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An Echo of the War

The "Wallenberg Affair" Sees a Possible Revival as Researchers Prove KGB Obstruction

Russia Profile, 01/26/2012

More than 65 years have passed since Raoul Wallenberg, a Swedish diplomat and a special envoy to Budapest during World War II, saved tens of thousands of Hungarian Jews from Nazi concentration camps by extending protective passports and shelter to them in the last years of the war. Yet researchers still can’t prove exactly what happened to Wallenberg after he was arrested by the Soviets in 1945 and held until his death in 1947. Last week the Swedish Foreign Ministry called for more research into the question, but foresaw little success without access to documents held tightly by the Russian FSB.

Julian Assange, founder of WikiLeaks, after hearing into whether he will be extradited to Sweden

WikiKremlin?

Julian Assange’s New TV Series Sparks Media Controversy

By Dan Peleschuk

Russia Profile, 01/26/2012

The Russian English-language television network RT grabbed international headlines on Wednesday when it announced that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange would host an exclusive new series on the channel. But Assange’s history as the world’s foremost whistleblower and his ostensible dedication to transparency, paired with RT’s perceived allegiance to the Kremlin and its alleged anti-Western bent, raises questions about his new job. Observers, however, suggest it is a perfect match.

Village of Tsoi-Pede, Itum-Kalinsky District, Chechnya

A Prisoner of the Caucasus

With Unemployment at an All-Time High, the Kremlin’s Plan to Turn Around the Troubled Economy of the North Caucasus Appears to Have Yielded Little Results

By Tai Adelaja

Russia Profile, 01/26/2012

Billions of dollars sunk into Russia’s volatile North Caucasus region have so far failed to create a semblance of economic progress in the region, according to Russia’s unemployment data released on Wednesday. The mainly Muslim region, which has been plagued by violence and rising insurgency, posted the country's highest unemployment rate in the fourth quarter, data from the Federal Statistics Services (Rosstat) shows. The figures are the latest indication that the Kremlin is still struggling to deal with issues like the unemployment, corruption and poverty that have continued to drive youth to join Islamist insurgents across the region, analysts say.

Dmitry Medvedev meets journalism students at MSU

Taking Back Zhurfak

Medvedev’s Return to “Zhurfak” Calms Some of the Anger Left by His Last Visit

By Andrew Roth

Russia Profile, 01/25/2012

President Dmitry Medvedev returned to the journalism department at Moscow State University today for the first time since last October, when he held a staged event with youth supporters. Back then, several students protesting the closed visit were detained by Medvedev’s security personnel. The October scandal reflected the mood of many young, educated Russians, who were disappointed that Medvedev would be abandoning the presidency and would not challenge Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s return this March. The mood today was subdued, and more criticism was ultimately leveled at the budding journalists in the audience than at Medvedev himself.

Sour Apples

Yavlinsky’s Possible Exclusion from the Presidential Race Raises Speculation of More Kremlin Machinations

By Dan Peleschuk

Russia Profile, 01/24/2012

Key opposition figure and longtime liberal politician Grigory Yavlinsky expects to be barred from registering as a presidential candidate in the upcoming election, citing reports from the Central Election Commission that his registration papers were marred by violations. The move raises speculation that the Kremlin is up to its old tricks – except Yavlinsky seems harmless with his typically low levels of support. Experts said the Kremlin is nevertheless getting increasingly nervous as the election approaches and is resorting to its tried-and-true tactics of stifling the competition.

Gas station Gazpromneft in Chelyabinsk Region

Between a Rock and a Few Hard Places

Despite Negotiations, Declarations and Tough Talk, Ukraine Appears Trapped in Its Gas Agreements with Russia

By Tai Adelaja

Russia Profile, 01/24/2012

"We have told our Russian partners that we cannot buy a lot of gas at the current price and have to switch to alternative energy resources,” Yury Boiko, the Ukrainian energy and coal industry minister, declared on Friday. Boiko, who has been locked in an endless negotiation with Moscow over gas price reduction, reiterated Kiev’s stance to reduce its gas imports to 27 billion cubic meters this year, with plans “to further reduce the volume next year." Analysts say, however, that attention-getting statements like the one Boiko made on a television talk show on Friday are part of calculated attempts by Kiev to call the Kremlin's bluff, even as the situation on the ground tells a different story.

