http://www.rferl.org/archive/Russia/latest/666/666.html RFE/RL's latest news, features, commentary, and multimedia content on Russia http://www.rferl.org/img/rssLogo_RFERL.gif http://www.rferl.org/archive/Russia/latest/666/666.html en-US Copyright 2010 - RFE/RL, Inc. 60 Mon, 20 May 2013 22:05:27 +0000 Pangea CMS – RFE/RL If Vladimir Putin ever names Aleksei Kudrin premier, we’ll know one of two things happened : Either Putin changed course or Kudrin sold out. http://www.rferl.org/content/putins-game-and-kudrins-choice/24992043.html http://www.rferl.org/content/putins-game-and-kudrins-choice/24992043.html Mon, 20 May 2013 18:03:06 +0000 The Power Vertical http://www.rferl.org/content/putins-game-and-kudrins-choice/24992043.html#relatedInfoContainer Russia's counterterrorism agency says its forces have foiled a terror attack on Moscow. http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-foiled-terror-attack/24991950.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-foiled-terror-attack/24991950.html Mon, 20 May 2013 16:39:39 +0000 Russia Russia's only independent polling agency says it may have to close after prosecutors described its opinion research as "political activity." http://www.rferl.org/content/article/24991664.html http://www.rferl.org/content/article/24991664.html Mon, 20 May 2013 13:09:03 +0000 Russia The Moscow City Court has upheld a prior court's decision not to investigate the alleged kidnapping of opposition activist Leonid Razvozzhayev. http://www.rferl.org/content/moscow-court-denies-appeal-investigate-razvozzhayev-abduction-claim/24991640.html http://www.rferl.org/content/moscow-court-denies-appeal-investigate-razvozzhayev-abduction-claim/24991640.html Mon, 20 May 2013 12:56:56 +0000 Russia RFE/RL Two car bombs have exploded with deadly effect in front of the Court Bailiffs' Directorate in Makhachkala, the capital of Russia's North Caucasus republic of Daghestan. http://www.rferl.org/content/daghestan-bombings/24991602.html http://www.rferl.org/content/daghestan-bombings/24991602.html Mon, 20 May 2013 12:30:33 +0000 North Caucasus RFE/RL The embezzlement trial of opposition figure and anticorruption blogger Aleksei Navalny has resumed in the central Russian city of Kirov. http://www.rferl.org/content/navalny-trial-embezzlement-kirov/24991235.html http://www.rferl.org/content/navalny-trial-embezzlement-kirov/24991235.html Mon, 20 May 2013 08:41:59 +0000 Russia Jailed Pussy Riot member Maria Alyokhina has had one of two prison reprimands dismissed. http://www.rferl.org/content/pussy-riot-appeal-reprimand-alyokhina/24991191.html http://www.rferl.org/content/pussy-riot-appeal-reprimand-alyokhina/24991191.html Mon, 20 May 2013 08:00:42 +0000 Russia RFE/RL's Russian Service After two decades as Russia's marquee company, is Gazprom losing its mojo? A changing energy market and emergence of new energy sources is challenging the company's longtime dominance. http://www.rferl.org/content/gazprom-gas-industry-russia/24986891.html http://www.rferl.org/content/gazprom-gas-industry-russia/24986891.html Mon, 20 May 2013 05:53:18 +0000 Russia Tom Balmforth Russia's Supreme Court has agreed to hear an appeal against the second conviction of jailed former oil tycoon and Kremlin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky. http://www.rferl.org/content/khodorkovsky-appeal-supreme-court-russia/24990802.html http://www.rferl.org/content/khodorkovsky-appeal-supreme-court-russia/24990802.html Sun, 19 May 2013 15:05:31 +0000 Russia In line with a recent amendment to last year's law reintroducing direct elections for the heads of Russia's 83 federation subjects, the Daghestani and Ingushetian parliaments have voted overwhelmingly for an alternative option. Will others follow suit? http://www.rferl.org/content/direct-elections-north-caucasus-russia/24990665.html http://www.rferl.org/content/direct-elections-north-caucasus-russia/24990665.html Sun, 19 May 2013 11:06:35 +0000 Caucasus Report http://www.rferl.org/content/direct-elections-north-caucasus-russia/24990665.html#relatedInfoContainer Russian film director Aleksei Balabanov, whose films include the 1997 crime film "Brother" (Brat) and its sequel, "Brother-2," died after collapsing from an apparent heart attack in the village of Solnechnoye outside St. Petersburg. http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-film-director-balabanov-dead/24990746.