http://www.rferl.org Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty is an international news and broadcast organization serving Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia, Russia, the Middle East and Balkan countries http://www.rferl.org/img/rssLogo.gif http://www.rferl.org en-US Copyright 2009 - RFE/RL, Inc. 60 Mon, 23 Nov 2009 11:19:18 +0000 Pangea CMS – RFE/RL Public cynicism and corruption in politics are threatening democracy in Europe. That's according to a group of writers and scholars taking part in a conference today marking the 20th anniversary of the democratic revolutions that swept Central and Eastern Europe in 1989. http://www.rferl.org/content/European_Intellectuals_Warn_Of_Democracy_Crisis_20_Years_After_Berlin_Walls_Fall/1878366.html http://www.rferl.org/content/European_Intellectuals_Warn_Of_Democracy_Crisis_20_Years_After_Berlin_Walls_Fall/1878366.html Sat, 14 Nov 2009 19:07:36 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/European_Intellectuals_Warn_Of_Democracy_Crisis_20_Years_After_Berlin_Walls_Fall/1878366.html#relatedInfoContainer It's the biggest country in the world, a sprawling landmass stretching 11 time zones from Europe to the Far East. Now experts in Russia are studying a proposal to reduce the number of time zones after a speech by President Dmitry Medvedev this week. http://www.rferl.org/content/Time_Could_Be_Up_For_Russian_Time_Zones/1878070.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Time_Could_Be_Up_For_Russian_Time_Zones/1878070.html Sat, 14 Nov 2009 11:33:37 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/Time_Could_Be_Up_For_Russian_Time_Zones/1878070.html#relatedInfoContainer Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has called for a major overhaul of Russian society to transform the country into a great power. Repeating his call for a Soviet-style modernization program, Medvedev presented a laundry list of areas for reform in a state-of-the-nation speech today. http://www.rferl.org/content/Russian_President_Outlines_Reform_Plans__/1875846.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Russian_President_Outlines_Reform_Plans__/1875846.html Thu, 12 Nov 2009 09:34:27 +0000 News http://www.rferl.org/content/Russian_President_Outlines_Reform_Plans__/1875846.html#relatedInfoContainer A recent exchange of barbs between Russia and Ukraine is raising worries in Kyiv over a possible new natural-gas crisis this winter. Moscow's shutoff last winter left millions of Europeans without heat in the bitter cold, but observers say they doubt there will be a repeat this year. http://www.rferl.org/content/Experts_Downplay_Fears_Over_UkraineRussia_Gas_Crisis_/1869197.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Experts_Downplay_Fears_Over_UkraineRussia_Gas_Crisis_/1869197.html Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:45:24 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/Experts_Downplay_Fears_Over_UkraineRussia_Gas_Crisis_/1869197.html#relatedInfoContainer Legislators who stormed out of Russia's parliament on October 14 to protest allegations of electoral fraud have begun to return. As evidence of voting violations increases, many believe the speed at which the standoff is dissipating indicates it was no real protest, but prompted by political infighting among pro-Kremlin groups. http://www.rferl.org/content/Russian_Parliament_Standoff_Nears_End/1853694.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Russian_Parliament_Standoff_Nears_End/1853694.html Fri, 16 Oct 2009 14:25:22 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/Russian_Parliament_Standoff_Nears_End/1853694.html#relatedInfoContainer Hillary Clinton has said she's pleased with the effects so far of Washington's rapprochement with Moscow during her first visit to Moscow as U.S. Secretary of State. She said both sides had agreed to work more closely on a missile defense system. But she doesn’t appear to have succeeded in convincing the Kremlin to back a tough U.S. policy toward Iran. http://www.rferl.org/content/Clinton_Upbeat_on_Russia_Reset_After_Moscow_Talks/1850584.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Clinton_Upbeat_on_Russia_Reset_After_Moscow_Talks/1850584.html Tue, 13 Oct 2009 12:00:46 +0000 News http://www.rferl.org/content/Clinton_Upbeat_on_Russia_Reset_After_Moscow_Talks/1850584.html#relatedInfoContainer U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in Moscow in hopes of winning Russian support for increasing pressure on Iran over its nuclear program. The Kremlin has hinted it may be willing to support new sanctions, but few expect Russia to tone down its public skepticism about Western concerns. http://www.rferl.org/content/Clinton_to_Push_Russia_on_Iran_During_Moscow_Visit/1850020.