Presidents Dmitry Medvedev, Serzh Sargsyan, and Ilkham Aliyev meet in Sochi

Loose Ends

Azerbaijan and Armenia Say They Want to Speed Things Up at Medvedev’s Last Summit

By Andrew Roth

Russia Profile, 01/24/2012

For the tenth time during his presidency, Dmitry Medvedev met with the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan to settle the frozen conflict in the Nagorno-Karabakh region. The meeting, which took place yesterday in Sochi, once again failed to secure a breakthrough in the negotiations. As Russia turns inward to focus on recent political protests and Medvedev plans a speedy exit from the limelight, there is still no end in sight to what he has called possibly the only conflict in the post-Soviet space that can be settled today.

Comments

Forced to Compromise

The Law Now Grants Journalists More Rights and Freedoms

Comment by Andrei Richter

Special to Russia Profile, 12/14/2011

Twenty years ago, in December of 1991, the first Mass Media Statute was introduced in Russia, raising hopes that censorship would cease to be a common practice, and granting basic freedoms and independence to journalists in Russia.

Secrets of Transdnestr’s Court

For the First Time, Russia Has the Rare Chance to Act as a Vehicle for Change in Transdnestr

Comment by Sergey Markedonov

Special to Russia Profile, 12/13/2011

On December 11, 2011, the unrecognized Moldovan Republic of Transdnestr held presidential elections. As in South Ossetia, these elections were accompanied by a scandal. The announcement of the results was delayed for a few days, and this turn of events was expected, as preliminary data leaked to the press indicated that Transdnestr’s eternal leader Igor Smirnov did not even make it through to the second round. But evidently, he is not ready to settle for such an outcome.

Experts Panel

Russia Profile Weekly Experts Panel: Putin Dodging Hard Questions on his Presidential Platform

Introduced by Vladimir Frolov

Russia Profile, 01/27/2012

In an essay posted on his Web site January 16 and published the same day in Izvestiya, Vladimir Putin offered his vision of where he wants to lead Russia as its next president, claiming only he can guide the country between the twin threats of instability and stagnation. Why is Putin dodging the hard questions about his presidential platform and his plans for the presidency? Does he have anything specific to say to the Russian voters, other than reminding them about the disasters of the 1990s? Why is he running away from his own party – United Russia? What is it that he wants to finish accomplishing as president of Russia that justifies his return to the Kremlin?

Russia Profile Weekly Experts Panel: Syria Sliding into Civil War

Introduced by Vladimir Frolov

Russia Profile, 01/20/2012

As opposition protests intensify in Syria and with Bashar al-Assad's government losing touch with reality, Syria is sliding into a protracted conflict that could end up as a full-scale civil war. Is the al-Assad regime doomed? Will it collapse under attacks from the opposition, acting perhaps with clandestine Western aide? Does Russia have the right kind of policy for Syria now? Should Russia join or oppose the West in Syria? Should Russia support the Syrian opposition? How would the potential collapse of Assad's regime impact the internal developments in Russia, particularly the burgeoning anti-Putin movement in Russia's major cities?

Interviews

The Geography of Devotion

Interview by Anna Arutiunova and Andrei Zolotov Jr.

Russia Profile, 03/18/2011

Alexei Ivanov is a Russian writer who first became known for his 2003 novel “The Heart of Parma.” Russia Profile spoke to Ivanov, a Book of the Year prize winner and three-time National Bestseller prize nominee about education in Russia’s provinces, the obstacles that teachers face in their everyday lives and the future of Russian education.

“I Revel in What I Have Grown”

Russian Teacher and Principal Leonid Milgram Turns 90

Interview by Andrei Zolotov Jr.

Russia Profile, 03/15/2011

Over the past month there were a series of celebrations in Moscow for the 90th anniversary of one of Russia’s most celebrated teachers – Leonid Milgram. De facto, he built and for more than 40 years, led one of Moscow’s best schools – School number 45. Hundreds of graduates, including celebrities and the country’s top education officials gathered for a gala celebration in a theater in central Moscow on February 25, while thousands of successful former students celebrated around the world: one look at “Milgram’s Children” group on Facebook is enough to realize how widespread this network is.

The Patriarch’s Russian Civilization Project

Hegumen Filipp Ryabykh: Russian Elites Should Perceive Ukraine, Belarus and Other Russkiy Mir Centers as Equal Partners

Interview by Andrei Zolotov Jr.

Russia Profile, 01/06/2011

Looking back over the past year on Russian Orthodox Christmas Eve, it is clear that developing his concept of Russkiy Mir, or Russian World, has been one of the key priorities of the very active Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill.

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