RFE/RL Russia Report
03.07.2012
A review of RFE/RL reporting and analysis about domestic and foreign-policy developments in Russia.
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The Loneliness Of The Autocratic Ruler
With his assault on civil society and retribution against former allies, Vladimir Putin is increasingly isolating himself and his shrinking inner circle. More 
Faith No More Cares A Lot About Pussy Riot
Five women wearing Pussy Riot's signature colorful balaclavas kept the crowd warm in between rock band Faith No More's sets last night in Moscow. More 
Interview: Aleksandr Cherkasov On The 75th Anniversary Of 'The Great Terror'
On the anniversary of the beginning of the Great Terror under Soviet leader Josef Stalin, the chairman of the human rights organization Memorial, Aleksandr Cherkasov, talks about those events and their meaning for Russian society today. More 
New Russian Bill Aims To Brand NGOs As 'Foreign Agents'
A new bill is in the works to have foreign-funded nongovernmental organizations in Russia registered as "foreign agents." The bill, drafted by deputies from Russia's ruling party, formally aims at making NGOs more accountable and transparent. Critics, however, fear the proposal will be used to justify further crackdowns on civil and rights groups. More 
The Caucasus has always played an important role in Russian and Soviet film, but Caucasians themselves haven't always been depicted in a flattering way. Now, the Russian government is asking filmmakers to portray people from the Caucasus in a more positive light. In this video, RFE/RL's Daisy Sindelar takes a look at screen images of Caucasians from the days of Soviet silent film up to the 2008 Russian-Georgian war. More 
A Celebration Of Football In Kyiv
At the Euro 2012 final in Kyiv on July 1, Spain became the first team to win three consecutive international trophies with their resounding 4-0 defeat of Italy. The three-week tournament, co-hosted by Poland and Ukraine, went off without any major glitches, drawing praise from fans and UEFA President Michel Platini. Here are some memorable images from before, during, and after the final match. More 
Podcast: Russia's Political Entrepreneurs Hedge Their Bets
What do State Duma deputy Gennady Gudkov, anticorruption blogger Aleksei Navalny, former Finance Minister Aleksei Kudrin, and billionaire oligarch Mikhail Prokhorov have in common? More 
Russian Supreme Court Wrestles With Question Of Legitimate Self-Defense
The plenum of Russia's Supreme Court is preparing an instruction to judges that asserts Russians have the right to defend themselves against law enforcement officers who are illegally using force against them. More 
Imam Killed, Mosque Set Ablaze In Daghestan
Officials in Russia’s volatile North Caucasus republic of Daghestan say an imam and another person have been shot dead in an attack on a mosque. More 
Ukraine Has No Love For Dmitry Medvedev
Poor Dmitry Medvedev gets no respect. Not long ago, he was president of a nuclear-armed world power. Now, he can't even get clearance for his plane to land in a provincial Ukrainian city to watch a soccer match. More 
Kremlin Opponent Sentenced To Labor
A Russian court has sentenced prominent regime critic Sergei Udaltsov to 240 hours' labor for causing bodily harm. More 
Daghestan Leader Seeks To Balance Interests Of Repressed Peoples
The head of the Russian North Caucasus Republic of Daghestan, Magomedsalam Magomedov, met last week with residents of three predominately ethnic Kumyk-populated villages on the western outskirts of Makhachkala who are lobbying to have the district in question granted the status of a separate municipality that would also comprise land to the north of the capital. More 
Gennady Gudkov: From Kremlin-Loyal KGB Veteran To Opposition Leader
As a KGB veteran and former member of the United Russia faction, the portly, mustachioed Gennady Gudkov was very much a creature of Vladimir Putin's system. That is, until he went rogue and joined the opposition. More 
Russia Warns U.S. Over Magnitsky Bill
Russia has warned the United States that Moscow will retaliate if American lawmakers pass a law blacklisting Russian officials connected to the death in prison of lawyer Sergei Magnitsky. More 
HRW On Syria: 'Many Of Them Still Bore The Signs Of Torture'
The global campaign group Human Rights Watch has accused the Syrian regime of President Bashar al-Assad of committing a crime against humanity through what it calls a state-sanctioned policy of torture. In a new report, the group documents torture methods including electrocution, the pulling of fingernails, and prolonged beatings. Irina Lagunina of RFE/RL's Russian Service spoke to Nadim Houry, Human Rights Watch's deputy director of its Middle East and North Africa division, about the report's findings. More 
Cultural Figures Sign 'Punk' Petition
More than 100 of Russia's best-known cultural figures have signed a letter calling for authorities to release from jail three members of the female Pussy Riot punk band. More 
'Magnitsky Bill' Clears Key Senate Panel
The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee has approved legislation that seeks to punish Russian officials connected to the prison death of Russian lawyer Sergei Magnitsky. More 
Interview: Son Says Khodorkovsky's Freedom 'In The Hands Of Russian Society'
The son of Russia's most recognizable "prisoner of conscience," Mikhail Khodorkovsky, talks with RFE/RL's Russian Service on the occasion of his father's 49th birthday. More 
The Kremlin Remembers Its Favorite War
Kudos to Jacob Evan Lassin. The soon-to-be (we assume) graduate of the College of William and Mary has written a compelling thesis on Russia and the "myths and memories" of the country's involvement in World War II. More |
