include: this past August’s OSCE resolution on (among other things) the Molotov-Ribbentrop agreement, along with last month’s 70th anniversary of [...]
Posted on October 26, 2009 - by Venik
Is Iran pushing Russia closer to the West?
Iran’s nuclear ambitions, the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan, and the rising threat of Islamic fundamentalism, not only present a clear and extreme danger, but also provide the perfect logical base for closer U.S.-Russian cooperation. Of course, it is always easier to say what should have been done afterward, but shouldn’t we at least learn some [...]