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Clinton_to_Push_Russia_on_Iran_During_Moscow_Visit/1850020.html Mon, 12 Oct 2009 17:20:46 +0000 Iran http://www.rferl.org/content/Clinton_to_Push_Russia_on_Iran_During_Moscow_Visit/1850020.html#relatedInfoContainer Russia has indicated it will torpedo a Western push for sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program. The announcement comes amid speculation that former Russian military officers tried to sell Iran air-defense missiles, and raises fresh doubts about Moscow's role in the international effort to resolve the crisis over Iran. http://www.rferl.org/content/Russia_Backs_Iran_Over_Sanctions/1820551.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Russia_Backs_Iran_Over_Sanctions/1820551.html Fri, 11 Sep 2009 13:38:54 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/Russia_Backs_Iran_Over_Sanctions/1820551.html#relatedInfoContainer Ten years ago, a series of deadly apartment bombings across Russia killed more than 300 people and changed the country's political landscape. The authorities blamed the explosions on Chechen rebels, a pretext for launching a second war in Chechnya. But Kremlin critics say the security services staged the blasts as part of a plan to bring Vladimir Putin to power. A decade later, some of those critics are dead and the bombings remain unsolved. http://www.rferl.org/content/Ten_Years_On_Troubling_Questions_Linger_Over_Russian_Apartment_Bombings/1818652.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Ten_Years_On_Troubling_Questions_Linger_Over_Russian_Apartment_Bombings/1818652.html Wed, 09 Sep 2009 10:50:37 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/Ten_Years_On_Troubling_Questions_Linger_Over_Russian_Apartment_Bombings/1818652.html#relatedInfoContainer Mikhail Voitenko, editor of the online "Sovfracht Marine Bulletin," was among the earliest and most outspoken of those casting doubt on the official version of events, questioning why pirates would risk seizing a relatively inexpensive cargo in one of Europe's busiest shipping lanes. http://www.rferl.org/content/Missing_Ship_Critic_Flees_Russia/1814225.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Missing_Ship_Critic_Flees_Russia/1814225.html Thu, 03 Sep 2009 15:35:25 +0000 News Commemorations have begun in Poland to mark the 70th anniversary of the outbreak of World War II. But the event has been touched by controversy over the Soviet Union's role in the war, with Russia accusing the West of rewriting history. http://www.rferl.org/content/Russia_Poland_Locked_in_Controversy_Over_WWII_Commemorations/1812124.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Russia_Poland_Locked_in_Controversy_Over_WWII_Commemorations/1812124.html Tue, 01 Sep 2009 10:34:07 +0000 News http://www.rferl.org/content/Russia_Poland_Locked_in_Controversy_Over_WWII_Commemorations/1812124.html#relatedInfoContainer A wave of bloody attacks in Russia's North Caucasus region is fueling speculation that Moscow is losing control over its volatile southern region. Experts blame the Kremlin for failing to tackle endemic poverty and corruption. But some say the violence is evidence of an effective military crackdown against a handful of extremists, pushing them to commit desperate acts. http://www.rferl.org/content/Is_Russia_Losing_the_North_Caucasus_/1803276.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Is_Russia_Losing_the_North_Caucasus_/1803276.html Wed, 19 Aug 2009 14:04:51 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/Is_Russia_Losing_the_North_Caucasus_/1803276.html#relatedInfoContainer When Russia recognized two Georgian separatist regions last year, people in another post-Soviet territory locked in frozen conflict took hope: Moldova's pro-Moscow breakaway region of Transdniester. Now some believe an opposition victory in Moldova may help revive stalled negotiations over the tiny region's future. http://www.rferl.org/content/No_End_Of_Frozen_Conflict_In_Moldovas_Transdniester_/1802579.html http://www.rferl.org/content/No_End_Of_Frozen_Conflict_In_Moldovas_Transdniester_/1802579.html Tue, 18 Aug 2009 16:27:20 