Business is rarely just business in Russia, and the recent deal between Rosneft and BP is surely a case in point, says Mikhail Zakharov. The reason why it is happening is a combination of pragmatism, opportunism and national pride.
The bloody postscript to last month’s Belarusian presidential elections has made any strategy of engagement clearly unfeasible, writes David Marples. Going forward, the European Union faces an extremely delicate task of managing relations with Lukashenka's unpredictable regime. It may well find it
President Yanukovych has awakened the spirit of nationalism in Ukraine, writes Roman Kabachiy. In all probability, this was a deliberate operation, executed to allow the “guarantor of the nation” to triumphantly rid his countrymen of radical nationalism.
A government campaign against Islamic education and political movements in Tajikistan, prompted by an armed conflict with ’mujaheds’ in the Rasht valley, risks creating the very militancy it aims to prevent, write Sophie Roche and John Heathershaw.
Is the human security blueprint presented in the book by Mary Kaldor and Shannon D.Beebe achievable in a states system or does it depend upon a more cosmopolitan milieu? Andrey Makarychev reviews The Ultimate Weapon is No Weapon
ODR recently published the story of an intelligent, educated Russian woman who is HIV+ and drug dependent. This was followed by her cry from the heart, asking where the medication is that will help her and millions of others in Russia. Her recent success in finding her voice, writing and being act
Artdocfest is a Russian documentary film festival, now in its fourth year. This year, due to falling production at home, a new category was introduced: Russian-language films made outside Russia. Lamenting the decline of documentary filmmaking in Russia, Olga Sherwood examines what it is about Rus
On December 11, a group of 15-year-old schoolboys found themselves in the middle of a several thousand strong race riot in central Moscow. The boys, already badly beaten, were rescued by four unarmed OMON [special police force] officers. In contrast to their assailants, the boys and police officer
Ilya Varlamov is one of Russia's leading photojournalists, enjoying prominence for his memorable narratives of the country's dramatic politics. Here we present his take on the Russian New Year. It proved to be an unforgettable one for dozens of activists, who in highly controversial circumstances
The differences between Putin and Medvedev over the sacking of Mayor Luzhkov in 2010 were the first real crack in the Russian duumvirate. Khimki Forest, the Khodorkovsky guilty verdict and the manoeuvring for position before the 2012 presidential election are likely to exacerbate the situation fur
Supplying fuel to the American government to keep military planes running into Afghanistan is a lucrative business. Involving as it does politics and politicians in desperately poor Kyrgyzstan, it is also a highly controversial one. Nick Kochan writes on the fuel contracts that have come to be vie
On 31st of all months with as many days a rally in support of freedom of assembly is held in Moscow’s Triumph Square. 31 December was no exception with a massive police presence and many arrests. Ilya Yashin recounts his own story of decent policemen, falsified evidence and a night in the cells.