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-film-director-balabanov-dead/24990746.html Sun, 19 May 2013 09:33:45 +0000 Russia RFE/RL's Russian Service The United States supports Syria’s rebels and has demanded the exit of the Assad regime. http://www.rferl.org/content/syria-rus-us/24989682.html http://www.rferl.org/content/syria-rus-us/24989682.html Sat, 18 May 2013 03:10:23 +0000 Russia RFE/RL A British coroner has ruled that he could not hear evidence about the alleged role of the Russian state in the killing of Aleksandr Litvinenko. http://www.rferl.org/content/uk-russia-relations-litvinenko-polonium/24989554.html http://www.rferl.org/content/uk-russia-relations-litvinenko-polonium/24989554.html Fri, 17 May 2013 17:50:50 +0000 Russia Did the gray cardinal of the Kremlin jump ship? Was he pushed? And what are the implications of Vladislav Surkov’s exit from the halls of power? http://www.rferl.org/content/surkovs-hall-of-mirrors/24989351.html http://www.rferl.org/content/surkovs-hall-of-mirrors/24989351.html Fri, 17 May 2013 14:33:03 +0000 The Power Vertical http://www.rferl.org/content/surkovs-hall-of-mirrors/24989351.html#relatedInfoContainer The father of Russian opposition leader Aleksei Navalny has been summoned to appear before federal investigators. http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-navalny-father-trial/24989312.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-navalny-father-trial/24989312.html Fri, 17 May 2013 13:58:55 +0000 Russia The FBI has been investigating a former Chechen rebel fighter over his association with one of the Boston Marathon bombing suspects, Tamerlan Tsarnaev. http://www.rferl.org/content/boston-bombing-tsarnaev-tamerlan-rebel/24989229.html http://www.rferl.org/content/boston-bombing-tsarnaev-tamerlan-rebel/24989229.html Fri, 17 May 2013 12:28:57 +0000 North Caucasus VOA's Fatima Tlisova Chechnya's maverick leader Ramzan Kadyrov is threatening to close his Instagram account after he was criticized for posting a photo of himself standing with an ethnic Chechen convicted for involvement in the killing of a Russian soccer fan in 2010. http://www.rferl.org/content/kadyrov-chechnya-instagram-controversy/24989034.html http://www.rferl.org/content/kadyrov-chechnya-instagram-controversy/24989034.html Fri, 17 May 2013 11:05:12 +0000 Transmission http://www.rferl.org/content/kadyrov-chechnya-instagram-controversy/24989034.html#relatedInfoContainer UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in the southern Russian city of Sochi for talks centered on the crisis in Syria. http://www.rferl.org/content/un-syria-talks-russia/24988940.html http://www.rferl.org/content/un-syria-talks-russia/24988940.html Fri, 17 May 2013 10:02:26 +0000 Russia RFE/RL What is the state of LGBT rights in the world today? To mark International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, the International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA) has released a map charting the rights of homosexuals around the world. The co-secretary general of ILGA, Renato Sabbadini, spoke to RFE/RL's Claire Bigg. http://www.rferl.org/content/homosexuals-rights-worldwide-interview/24988901.html http://www.rferl.org/content/homosexuals-rights-worldwide-interview/24988901.html Fri, 17 May 2013 09:44:09 +0000 Features A CBS News report says Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev wrote a handwritten message describing the attacks as retribution for U.S. wars in Muslim countries. http://www.rferl.org/content/boston-bombings-note/24988269.html http://www.rferl.org/content/boston-bombings-note/24988269.html Thu, 16 May 2013 15:14:27 +0000 North Caucasus A former prisoner, newly freed because of bribes, is gunned down in the street. The message: "In prison, he'd still be alive." It's all in the name of fighting corruption in Russia's republic of Daghestan. http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-anticorruption-video/24988031.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-anticorruption-video/24988031.html Thu, 16 May 2013 12:24:30 +0000 Russia Deana Kjuka Gay and transgender activists in St. Petersburg are planning a small rally on May 17 despite the city's notorious law banning so-called "homosexual propaganda." It comes with authorities in the Russian capital, Moscow, holding out against a similar event there. http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-lgbt-gay-homophobia-petersburg-moscow/24988036.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-lgbt-gay-homophobia-petersburg-moscow/24988036.html Thu, 16 May 2013 12:16:35 +0000 Russia Robert Coalson French actor Gerard Depardieu plans to make two movies in Russia's North Caucasus republic of Chechnya. http://www.rferl.org/content/depardieu-making-movies-chechnya/24987751.html http://www.rferl.org/content/depardieu-making-movies-chechnya/24987751.html Thu, 16 May 2013 09:12:14 +0000 North Caucasus RFE/RL's North Caucasus Service Wrestlers from Iran, Russia, and the United States have faced off in a New York charity event, with Iran defeating the United States 6-1 in the matches. http://www.rferl.org/content/us-iranian-russian-wrestlers-compete-new-york/24987579.html http://www.rferl.org/content/us-iranian-russian-wrestlers-compete-new-york/24987579.html Thu, 16 May 2013 06:33:18 +0000 Iran Kyrgyzstan’s parliament has declared Russian politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky persona non grata and banned him from entering the country. http://www.rferl.org/content/kyrgystan-zhironovsky-banned/24987523.html http://www.rferl.org/content/kyrgystan-zhironovsky-banned/24987523.html Thu, 16 May 2013 05:36:03 +0000 Kyrgyzstan RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service Russian state television has aired footage claiming that another alleged American spy was expelled earlier this year. http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-expelled-another-spy-january/24987355.