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/No_End_Of_Frozen_Conflict_In_Moldovas_Transdniester_/1802579.html#relatedInfoContainer Fifteen years after Russia launched its first war in the breakaway republic, Chechens lavish praise on their Moscow-installed leader for overseeing its dramatic reconstruction. At least in public. Off the record, many call 32-year-old Ramzan Kadyrov an autocratic thug who's imposed order through fear. Gregory Feifer was one of three RFE/RL correspondents who traveled to Kadyrov's lavish compound outside the capital, Grozny, for a wide-ranging interview. http://www.rferl.org/content/The_Price_Of_Progress__Life_In_Kadyrovs_Grozny_Permeated_By_Fear/1797452.html http://www.rferl.org/content/The_Price_Of_Progress__Life_In_Kadyrovs_Grozny_Permeated_By_Fear/1797452.html Tue, 11 Aug 2009 14:42:48 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/The_Price_Of_Progress__Life_In_Kadyrovs_Grozny_Permeated_By_Fear/1797452.html#relatedInfoContainer Pro-Western opposition parties in Moldova are scrambling to form a broad governing coalition after unseating the last ruling Communist Party in the former Soviet Union. International election observers cited a number of electoral violations in the July 29 vote but praised it overall as "positive." http://www.rferl.org/content/Moldovan_Opposition_Jockeys_To_Form_Ruling_Coalition/1789270.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Moldovan_Opposition_Jockeys_To_Form_Ruling_Coalition/1789270.html Thu, 30 Jul 2009 17:07:03 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/Moldovan_Opposition_Jockeys_To_Form_Ruling_Coalition/1789270.html#relatedInfoContainer Results from Moldova's parliamentary elections show that pro-Western opposition parties have enough votes to unseat the ruling Communist Party. http://www.rferl.org/content/article/1788420.html http://www.rferl.org/content/article/1788420.html Wed, 29 Jul 2009 19:43:18 +0000 News Polls are open in Moldova, where voters are taking part in what many regard as pivotal snap parliamentary elections. Moldova became the latest battleground for influence between Russia and the European Union after elections in April, when demonstrators accused the ruling Communist Party of stealing the vote. http://www.rferl.org/content/Situation_Tense_As_Moldovans_Vote/1788065.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Situation_Tense_As_Moldovans_Vote/1788065.html Wed, 29 Jul 2009 12:09:58 +0000 News Moldovans are voting in snap elections called after a fiercely disputed poll in April. Critics allege that the Communists rigged the first vote and continue to commit violations aimed at keeping them in power. http://www.rferl.org/content/Moldova_Braces_For_Another_Contentious_Election/1787503.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Moldova_Braces_For_Another_Contentious_Election/1787503.html Tue, 28 Jul 2009 16:57:17 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/Moldova_Braces_For_Another_Contentious_Election/1787503.html#relatedInfoContainer In a leafy park in what was suburban Moscow in 1959, American engineers constructed a series of futuristic-looking pavilions brimming with art and fashion displays along with the latest in U.S. consumer goods. The venue of the Nixon-Khrushchev kitchen debate, it marked an iconic episode of detente at the height of the Cold War, something its organizers today say was an important precedent for U.S. President Barack Obama's efforts to improve relations with Moscow. http://www.rferl.org/content/Fifty_Years_Ago_American_Exhibition_Stunned_Soviets_in_Cold_War/1783913.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Fifty_Years_Ago_American_Exhibition_Stunned_Soviets_in_Cold_War/1783913.html Thu, 23 Jul 2009 14:40:37 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/Fifty_Years_Ago_American_Exhibition_Stunned_Soviets_in_Cold_War/1783913.html#relatedInfoContainer Another Russian activist has been murdered. Natalya Estemirova's colleagues believe her killing was sanctioned by Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov. Is Kadyrov's independence from the Kremlin enabling violence to grow in the volatile North Caucasus? http://www.rferl.org/content/Estemirovas_Death_Raises_Questions_About_Kadyrovs_Power/1778269.