The Kremlin is making conciliatory noises to capitalise on yesterday’s release of Nadiya Savchenko in exchange for two captured Russian servicemen.
Tag: G8
How Putin Uses Money Laundering Charges to Control His Opponents
Last Thursday, Sergei Magnitsky was convicted of tax evasion. The only problem was he was not there to hear the verdict read. Magnitsky was killed in Moscow’s Butyrka prison in 2009, likely as a result of beatings and a lack of medical treatment. His crime was uncovering a $230 million tax fraud involving members of […]
G7+1, LGBT rights, Gazprom and E-mail Tricksters
Here’s a quick recap of some of today’s biggest news: – Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper labeled the G8 summit as the “G7+1” in reference to Putin’s isolated stance on Syria. As The Moscow News reports, when asked if he felt “lonely” during the summit he replied, “Of course not. That’s absolutely not true. Somebody, apparently, […]
G8 Summit: Putin Against the West
On June 17, the G8 Summit was held in Lough Erne, Northern Ireland, but President Putin held a series of bilateral meetings in advance, including his first meeting since June 2012 with US President Barack Obama. A month before, the presidents had exchanged messages; diplomats of both countries had said that at this meeting the […]
Syria, Adoptions and Navalny
Here’s a quick summary of some of today’s biggest news headlines: -It seems that the continued haggling over the conditions for a peace summit have become one of Russia’s best tools to support the Assad regime. Reuters reports that Russian Foreign minister Sergei Lavrov is quoted as saying: “We categorically oppose … affirmations that the […]
Putin’s Plans for the G8
In the run-up to the G8 Summit in Northern Ireland (17-18 June) and the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (20-22 June), Vladimir Putin gave a long and rather dull interview to RIA Novosti on Russia’s priorities in foreign economic policy. Slon.ru has selected the most significant themes: What can be expected from these G8 and […]