Being a part of Moscow’s nightlife scene, I often see drugs and druguse. I’m surprised how openly the drugs are taken or even sold and I guess it has to do with the venue’s protection. Or the dealers just don’t care. Drug sales were an integral part of New Yorks nightlife as well and often the promoters made some extra money, from bringing in the dealers and taking a cut from their sales. I don’t know, if its the same in Moscow, since I am looking the other way and I don’t want to be involved in any of this.

Das Szenario eines vorzeitigen Rücktritts von D. Medvedev als Präsident Russlands wird wahrscheinlicher. Durch die Demission rückt der Vorsitzende der Regierung – Vladimir V. Putin – zum amtierenden Präsidenten auf und kann in dieser Funktion die Wahl zum Präsidentenamt, die trotzdem wie geplant am 4. März 2012 stattfinden könnte, bestreiten. Art.41 (1) und (2) des [...]

Bis jetzt hat die Zentrale Wahlkommission die Registrierung der Kandidatur von Vladimir Putin nocht nicht bekannt gegeben. Putin hat die Unterlagen am 7.12. eingereicht. Vielleicht aber hat die CIK den Eingangsstempel später vergeben. Die Bekanntgabe am 19.-21.12. könnte das Szenario eines Rücktritts Medvedevs am 22.12. – dem Tag der Rede an die beiden Kammern der [...]

Vielleicht war die Zahl der von Grigorij Javlinskij gesammelten gültigen Unterschriften tatsächlich zu gering, um nach dem Gesetz ‘Über die Wahl des Präsidenten Ruslands’ zu den Präsidentenwahlen zugelassen zu werden. Angeblich hat die Stichprobenüberprüfung durch die Zentrale Wahlkommission (CIK) ergeben, dass 24 Prozent der Unterschriften ungültig sind; viele davon, weil die Unterschriften fotokopiert worden seien. [...]

Vladimir Putin hat heute erklärt, es gäbe keine notwendigkeit für das ‘rücktrittsszenario’ – d.h. den vorzeitigen Rücktritt Präsident Medvedevs und die Übernahme des Amtes des amtierenden Präsidenten durch Putin selbst. Das Gesetz ‘Über die Wahl des Präsidenten Russlands’ verlange von ihm auch nicht, seine Funktion als Vorsitzender der Regierung vorübergehend zurückzulegen, nachdem er offiziell als [...]

Der stv. CEO von Gazprom, Aleksander Medvedev, hat bestätigt, dass die Gasleitung ‘South Stream’ – wie von der Zeitschrift ‘Moskovskije Novosti‘ vor kurzem berichtet – nach Norditalien führen könnte, nicht aber nach Baumgarten. South Stream Gas hätte in Baumgarten über den Central European Gas Hub (CEGH) vertrieben werden sollen. Gazprom sucht seit Jahren eine Beteiligung [...]

Die Proteste urbaner Mittelschichten in Russland kamen unerwartet. Die als unerschütterlich angesehene Herrschaft Vladimir Putins ist es nicht mehr; die Stabilität des Regimes hat sich sichtbar verringert. Der rasche Niedergang ist unwahrscheinlich, die fortschreitende Erosion aber unaufhaltsam. Die Wahlen zur Staatsduma am 4. Dezember 2011 endeten mit unerwartet hohen Stimmenverlusten für die Staatspartei ‚Geeintes Russland‘ [...]

Die Zentrale Wahlkommission Russlands wird heute über die Registrierung von Vladimir Putin als Kandidat für die Präsidentenwahlen entscheiden. Dann hat der Ministerpräsident 3 Tage Zeit, von seinem Amt zurückzutreten. Am 22.12.2011 wird Präsident Medvedev seine Rede an die Föderalversammlung halten. Wird er dann seinen Rücktritt als Präsident bekannt geben?

Aleksej Anatol’evic Navalnyj ist derzeit die charismatischste Führungsfigur der Opposition in Russland. Sein Aufstieg erfolgte in dem Medium, das in Russland die freie Meinungsäußerung aufrecht erhält – das Ru.net, das Internet mit Blogs (v.a. auf Live Journal, Живой Журнал), Info-Agenturen (wie slon.ru) und sozialen Netzwerken (wie V Kontakte). Navalnyj, Jurist, geboren am 4. Juni 1976 [...]

Ever since I came here, I had the feeling that especially the new Russian youth generation likes to push the limits in any sports. I used to hang out with snowboarders, skaters and basejumpers and what they showed me was frighteing. They not only pushed the limits, but also without looking at the appropiate backup and security. When I did the extreme snowboarding in the past, I also pushed the limits too far and looking back, I have to say, that I’m probably lucky to still be alive.

The interview is posted on the website of Russki Zhurnal.

Once upon a time, many years ago (actually, it was April 2006), I participated in a debate on Russia’s energy empire organized by The Economist and The Stockholm Network along with Sebestyn Gorka, Prof. Margot Light, and Dr. Vlad Sobell.  I recall that Prof. Light and Dr. Sobell were assigned the challenge of defending Vladimir [...]

A few weeks ago Russian television viewers were treated to a live broadcast of a visit to the Chebarkul training ground in the Chelyabinskii Region by none other than the Minister of Defence Anatoliy Serdyukov and President and Supreme Commander Dmitry Medvedev.  In addition to a simple photo op of the two men inspecting the troops, [...]

