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RFE/RL RUSSIA REPORT
12.02.2013
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 . |
 After Putin Is Putin's inner circle thinking about life after Putin? More  Olympics Wrestling Snub Would Hit Post-Soviet States Hard The International Olympic Committee's (IOC) decision to demote wrestling from its list of so-called core sports for the 2020 Olympics has shocked athletes and boosters of the sport around the world. More  Volunteer Squads To Chase Illegal Migrants In Russia Moscow will soon have a new volunteer squad to help migration authorities catch illegal migrants. Human rights campaigners are deeply concerned about the decision, which follows similar initiatives by Cossacks and Russian Orthodox activists. More  Podcast: War Of The Thieves Turbulence is shaking the Russian underworld in the aftermath of the assassination of mafia kingpin Aslan Usoyan and retaliatory hits against his rivals. More  Critical Report Adds To Russian Superjet's Woes Russia's troubled Superjet suffered another blow this week with the publication of a report detailing numerous malfunctions linked to the aircraft, the first produced by Russia since the Soviet collapse. The report by Aeroflot, leaked to the media, follows a string of glitches and a deadly crash during a promotional flight last year. It comes on the eve of Aeroflot's 90th birthday. More  How Not To Drive In Moscow Given the ubiquitousness of dashboard cameras in Russian cars and a reputation for reckless driving on its roads, it's hardly surprising that some drivers are making a game out of posting videos of their adventures on the Internet. More  In Russia, Reasons To Fear Year Of The Snake The Chinese New Year, which begins on February 10, marks the start of the Year of the Snake, one of 12 zodiac symbols on the Chinese astrological calendar. The new year is raising alarm in Russia, a country where many turbulent moments in the country's history have consistently occurred during so-called snake years. More  Aeroflot: Taking To The Skies For 90 Years  Aeroflot was established 90 years ago, heralding the birth of Russian civil aviation. Despite criticism of its safety record, millions still use the former "Dobrolyot" airline every year. (15 PHOTOS) More  Flying Above An Active Volcano With Pioneering Russian Filmmakers A Russian aerial imaging and virtual-tours group has posted 360-degree aerial video from above Russia's active Plosky Tolbachik volcano that you must see to believe. More  Russian Soldiers Complain Of Maggot-Infested Food Russian investigators are looking into claims that soldiers serving in a remote unit on the Pacific are being fed food ridden with worms and maggots. The allegations have sparked outrage among the soldiers' families and echo a similar scandal in 2011, when a former Interior Ministry officer revealed that troops at a nearby base were given dog food to save money. More  HRW Criticizes Exploitation At Russian Olympic Construction Sites Human Rights Watch (HRW) says migrant laborers working at Winter Olympics construction sites in Sochi, Russia, have been exploited by their employers. More  U.S. Families Rejoice As Some Pending Adoptions From Russia Go Through A Russian ban on U.S. adoptions went into effect on January 1, but Moscow has quietly allowed some pending cases to go through. RFE/RL speaks with two American families whose worst fears didn’t materialize. More  Putinism In Winter The recent disarray and intrigue in the Russian elite is reminiscent of the late 1990s, the twilight years of Boris Yeltsin's rule. More  Moscow Official's Comments Prompt Defense Of White Ribbons Since mass protests against President Vladimir Putin's rule broke out in late 2011, the white ribbon has been the symbol of the opposition's call for change. With the symbol under attack by some Moscow officials, the opposition has declared February 5 White Ribbon Day. More  After 20 Years, Tatarstan Finally Gets An Anthem With Words Russia's republic of Tatarstan has had its own anthem for 20 years, but only now is it getting some words. More  Looming Tobacco Crackdown Has Russian Smokers Fuming Russia is set to pass stringent legislation that would help curb rampant smoking, but the measures aren't popular. The tobacco lobby thinks the bill goes too far, the antitobacco lobby thinks it doesn't go far enough, and smokers are just annoyed. More |