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Estemirovas_Death_Raises_Questions_About_Kadyrovs_Power/1778269.html Thu, 16 Jul 2009 10:32:23 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/Estemirovas_Death_Raises_Questions_About_Kadyrovs_Power/1778269.html#relatedInfoContainer A prominent Russian human rights activist has been found dead hours after being kidnapped in the North Caucasus region. Natalya Estemirova investigated atrocities in Chechnya. Her death is the latest in a series of similar killings that have gone unsolved. http://www.rferl.org/content/Chechen_Officials_Say_Rights_Activist_Found_Dead/1777670.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Chechen_Officials_Say_Rights_Activist_Found_Dead/1777670.html Wed, 15 Jul 2009 14:59:28 +0000 News http://www.rferl.org/content/Chechen_Officials_Say_Rights_Activist_Found_Dead/1777670.html#relatedInfoContainer Barack Obama's first trip to Russia as U.S. president this week was part of his ongoing overhaul of U.S. foreign policy. In meetings and a major speech, Obama sought to begin overcoming what Washington characterizes as the Kremlin's "zero-sum" approach to relations with the United States. http://www.rferl.org/content/Russian_People_Swayed_By_Obama_Diplomacy_But_Kremlin_Another_Matter/1772255.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Russian_People_Swayed_By_Obama_Diplomacy_But_Kremlin_Another_Matter/1772255.html Wed, 08 Jul 2009 12:56:36 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/Russian_People_Swayed_By_Obama_Diplomacy_But_Kremlin_Another_Matter/1772255.html#relatedInfoContainer U.S. President Barack Obama had a difficult balancing act to pull off during his trip to Moscow. He arrived seeking Russian support on issues of key global concern, like nuclear proliferation, but he also wanted to make clear U.S. concerns over such things as Kremlin meddling in its neighbor's affairs. This dilemma was on full display on Obama's second day in Russia. http://www.rferl.org/content/On_Second_Day_Of_Visit_Obama_Addresses_Civil_Society_Issues_In_Russia/1771673.html http://www.rferl.org/content/On_Second_Day_Of_Visit_Obama_Addresses_Civil_Society_Issues_In_Russia/1771673.html Tue, 07 Jul 2009 18:46:57 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/On_Second_Day_Of_Visit_Obama_Addresses_Civil_Society_Issues_In_Russia/1771673.html#relatedInfoContainer Presidents Obama and Medvedev signed a preliminary agreement over a major new nuclear-arms deal. But many think the positive atmospherics at their summit represent only a possible first step toward bridging fundamental differences that have sunk relations to Cold War lows. http://www.rferl.org/content/Obama_Medvedev_Take_First_Step_Toward_Bridging_Divide/1770764.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Obama_Medvedev_Take_First_Step_Toward_Bridging_Divide/1770764.html Mon, 06 Jul 2009 18:15:27 +0000 News Muscovites were shivering under steady rain as U.S. President Barack Obama touched down in the Russian capital for his first visit as president. The weather reflects general skepticism that the two-day summit will do much to achieve Washington's goal of turning around stalled relations between the two former Cold War rivals. http://www.rferl.org/content/USRussian_Summit_Begins_In_Moscow/1770288.html http://www.rferl.org/content/USRussian_Summit_Begins_In_Moscow/1770288.html Mon, 06 Jul 2009 10:29:23 +0000 News U.S. President Barack Obama hopes to kick-start Washington's moribund relations with Moscow in his first summit meeting with Russian President Dmitri Medvedev. But the two sides face serious divisions, and few are predicting the visit will produce anything close to a breakthrough. http://www.rferl.org/content/Will_US_Russia_Summit_Finally_Begin_Reset/1767879.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Will_US_Russia_Summit_Finally_Begin_Reset/1767879.html Thu, 02 Jul 2009 13:28:03 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/Will_US_Russia_Summit_Finally_Begin_Reset/1767879.html#relatedInfoContainer As Western countries strive to mend ties with Moscow badly frayed during Russia's brief war with Georgia, there are growing fears over a possible new conflict. A week ahead of a summit meeting between the U.S. and Russian presidents, the Kremlin is refusing to allow international monitors into the conflict area and holding major military exercises north of the Georgian border. http://www.rferl.org/content/Fears_Grow_Of_New_RussiaGeorgia_Conflict/1765258.html http://www.rferl.org/content/Fears_Grow_Of_New_RussiaGeorgia_Conflict/1765258.html Mon, 29 Jun 2009 13:46:09 +0000 Features http://www.rferl.org/content/Fears_Grow_Of_New_RussiaGeorgia_Conflict/1765258.html#relatedInfoContainer