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-expelled-another-spy-january/24987355.html Wed, 15 May 2013 20:33:51 +0000 Russia RFE/RL It’s fitting that the circumstances surrounding Vladislav Surkov’s sudden exit from the halls of power continue to be shrouded in mystery. http://www.rferl.org/content/surkovs-last-stand/24987291.html http://www.rferl.org/content/surkovs-last-stand/24987291.html Wed, 15 May 2013 17:49:03 +0000 The Power Vertical http://www.rferl.org/content/surkovs-last-stand/24987291.html#relatedInfoContainer Russian and American prisoners are facing off in an international online chess competition -- just as ties between the countries fray in the wake of a strange spy scandal in the Russian capital. http://www.rferl.org/content/russian-american-convicts-chess/24986988.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russian-american-convicts-chess/24986988.html Wed, 15 May 2013 13:16:03 +0000 Transmission http://www.rferl.org/content/russian-american-convicts-chess/24986988.html#relatedInfoContainer Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) announced on May 14 that it had detained a U.S. diplomat in Moscow for allegedly trying to recruit a Russian counterterrorism officer. The incident is one of the strangest spy scandals involving Russia in recent memory. But Boris Volodarsky, a veteran of Russia's GRU military intelligence service now based in London, believes the case was entirely fabricated. He spoke to RFE/RL’s Claire Bigg. http://www.rferl.org/content/spy-fogle-interview-soviet/24986987.html http://www.rferl.org/content/spy-fogle-interview-soviet/24986987.html Wed, 15 May 2013 12:54:01 +0000 Russia http://www.rferl.org/content/spy-fogle-interview-soviet/24986987.html#relatedInfoContainer The Supreme Court of Russia's republic of Tatarstan has ordered that the Al-Ikhlas Muslim religious group be disbanded for what it called "extremist activities." http://www.rferl.org/content/tatarstan-muslim-group/24986707.html http://www.rferl.org/content/tatarstan-muslim-group/24986707.html Wed, 15 May 2013 10:01:53 +0000 Tatar-Bashkir The trial of opposition figure and anticorruption blogger Aleksei Navalny has resumed in the central Russian city of Kirov. http://www.rferl.org/content/navalny-trial-russia/24986595.html http://www.rferl.org/content/navalny-trial-russia/24986595.html Wed, 15 May 2013 08:50:33 +0000 Russia RFE/RL's Russian Service A spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin says an alleged attempt by a U.S. diplomat to recruit a Russian intelligence officer for the Central Intelligence Agency does not help efforts to improve U.S.-Russia relations. http://www.rferl.org/content/us-russia-spy-incident-mcfaul/24986480.html http://www.rferl.org/content/us-russia-spy-incident-mcfaul/24986480.html Wed, 15 May 2013 07:13:12 +0000 Russia RFE/RL Wrestlers from the United States, Iran, and Russia have appeared jointly at the United Nations to promote the value of wrestling. http://www.rferl.org/content/olympic-wrestling-iran-russia-us/24986417.html http://www.rferl.org/content/olympic-wrestling-iran-russia-us/24986417.html Wed, 15 May 2013 06:05:59 +0000 Iran Russia has briefly detained a U.S. embassy employee, identified by the FSB as Ryan Cristopher Fogle, for allegedly trying to recruit a Russian intelligence officer to work for the CIA. http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-espionage-fogle-us-embassy/24985649.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-espionage-fogle-us-embassy/24985649.html Wed, 15 May 2013 03:24:04 +0000 Russia RFE/RL Foreign ministers from the eight Arctic nations have met in Sweden to discuss problems posed by climate change and growing commercial activity. http://www.rferl.org/content/arctic-council-meeting-kiruna-sweden/24986246.html http://www.rferl.org/content/arctic-council-meeting-kiruna-sweden/24986246.html Wed, 15 May 2013 01:04:19 +0000 News Claire Bigg Russia has ordered an alleged agent of the United States' Central Intelligence Agency to leave the country. http://www.rferl.org/content/spy-us-russia/24986242.html http://www.rferl.org/content/spy-us-russia/24986242.html Tue, 14 May 2013 23:34:09 +0000 News An attack on environmental activists in the Voronezh region this week was the latest skirmish in a struggle to stop a nickel mine near a nature reserve in Russia’s fertile south. RFE/RL reports on the grassroots anti-Kremlin movement that has been growing for two years. http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-nickel-activists-beaten-nature/24986031.