Roberto Abraham Scaruffi

Tuesday 14 August 2012


RFE/RL Russia Report
 
RFE/RL Russia Report
14.08.2012
A review of RFE/RL reporting and analysis about domestic and foreign-policy developments in Russia.

For more stories on Russia, please visit and bookmark our Russia page .

 
The Looking-Glass War The Looking-Glass War
Aleksandr Bastrykin's efforts to prosecute Aleksei Navalny -- and Navalny's response -- are more than just a criminal case. They are a battle over Russia's direction. More
 
Madonna Protests Pussy Riot Detention At Moscow Concert Madonna Protests Pussy Riot Detention At Moscow Concert
During a Moscow concert, pop star Madonna called on the Russian authorities to respect "the right to freedom of expression" and release three jailed members of the feminist punk rock group Pussy Riot. More
 
Does Russia-Georgia-War Film Signal A Rift Between Putin And Medvedev? Does Russia-Georgia-War Film Signal A Rift Between Putin And Medvedev?
Some prominent Russian military figures have publicly accused Dmitry Medvedev of being unable to make a decision during the hours immediately before Russia's war with Georgia in August 2008. They say he only acted after being given a "kick" from then-Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. What does the release of this film say about the mood among Russia's rulers? More
 
Pussy Riot Nominated For Russia Art Award Pussy Riot Nominated For Russia Art Award
The Russian feminist punk group Pussy Riot has been nominated for one of Russia's most prestigious awards in arts, the Kandinsky Prize. More
 
Circassian, Ossetian, Chechen Minorities Solicit Russian Help To Leave Syria Circassian, Ossetian, Chechen Minorities Solicit Russian Help To Leave Syria
Representatives of Syria’s Circassian minority have been lobbying the Russian leadership since late last year for help in resettling in the three north-west Caucasus republics (Adygheya, Kabardino-Balkaria, and Karachayevo-Cherkessia) in which Circassians are a titular nationality. More
 
One Month After Floods In Southern Russia, Survivors Tangled In Red Tape One Month After Floods In Southern Russia, Survivors Tangled In Red Tape
More than a month after torrential floods hit the southern Russian city of Krymsk, killing more than 170 people in the area and destroying thousands of homes, many victims are still homeless and lacking even basic supplies. They say red tape is preventing survivors from receiving the promised aid and financial compensation. More
 
Podcast: Has Pussy Riot Already Won? Podcast: Has Pussy Riot Already Won?
On this week's edition of the Power Vertical podcast, my regular co-host Kirill Kobrin and I address the question: Have the women of Pussy Riot already won? More
 
Tatarstan Cracks Down On Radical Islam After Mufti Attacks Tatarstan Cracks Down On Radical Islam After Mufti Attacks
Russia's republic of Tatarstan has adopted new restrictions on religious groups and foreign-educated clerics. More
 
Ramzan Kadyrov: Guardian Of The Relics Of The Prophet Muhammad Ramzan Kadyrov: Guardian Of The Relics Of The Prophet Muhammad
Just a few short weeks after welcoming relics of the Prophet Muhammad to Grozny, Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov is set to take care of them, permanently. More
 
Chechen Republic Head Threatens Ministers With Dismissal Chechen Republic Head Threatens Ministers With Dismissal
Chechen Republic head Ramzan Kadyrov has lambasted members of the cabinet formed 10 weeks ago for failing to demonstrate initiative and instead "waiting for someone to bring them something ready on a plate." More
 
Popular Ingushetian Imam Under Pressure Popular Ingushetian Imam Under Pressure
Over the past five years, Khamzat-haji Chumakov, imam of the Nasyr-Kort mosque on the outskirts of Nazran, has acquired cult status among young believers in Ingushetia thanks to his sermons denouncing bloodshed and Islamic extremism and exhorting his listeners to remain true to Ingush national values. More
 
Chechen Leader Says Gakayev Brothers May Have Planned Grozny Bombing Chechen Leader Says Gakayev Brothers May Have Planned Grozny Bombing
Three Russian Interior Ministry servicemen were killed on August 6 and three more injured in a double-bombing close to the entrance of the Russian military base at Khankala on the outskirts of Grozny. Visiting the site of the blast later the same day, Chechen Republic head Ramzan Kadyrov said the attack might have been the work of the Gakayev brothers, Khusayn and Muslim. More
 
Madonna: Jail Sentence For Pussy Riot Would Be 'Tragedy' Madonna: Jail Sentence For Pussy Riot Would Be 'Tragedy'
Pop star Madonna, speaking in Moscow ahead of a concert, has said that a jail sentence for the three women of punk collective Pussy Riot would be a "tragedy." She joins a number of Western celebrities and activists who have spoken out in defense of the jailed anti-Putin activists. Meanwhile, the defendants arrived at a Moscow courthouse for another day of trial. Reuters video More
 
Tatarstan Sect Members Say Children Seized In Raid Tatarstan Sect Members Say Children Seized In Raid
Following a police raid on the group's compound on August 1, RFE/RL’s Tatar-Bashkir Service interviewed members of an Islamic sect in Kazan that has lived underground for over a decade. Children living underground with the group were sent to hospitals for check-ups, and some members of the sect may face charges of criminal negligence. One mother described being forcibly separated from her children during the raid. More
 
The Wonder Bridges Of Vladivostok The Wonder Bridges Of Vladivostok
Vladivostok has just opened the second of two huge cable-stayed bridges in advance of a key summit in the region. More
 
Russian Psychologists 'Appalled' By Expert Analysis In Pussy Riot Case Russian Psychologists 'Appalled' By Expert Analysis In Pussy Riot Case
About 100 psychologists and other academics have signed an open letter calling the expert conclusions used by the prosecution in the Pussy Riot trial a "professional disgrace." Without the expert analysis, prosecutors would have been unable to argue the case on charges of "premeditated hooliganism…motivated by religious hatred or hostility" against three members of the feminist punk rock collective. More
 
Putin Plot Suspect To Be Extradited Putin Plot Suspect To Be Extradited
A court of appeals in Ukraine's Black Sea port city of Odesa has upheld a demand by prosecutors to extradite Adam Osmayev, the main suspect in an alleged plot to assassinate Russian President Vladimir Putin, to Russia. More