Following the announcement of Putin’s presidential comeback, anti-corruption blogger Alexei Navalny was one of the first commentators to suggest that the main threat to the seemingly endless continuation of his rule would be Russia’s inter-ethnic tensions.  The Guardian‘s Luke Harding reported on Monday: ‘With no political mechanism for removing Putin from power, Navalny said, another [...]

Russia’s long serving Minister of Finance Aleksei Kudrin was forced to resign by long-term lame duck president Dmitri Medvedev. In an astonishing public display Kudrin felt the wrath of Medvedev. After his de-facto demotion at the Edinaya Rossiya convention on September 24th, Medvedev was extremely unnerved by Kudrin’s public criticism of Medvedev’s alleged economic and [...]

The rumor mill continues to churn over Mikhail Prokhorov’s departure from Right Cause.  Today an article in the Moscow Times quotes a senior party official who claims that the straw that broke the donkey’s, or should we say Vladimir Surkov’s back with regards to the billionaire’s political career, was apparently a desire to invoke the [...]

A group of Russian human rights defenders sign an appeal to the international community to apply pressure on Russia to protect, reinforce, and reform its flawed system of justice.

The Financial Times is reporting that Mikhail Prokhorov’s bank has just gotten the BP treatment: Masked police on Thursday entered the Moscow headquarters of a bank part-owned by a billionaire oligarch and leader of a liberal political party that is contesting elections in December. The masked police drove up to the bank, MFK, in which [...]

Year-on-year, complaints about banks violating privacy laws have grown.  Rosneft’s banking unit is set to replace Alfa Bank as the sole payment center for utilities.  The Defense Ministry is canceling $1 billion worth of arms contracts.  Russia stands to lose a lot of business in Libya through its arms, infrastructure and energy contracts, with ‘all [...]

Australian newspaper The National has a summary translation of a column published in Al Hayat: Russia’s less-than-enthusiastic stance on the Arab Spring, and its high tolerance for repressive Arab regimes, raise many questions about Moscow’s real interests in the region, wrote Abdullah Iskandar, managing editor of the pan-Arab newspaper Al Hayat, in a column yesterday. [...]

TODAY: Medvedev sets December election date, may limit winning party seats; Wikileaks releases U.S. cables about Foreign Ministry, fitness; U.S. won’t recognise Abkhaz elections; Putin’s bikers; space station visit postponed; nature reserves project; Khodorkovsky the columnist; anarchist bomb, history lessons. President Dmitry Medvedev has set December 4 as the date for State Duma elections, warning [...]

Sberbank will buy Austrian lender VBI for $850.3 million.  Belarus wants Sberbank to ease the conditions of its $2 billion loan for potash miner Belaruskali, as the country undergoes ‘unprecedented political and economic turmoil’.  The World Wildlife Fund is appealing to the top Swiss court to block construction of Aminona, a luxury alpine resort funded [...]

It’s an odd sight to catch Exxon CEO Rex Tillerman smiling and shaking hands with Vladimir Putin after signing a $500 billion oil exploration deal in Arctic waters (actually, the deal will start with just $3.2b, but Putin enjoys projections).  After all, it wasn’t that long ago when we saw similar photos of BP’s Bob [...]

TODAY: Police downplay attack; Saratov Governor slammed by Putin; controversial charity wins suits; British MP calls for Magnitsky sanctions; indigenous community want rocket compensation; migrants workers brawl; Poltavchenko set to win St. Petersburg post; Putin’s biking extravaganza. Despite numerous complaints, an alleged attack on a group of residents in Bogoyavleniye, including a Kommersant journalist and [...]

The Libyan National Transitional Council is inspecting former contracts with Russia for transparency: ‘The issue of a return to work for Russian companies in Libya is still being considered.’  Rail freight operator Proftrans has been acquired by Brunswick Rail for an undisclosed sum.  Russia is currently working on a rail line near Songbon as part [...]

Andrei Borodin has a column in the MT today which uses the current debate around credit ratings to take a swipe at Russia’s poor corporate justice record.  Vladimir Putin recently dismissed ratings as ‘superficial’ and too vague to be of any use, but acknowledged their power by linking the resignation of Standard & Poor’s chief [...]

Writing in the Moscow Times, Omar al-Issawi of Human Rights Watch pleads his case to Moscow to show stronger support for the Syrian protesters. His article is well intentioned and filled with a number of reasonable and feasible policy suggestions, but it’s as though the author is living within a different reality.  Russia has been [...]

TODAY: Arab Spring damages Russia’s arms reputation? Foreign Ministry wants U.N. to take charge in Libya; Putin removes shirt, accuses opposition of corruption, gets free taxi rides, Medvedev ratings fall; Pavlyuchenkov’s lawyer underscores that he has not yet been charged; Interior Minister says corrupt police have  been removed from the force; police theft; Abkhazia elections. [...]

Half of the $88 million that Russia received in foreign investment this year has apparently already left the country.  A new senior official for the Right Cause party, Arkady Yevstafyev, has apparently been implicated in four corruption probes over the past 15 years.  Two partners of Rusal are reportedly looking to sell their stake to [...]

Stanislav Belkovsky is an odd duck. The reasons behind almost anything he says inspire the most lurid and counter-intuitive conspiracy theories, to the point that nobody really understands what he is up to. Nevertheless, he has some sharp words for the strategies of the opposition headed into the 2012 elections. He says you shouldn't bother voting at all.