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-nickel-activists-beaten-nature/24986031.html Tue, 14 May 2013 15:26:27 +0000 Russia Tom Balmforth, Svetlana Pavlova Russia’s announcement that it had caught an alleged American spy came as the U.S. ambassador, Michael McFaul, was launching a Twitter Q&A session open to the Russian public. McFaul continued the event, but any hopes of engaging on a wide variety of topics were quickly derailed by a wave of questions about the spy case. http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-mcfaul-twitter-spy-case/24985988.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-mcfaul-twitter-spy-case/24985988.html Tue, 14 May 2013 15:02:29 +0000 Russia Daisy Sindelar Georgian Prosecutor-General Archil Kbilashvili told journalists that eight top investigators from his office, the Interior Ministry, and the Military Police, will look into "possible criminal activities during and after the war" between Georgia and Russia in August 2008. http://www.rferl.org/content/georgia-russia-war-investigation/24985760.html http://www.rferl.org/content/georgia-russia-war-investigation/24985760.html Tue, 14 May 2013 12:33:10 +0000 Georgia The leader of Russia's North Caucasus republic of Chechnya says he is not against unblocking the access to YouTube in his republic, according to the republican government website. http://www.rferl.org/content/chechnya-youtube-kadyrov-block/24985482.html http://www.rferl.org/content/chechnya-youtube-kadyrov-block/24985482.html Tue, 14 May 2013 09:43:46 +0000 North Caucasus RFE/RL A Soyuz space capsule carrying a three-man international crew has landed safely on the steppes of Kazakhstan. http://www.rferl.org/content/space-station-return-iss/24985236.html http://www.rferl.org/content/space-station-return-iss/24985236.html Tue, 14 May 2013 06:34:11 +0000 News Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned after a meeting with Israel's prime minister in Sochi against any move that would "aggravate" the situation in Syria. http://www.rferl.org/content/israel-russia-syria-missiles/24985149.html http://www.rferl.org/content/israel-russia-syria-missiles/24985149.html Tue, 14 May 2013 05:00:57 +0000 Russia RFE/RL Two members of a Russian ultranationalist group allegedly involved in high-profile killings have been arrested in Serbia and Ukraine. http://www.rferl.org/content/russian-ultranationalists-detained-killings/24984474.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russian-ultranationalists-detained-killings/24984474.html Mon, 13 May 2013 10:57:44 +0000 Russia Russian law enforcement officials have confirmed that a man was tortured and murdered in the southern city of Volgograd, apparently because he was gay. http://www.rferl.org/content/article/24983812.html http://www.rferl.org/content/article/24983812.html Sun, 12 May 2013 13:41:13 +0000 Russia Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill has performed a service in Beijing during his first-ever visit to neighboring China. http://www.rferl.org/content/russian-patriarch-kirill-china/24983702.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russian-patriarch-kirill-china/24983702.html Sun, 12 May 2013 11:16:39 +0000 Russia The Russian Navy has begun the process of creating a permanent staff to control its operations in the Mediterranean Sea. http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-navy-mediterranean-group/24983660.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-navy-mediterranean-group/24983660.html Sun, 12 May 2013 10:32:53 +0000 Russia A Russian official says there are disagreements over who has the right to take part in Syria's peace process, suggesting this could hamper efforts to organize an international conference. http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-syria-conference/24983062.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-syria-conference/24983062.html Sat, 11 May 2013 11:17:33 +0000 Russia Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has given assurances that the Russian military’s plans to establish an air base in Belarus is not aimed at Europe or as a response to European plans to deploy a missile-defense system. http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-belarus-base-lavrov/24982660.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-belarus-base-lavrov/24982660.html Fri, 10 May 2013 17:00:17 +0000 Belarus Russia's Patriarch Kirill has started the first-ever visit to China by a leader of the Russian Orthodox Church. http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-patriarch-kirill-china-visit/24982199.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-patriarch-kirill-china-visit/24982199.html Fri, 10 May 2013 10:33:08 +0000 Russia The foreign minister of Cyprus, Ioannis Kasoulides, says Russia has agreed to extend the terms of its 2.5 billion-euro loan to Cyprus as part of international efforts toward the financial rescue of the Mediterranean island nation. http://www.rferl.org/content/cyprus-russia-loan-extension/24981989.html http://www.rferl.org/content/cyprus-russia-loan-extension/24981989.html Fri, 10 May 2013 07:14:30 +0000 Russia