Victor Yasmann

Also by Victor Yasmann

• March 04, 2005

  Analysis: Under The Surface Of Bratislava

  The consensus among Russian analysts is that the main achievement of the Russian-American summit in Bratislava on 24 February is that relations between the two countries did not get any worse. U.S. President George W. Bush and President Vladimir Putin used their good personal relations to keep a lid on bilateral tensions, although both leaders left Slovakia without having changed their previous positions.

• February 24, 2005

  Bush/Putin Summit: Close Relations, Conflicting Interests

  For RFE/RL's complete coverage and analysis of the Russia-U.S. summit in Bratislava, see our dedicated Bush-Putin Summit 2005 --> http://www.rferl.org/specials/bush-putin-summit/ webpage.

• February 18, 2005

  Analysis: Can Anyone Oppose The Kremlin?

  Demonstrators in St. Petersburg The Kremlin has been shaken by the mass protests sparked by the implementation of the government's controversial reform to convert most in-kind social benefits to cash payments (see "RFE/RL Russian Political Weekly," 4 February 2005).

• February 09, 2005

  Analysis: 'The Burden Of Maintaining The State Has Been Laid On Our Shoulders'

  Is Putin's control of his government slipping? A growing number of Russia watchers seem to be coming to the conclusion that the political machine of President Vladimir Putin is entering a profound, systemic crisis that has been provoked by a string of political failures both at home and abroad (see "Russia On The Verge Of A Breakdown" --> /featuresarticle/2005/2/954DA9C3-67C7-4BAB-B263-CB41BD325A5B.html ).

• February 01, 2005

  Analysis: Is The Russian Government On The Verge Of A Breakdown?

  The Kremlin Hard on the heels of a humiliating political defeat in the presidential election in Ukraine, the Kremlin is now facing another serious crisis, this one even closer to home. For weeks now, the country has been wracked by growing social unrest in opposition to the government's reform to convert most in-kind social benefits to cash payments, which has been widely criticized as ill considered and poorly implemented.

• December 14, 2004

  Analysis: Moscow Looks At The World

  The turmoil surrounding the postelection events in Ukraine -- a campaign in which Moscow openly and unequivocally supported a pro-Russian candidate -- has overshadowed another foreign-policy drive on the Kremlin's part. Following the 20-21 November summit of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) group members in Santiago, Chile, President Vladimir Putin arrived in Brazil on 21 November. It was the first time that a Russian head of state has ever visited that country, despite 225 years of bilateral diplomatic relations.

• November 04, 2004

  Analysis: Russian-American Relations After U.S. Elections

  In his initial reaction to the 2 November U.S. presidential election, even before it became official that U.S. President George W. Bush had been reelected, President Vladimir Putin said on 3 November that he was sincerely happy with Bush's apparent win, adding that Bush has proven a "reliable and predictable partner," Russian and international media reported.

• October 13, 2004

  Analysis: Kremlin Articulates Its Ideological Platform

  An influential senior Kremlin official recently defended a sweeping package of proposed political reforms, saying they protect the system from the "extreme conditions of an unannounced war" and increase President Vladimir Putin's accountability.

• September 26, 2004

  Analysis: Russia -- Between Terror And Corruption

  The Moscow theater tragedy of October 2002 is still fresh in Russian minds (file photo) [For more on the recent wave of violence in Russia's ongoing battle with terrorism, click here --> http://www.rferl.org/specials/russia-terror/ .]

• September 08, 2004

  Analysis: The Kremlin After Beslan

  Putin at a Breslan hospital on 4 September President Vladimir Putin on 4 September appeared in a nationally televised address in the wake of the bloodiest terrorism incident in modern Russian history. He linked the takeover of a school in Beslan and the deaths of hundreds of schoolchildren, parents, and teachers to a series of other terrorist incidents that have rocked the country since 24 August, including the 24 August downing of two jet airliners and the 31 August suicide bombing outside a Moscow metro station. In all, more than 400 people were killed in less than 10 days.

