There have been some interesting reactions coming out of Moscow after France’s decision this weekend to reject the new EU constitution. President Putin himself, has wisely not shared his own opinion with the world...
Archive - May 2005
AndySiberian Forest fires increasing
The Guardian today reports on the increasing threat that Siberian forest fires are causing to the global environment. Fires in the Siberian forests – the largest in the world and vital to the planet’s health...
China to send troops to Kyrgyzstan
Liu Jianchao, a spokesman from the Chinese Foreign Ministry, has reportedly said that China will "seriously consider" sending troops to Kyrgyzstan, RIA Novosti reports today. The same report though goes...
Blogging Mongolia
New Mongolia – blogging from the saddle to provide you with all your nomadic camel riding blogging needs. Well, perhaps not quite the blogging from the saddle bit. Or the camels, either. But...
Eurovision 2005 – Kiev
Last night’s Eurovision Song Contest in Kiev was a spectacular success, despite earlier concerns that dodgy dealings over ticket sales might spoil the event. From my perspective (sitting in London watching it on...
Khodorkovsky verdict adjourned – again
We’re now two days into the reading of the verdict against Mikhail Khodorkovsky, and the judge has had to adjourn again. Khodorkovsky remains in the legal limbo called (by me) "mostly guilty". In...
Beslan trial – an opportunity
The trial of Nur-Pashi Kulayev begins today. Kulayev was the sole surviving member of the group of terrorists that took hostage and killed hundreds of children in a Beslan school last September. That Kulayev...
Report on Meeting with President Bush and Civil Society Organizations
On May 9th, US President George W Bush met with representatives of Russian civil society in Moscow. One of those representatives was Elena Malitskaya, Preisdent of the Siberian Civic Initiatives Support Center...
Carnival of the Revolutions II
Welcome to Siberian Light for the second weekly Carnival of the Revolutions, where we aim to give you a sampling of how democracy is marching forwards (and sometimes backwards) in the world today. Global But...
Unrest in Uzbekistan
Protests on Friday in the Eastern Uzbek town of Andijan (Andizhan) have turned into a major flashpoint, with at least ten, possibly more than fifty, dead after a clash between troops and protestors. Despite...