Wall Street Journal (March 3, 2012)
“Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, Russia’s paramount ruler since 2000, will reclaim his old job as president in Sunday’s elections. The drama comes in the aftermath…. Anticorruption blogger and activist Alexei Navalny will be in the middle of it.” Amid recent protests, he “has emerged as the charismatic and fresh face of the movement.” Just 35 years old, Navalny works from a small office with a staff of just 11. Yet he is feared by the Kremlin. Navalny remains the only opposition leader banned from state-controlled TV.
Tags: Navalny, Opposition, President, Putin, Russia
Wall Street Journal (March 3, 2012)
“Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, Russia’s paramount ruler since 2000, will reclaim his old job as president in Sunday’s elections. The drama comes in the aftermath…. Anticorruption blogger and activist Alexei Navalny will be in the middle of it.” Amid recent protests, he “has emerged as the charismatic and fresh face of the movement.” Just 35 years old, Navalny works from a small office with a staff of just 11. Yet he is feared by the Kremlin. Navalny remains the only opposition leader banned from state-controlled TV.
“Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, Russia’s paramount ruler since 2000, will reclaim his old job as president in Sunday’s elections. The drama comes in the aftermath…. Anticorruption blogger and activist Alexei Navalny will be in the middle of it.” Amid recent protests, he “has emerged as the charismatic and fresh face of the movement.” Just 35 years old, Navalny works from a small office with a staff of just 11. Yet he is feared by the Kremlin. Navalny remains the only opposition leader banned from state-controlled TV.
Tags: Navalny, Opposition, President, Putin, Russia
Financial Times (December 22)
Moscow will “resume old habits and exploit Europe’s debt-driven disunity.” Despite the economic crisis, the EU must form a united foreign policy front and “seek a constructive relationship with its neighbour. But it should do so without deluding itself about the prospects for Russian reform after Mr Putin’s return to the presidency.”
Tags: Debt crisis, EU, Foreign policy, Moscow, Putin, Russia
The Independent (December 12)
Russian politics has entered a new phase. “Authorities watched with horror as the number of people who said they would attend Saturday’s protest grew steadily throughout the week.” Middle-class Russians who benefited greatly during the Putin era, “have suddenly started taking an interest” in politics. “The Kremlin will face a difficult choice. Does it open up the political process…or does it repress dissent and risk radicalising the opposition?”
Russian politics has entered a new phase. “Authorities watched with horror as the number of people who said they would attend Saturday’s protest grew steadily throughout the week.” Middle-class Russians who benefited greatly during the Putin era, “have suddenly started taking an interest” in politics. “The Kremlin will face a difficult choice. Does it open up the political process…or does it repress dissent and risk radicalising the opposition?”
Wall Street Journal (December 3)
FIFA, the international governing body of soccer, “makes the United Nations seem like a model—well, almost—of transparency and good governance. Even the International Olympic Committee, no stranger to corruption and foul play, benefits by comparison.” The Journal is upset by recent allegations of vote buying and collusion in site selection, which may have benefitted Russia and Qatar at the expense of the UK and the U.S.
Financial Times (April 29)
Russia settled a long-running border dispute with Norway. While the land border separating the two countries has been fixed since 1826, the maritime border has been hotly disputed. The two countries will split the sea equally, with the maritime border extending from the coast to the North Pole. With the boundary dispute settled, oil companies will be less hesitant to invest in exploration around the Barents Sea. Even more importantly, the Financial Times hopes this signals renewed commitment by Russia to the “rule of law.”
Russia settled a long-running border dispute with Norway. While the land border separating the two countries has been fixed since 1826, the maritime border has been hotly disputed. The two countries will split the sea equally, with the maritime border extending from the coast to the North Pole. With the boundary dispute settled, oil companies will be less hesitant to invest in exploration around the Barents Sea. Even more importantly, the Financial Times hopes this signals renewed commitment by Russia to the “rule of law.”
Tags: Border, North Pole, Norway, Russia
