Stories about Russia from July, 2008
Belarus: Relations with Russia and the Union State
Glavred user ringo analyses (RUS) relations between Belarus and Russia and the situation with the issue of the Union State of Belarus and Russia.
Russia: Reaction to Captive Nations Speech
Former Estonian Prime Minister Mart Laar comments on the negative Russian reactions to US president's George Bush parallel between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union in a recent speech celebrating...
Russia: Projecting Demographic Development
Da Russophile presents and evaluates various models for projecting the demographic development of Russia.
Russia: Exaggerated Rumours of a New Cuban Crisis
FP Passport – Russia follows up on the commotion and official denials following rumours of Russian plans to station strategic bombers to Cuba.
Soviet History: Russian-Korean Migration in Central Asia
Otto's Random Thoughts addresses the migration of Russian-Koreans from Kazakhstan to Uzbekistan 1937-1959.
Russia: Plans for Naval Expansion
Siberian Light writes about the Russian navy's plans to build new vessels and expand its operations, mainly concerning the Northern and Pacific fleets.
Soviet History: Nuclear Disaster Areas
The Turkish Invasion posts a link to a documentary photo site on nuclear disaster areas in the former Soviet Union.
Latvia, Russia: Views of European Court Ruling
Marginalia presents a Latvian view of the background to and case of Kononov vs. Latvia, which Latvia lost last week in the European Court of Human Rights, whereas Voices from...
Russia: Nashi at Seliger
Oleg Klimov posts photos – here and here – from Nashi‘s Seliger summer camp. (Text in Russian.)
Soviet History: The Afghan War
The Turkish Invasion writes at length about the Soviet Afghan War and posts pictures from the memorial in Kyiv. Window on Eurasia writes that Russian Afghan War vets “want Moscow...
Russia: Two “Seven Wonders” Competitions
Vilhelm Konnander writes about the results of two parallel competitions whose aim was to choose “Seven Wonders of Russia.”
Russia: Cost of Living in Moscow
Two-Zero writes about the cost of living in Moscow – for expats and for locals.
US, Russia: Gorby vs Yeltsin, Multistate Bar Exam Scenario
Lyndon of Scraps of Moscow shares a bizarre Russia-related multiple choice question from his Multistate Bar Exam practice book.
Latvia: European Court Goes Against Riga
Who has the right to pass judgment on what a man does in the service of his country during wartime and what should the legal grounds for such a verdict be? These are some of the key issues surrounding a legal process on WWII war crimes against a soviet veteran, Vasily Kononov, that has been dragged through the Latvian legal system since 1998. However, earlier this week, the European Court of Human Rights found that Latvia lacked legal grounds for prosecuting Kononov. Following the verdict, the Russian blogosphere has generally reacted with joy and relief, although there have also been some opposing voices.
Russia, US: A Cuba Crisis in the Making
Der Spiegelfechter (GER) comments on rumours in Moscow, according to which Russia might station strategic bombers on Cuba in reply to deployment of the US missile defence system to Poland...
Serbia: Anglophone Bloggers Continue Discussion of Karadžić's Arrest
From one of the world’s most wanted fugitives, Radovan Karadžić - aka Dr. Dragan David Dabić - has turned into one of the world's most talked about detainees. Below are snippets of some of the discussions that have taken place in Anglophone blogs in the past few days.
Russia: OSCE Election Observers Accused of Espionage
Da Rússia (SPA) comments on the claims by a member or Russia's Central Election Commission that OSCE election observers are Western spies.
Russia: Statistics – True or False?
LJ community Politika v Rossii (RUS) discusses results from a set of Russian opinion polls, quite alarming for the government, and asks whether the figures are true or false.
Russia: Increasing Difficulties for Expats
Copydude argues that foreigners living in Russia are experiencing increasing difficulties with staying on due to stiffer visa regulations, and even portrays the situation as an exodus for expats from...
Russia: Orthodox Instead of Universal Values?
A Step At A Time quotes an RFE/RL piece on the adoption by the Russian Orthodox Church of its Basic Principles on Human Dignity, Freedom, and Rights. One of its...
Central & Eastern Europe: IMF Policies and TB Deaths
Eternal Remont draws attention to a recent study from Cambridge University claiming that IMF's policies in Eastern Europe during the 1990s implicitly caused the deaths of some 100,000 people from...
