The Russian Navy has confirmed that its aircraft carrier, the Admiral Kuznetsov, will visit the Syrian port of Tartus, where Russia has its only Mediterranean naval base. The Kuznetsov and its small supporting battle...
AndySouth Ossetia election descends into chaos
The South Ossetian Presidential election looks like it will descend into bitter recrimination as both candidates have claimed victory. With more than 85% of the votes counted, opposition candidate Alla Dzhioyeva is...
This Week in Russia Blogs #1
Now that I’m back to blogging more regularly, I thought it was about time to resurrect the weekly roundup of my favourite posts from around the Russia blogs. Rather than keep calling it by its original dull name...
Russian Serfdom
It’s impossible to ignore the fact that there have been some extremely bleak periods in Russian history and while living memory exists to put the grim, Stalinist regime at the forefront of our minds, the era of Russian...
Opposition to Russia’s ‘Anti-Gay’ bill gathers pace
Opposition to legislation designed to outlaw the promotion of homosexuality to minors is gathering pace, both around the world and in Russia itself. The bill, which would punish any “public activities promoting sodomy...
Tupolev Bear – Linchpin of Russia’s Air Force
Outside of Russia and the former Soviet Union, the name Tupolev is probably more widely connected with commercial, passenger aircraft. However, the company has always played a vital role in Russia’s overall defence...
Transnistria leader’s daughter in law barred from standing in Russian Duma election
In an odd piece of news, Marina Smirnova, a candidate for the A Just Russia party, has been barred from standing as a candidate in this year’s Russian Duma elections. The story is notable because Smirnova is the...
Was Putin booed at Russian fight – or not?
The Western press has been gleefully reporting that Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin was booed when he addressed the crowd after Russian Fyodor Emelianenko beat American fighter Jeff Monson. US paper the Washington...
The going rate to bribe your way into a Russian Government job is…
I was amused to see RIA Novosti reporting the arrest of a con-man who had attempted to sell government posts to gullible businessmen. In a statement, the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs reported that: “the suspect...
Russia is Europe’s largest internet market
After a slow start, Russia has now officially got the largest number of web users in Europe. According to the latest Comscore report, 50.8 million Russians have access to the internet through either a home or work...