Stories about Russia from August, 2007
Russia: More on Politkovskaya and Litvinenko
Sean's Russia Blog posts an update on the investigation of Anna Politkovskaya's murder and remind his readers of another ongoing case: Aleksandr Litvinenko's murder.
Ukraine: Rinat Akhmetov
Foreign Notes writes about Rinat Akhmetov, Ukraine's richest man.
Ukraine: Crimea
On the last day of summer, here's a translation of LJ user drugoi's photo report on his trip to Crimea, one of the favorite summer tourism destinations in the Soviet times, now facing fierce competition from resorts in Turkey and Egypt.
Russia: Politkovskaya Updates
Sean's Russia Blog is posting updates on Anna Politkovskaya's murder investigation – here, here, here (46 comments), and here.
Russia: Sakhalin Travel
White Sun of the Desert writes about his recent Sakhalin travel: “The journey back entailed me having to do one of those things I’d always hoped I’d never have to do: enter a 4-berth Russian railway carriage which has 3 people sleeping in it already, and the spare bed is...
Russia: “Anti-Akhmatova”
Languor Management writes about Tamara Katayeva's “600-page assault on the literary legacy Anna Akhmatova”: “This reminds me of Emma Gerstein's Moscow Memoirs, which was supposed to have debunked Nadehzda and Osip Mandelshtam's literary legacy, and really just portrayed them as particularly difficult people going through particularly hard times.”
Russia: “Word of Badmouth”
Copydude writes about various ways of mistreating foreigners in Russia – and about “word of badmouth,” which certain Russian restaurant owners don't seem to know anything about: “According to customer service research, a dissatisfied customer complains to an average of eight other people about a bad experience. In the blogging...
Ukraine: Ethnic Russians
Window on Eurasia writes about another way of looking at Ukraine's ethnic Russians and their political preferences.
Russia: Mistreatment of Foreigners
Window on Eurasia reports: “Foreigners working in the Russian Federation are far from likely to be mistreated by government officials and employers than they are to be attacked by skinheads and other Russian nationalist groups, according to a poll of Tajiks now living in Tajikistan with direct experience in the...
Russia: Geopolitical Dreams
Window on Eurasia writes that while some Russians are dreaming of a “Russian Texas,” others offer a scenario of the disintegration of the United States.
Serbia: Kosovo and Other “Statelets”
Steady State writes about Kosovo and the “de facto statelets of Abkhazia, Transnistria, South Ossetia and Nagorno Karabakh.”
Russia: The Strugatsky Brothers
De Rebus Antiquis Et Novis writes about the famous Soviet science fiction writers, the Strugatsky brothers: “For some reason, I was sure until recently that these books are so good that they will remain to be the favourite books of the new generations of geeks for a long time. Strangely,...
Russia: Novaya Gazeta in English
Robert Amsterdam and Sean's Russia Blog link to Novaya Gazeta's recently launched English-language site featuring translations of some of their investigative stories. Sean wrote in a reply to a reader: “The more Russian media accessible to English readers the better.”
Russia, Ukraine: Crimea Brawl
Foreign Notes writes about the recent diplomatic scandal caused by remarks on the Crimea by an adviser of the Russian embassy in Ukraine.
Afghanistan: No Chechens
Afghanistanica disarms the widely held belief that there are Chechen Jihadis on the ground in Afghanistan.
Russia: Krasnodar's “Exclusive” Neighborhood
Inside Krasnodar writes about an area that's “quickly becoming Krasnodar’s most exclusive residential neighborhood.”
Russia: Panyushkin's Detention
Robert Amsterdam writes about a recent detention of journalist Valery Panyushkin under Russia's extremism law.
Russia: Arrests in Politkovskaya's Murder Case
Ten unnamed people have been arrested in connection with last year's slaying of journalist Anna Politkovskaya. Sean's Russia Blog writes that she “as ‘political football’ has been dusted off and re-inflated just in time for a new season.” Robert Amsterdam doesn't think Russian prosecutors are capable of getting their jobs...
Russia: An “Oasis of Nonchalance”
August 19 marked sixteen years since the beginning of the Soviet Union's collapse. On this day, LJ user galerist (Marat Guelman, gallery owner from Moscow) happened to post a sketch on his visit to a rich client's estate - a sketch that, in a way, highlighted some of the changes that have - and have not - occurred since 1991.
Russia: Opinion on Chechnya
Window on Eurasia cites opinion polls on the Russian attitudes toward Chechnya.
Russia: Pensioners Back to Work
Low pensions and not enough young people are the reasons why more Russian retirees are returning to work, reports Window on Eurasia.