• August 26, 2004

  Analysis: A Hard-Line Agenda For Putin's Second Term (Part 2)

  Vladimir Putin The National Strategy Council (SNS) report titled "A National Agenda And A National Strategy" that was released in the beginning of August contains a particularly interesting section on foreign policy.

• August 25, 2004

  Analysis: A Hard-Line Agenda For Putin's Second Term (Part 1)

  Earlier this month, the influential National Strategy Council (SNS) published suggested political guidelines for President Vladimir Putin's second term titled "A National Agenda And A National Strategy," RosBalt reported on 5 August.

• August 08, 2004

  Analysis: Russia's Pipelines Of Power

  On 27 July, the board of directors of the state oil company Rosneft selected deputy presidential administration head Igor Sechin as its new chairman. Analysts were quick to see the move as part of a pattern designed to boost Kremlin control over the oil sector as a whole. They turned the spotlight on Sechin himself and on Rosneft.

• August 04, 2004

  Analysis: The Clandestine Soviet Union

  Forward to the USSR-2? Nationalist revanchism has been gaining momentum in recent years among various political groups in Russia and has been greeted with some sympathy from the Kremlin. In the past, this sentiment has taken the form of open calls for the restoration of the Soviet Union, but recently a more provocative set of ideas have been making the rounds in Russia.

• July 13, 2004

  Analysis: American Journalist Klebnikov Gunned Down In Moscow

  The 9 July killing in Moscow of Paul Klebnikov, the American-born editor of the Russian-language version of "Forbes" magazine, sent shock waves across the country and around the world. The investigation into the slaying is being supervised personally by Prosecutor-General Vladimir Ustinov. Although it is too early in the probe to draw conclusions, officials have described the killing as "a paid hit linked to [Klebnikov's] professional activities as a journalist," according to polit.ru. Prosecutors have described the killing as "carefully planned," the website reported.

• July 07, 2004

  Analysis: What's Next For Yukos?

  Mikhail Khodorkovskii (file photo) The drama around embattled Russian oil major Yukos reached its culmination on 7 July when the "Financial Times" reported that jailed former Yukos CEO Mikhail Khodorkovskii has offered to surrender to the state the 44 percent stake in the company that he and other major shareholders control in order to keep Yukos from being driven into bankruptcy. The daily reported that Khodorkovskii sent the offer to Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov and to Finance Minister Aleksei Kudrin in a letter that asks the government to unfreeze the company's bank accounts and to give the company three years to pay its tax arrears. This information was confirmed the same day by Khodorkovskii's lawyer Anton Drel, RTR reported.

• May 03, 2004

  The Kremlin's Battle For Ukraine

  Putin (left) seeks to see Kuchma (far right) replaced with a pro-Russia successor (archive photo)

• April 13, 2004

  'Spymania' Returns To Russia

  The recent conviction of researcher Igor Sutyagin on espionage charges is only the latest in a spate of similar cases in Putin's Russia involving researchers, journalists, diplomats, and former security agents accused of having improper contacts with foreigners.

• April 02, 2004

  The Oligarch's Call From Prison

  The 29 March publication in "Vedomosti" of the commentary "The Crisis Of Russian Liberalism" by jailed former Yukos CEO Mikhail Khodorkovskii, the richest person in Russia, provoked a stormy reaction within the Russian political elite. Analysts have been trying to figure out exactly what the article means: Is it the manifesto of a newborn form of liberalism, a public statement of repentance, an act of surrender, or a petition for a pardon?

• March 29, 2004

  Putin Consolidates His Administration

  During a discussion with journalists at the president's Black Sea residence in Sochi on 27 March, President Vladimir Putin announced that the sweeping reorganization of the presidential administration, following shortly after the reshuffling of the government earlier this month (see "RFE/RL Russian Political Weekly," 12 March 2004), should complete the first stage of the country's administrative reform.

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