U2 is visiting Russia as part of its 360 World Tour. Bono, using the opportunity, got to visit with Dmitry Medvedev in the president's private residence in Sochi, where Winter Olympic Games 2014 will take place. As the result of the high-profile meetings, aside from an agreement to fight AIDS, Russian President Medvedev and Irish Singer Bono concluded that they both love Led Zeppelin.
Enjoy the photos of Bono's visit at Medvedev's dacha in Sochi in the extended post.
Chechen Terrorist Trained and Studied in Pakistan, Received Money from Jordan
Yuri Mamchur
Russian Special Forces in a gunfight with Mr. Abdullah and his friends
Today, in Dagestan--that neighbors with Chechnya--one of the masterminds of the Moscow subway attacks Mr. Vagabov was killed together with his gang. The intelligence found out some very interesting facts about Mr. Vagabov, who was self-renamed and crazy-islamic-jihadists-blessed as Amir Abdullah. Mr. Amir Abdullah received his college education in Karachi, and proceeded to training in terrorists camps in Pakistan. When a Jordanian Doctor Muhammad was killed in 2009, Amir Abdullah married the widow, former Mrs. Muhammad. Upon becoming Mrs. Abdullah, the lady provided access to infinite Jordanian money, and then--in search of a better afterlife--blew herself up at one of the subway stops in Moscow.
Amir Abdullah was not necessarily looking forward to that same afterlife, as he and his gang offered a very strong resistance to Russian Special Forces. Russian SWAT team helped Mr. Abdullah reunite with his wife by killing the entire team of jihadists. Another suicide bomber of the Moscow attacks, 17-year-old Djennet Abdurahmanova, has joined her husband Umalat Magomedov--one of the Dagestan's Islamic terrorist leaders--who was killed by Russian forces in December 2009. Two aforementioned ladies detonated themselves, killing 40 and injuring 160 civilians in two Moscow subway stations during a rush hour on March 29, 2010. Russia Blog congratulates Russian Special Forces with the successful operation and wishes them luck in safety in their future raids against the terrorists.
Djennet Abdurahmanova and her husband Umalat Magomedov. Umalat was killed by Russian forces in December 2009, Djennet--17 years old--blew herself up in March 2010.
American Teenagers Have Different Mindset About Russia
Yuri Mamchur
In the recent study in Milwaukee, students entering college this fall filled out a survey that showed how different their view of the world is from the one of their parents. Aside from minor role of Clint Eastwood in their lives, the class of 2014 included in the 75 items on this year's Beloit College Mindset List the fact that Americans plus Russians means people of the two nations living together in outer space. "# 43: Russians and Americans have always been living together in space." After all, there is hope! My wish for these kids is to graduate with good grades and find their way to Washington, D.C., where the mindset of the 70-year-old leaders and advisors has not changed for the last half a century.
"Our game "RussPack" has finally been released!" e-mailed me one of the game's developers who got in touch with us earlier this year regarding the photo of St. Basil's cathedral that I took in Moscow in 2008. The game software was developed by two Russian engineers. We congratulate the World's Epsilon Enterprises, Inc. for their timely release, and hope that iPhone users around the world get to enjoy the game.
CNN reports that smoke clouds, which have become a serious health hazard, can clearly been seen on the satellite images, blanketing large swaths of the country.
The smoke is back in Moscow, which hasn't seen rain or cool weather in two months. The promised departure of heat meant only the drop in temperatures from 100-115 F down to 90-95 F. The fires have killed more than 50 people, left dozens hospitalized, and thousands homeless, according to Russia's health and social development ministry.
"Russia is grateful to the United States over the assistance in tackling the wildfires raging across the country," said the Russian Foreign Ministry. According to CNN, the United States sent some $4.5 million in aid that included water tanks, pumps, hand tools, fire-protective clothing and medical kits, according to the U.S. State Department.
Lubyanka. Although the Soviet secret police changed its name many times, its headquarters remained in this building.
Last month amendments were passed to the law codifying the FSB's surveillance of those citizens deemed to be threats to national security. Nicolai Petro, unlike some Western commentators, sees these as potentially making Russia's domestic security procedures among the world's most transparent.
A series of amendments to the law on Russia's main domestic security agency, better known by its Russian initials FSB, was signed into law last month. These amendments codify a practice that security agencies all over the world typically like to shroud in secrecy--the surveillance of private citizens who are deemed potential threats to national security. Specifically, they give the FSB the ability to issue official warnings to individuals whose activities, while still legal, are deemed to verge on criminal acts that endanger national security.
Critics of these amendments have highlighted their potential for abuse. While this is always a potential concern, the assertion that they "restore Soviet era powers to the Federal Security Service" (the AP report by Mansur Mirovalev, "Russia grants more powers to KGB successor agency" of July 29 is one example), seems highly exaggerated and sensationalist. If anything, these new amendments have the potential to increase judicial oversight of such surveillance, potentially making Russia's domestic security procedures among the world's most transparent.
Central Russia on Fire. Forecast for Week Ahead: 42C (110F) in the Shade
Yuri Mamchur
Nearly 1.8 million acres are burning in Central Russia, thousands of homes are destroyed, military and fire departments resources maxed out, and no end of the tragedy is in sight. Peat (a fossil fuel that lays underground close to the surface) caused current fires. The fuel, usually moist from the rivers, swamp, and underground creeks, has dried up during the record-breaking two-months-long draught with temperatures reaching 120 Farengheit across Central Russia. The greatest challenges in fighting the fires is that burning peat cannot be detected as the fire spreads rapidly underground and travelsin random directions. At any given moment the fire almost instanteniously appears above the ground igniting trees and homes above. While firemen tackle the smoking ground, chances are high that they are pouring water on a fire that has been burning for days or weeks, and its major flames have already traveled dozens and hundreds miles away from where it is being fought.
Putin made a promise that every village and town burnt by the current fires will be rebuit before September 1. Even though the promise is hard to keep, it will most likely be followed through. The humanitarian catastrophy during cold Russian winter will be more costly and devastating than the enourmous construction effort.
Watch the photo report and the video in the extended post.
Putin, Medvedev, Who's Next? Russia Can't Find a Leader
Yuri Mamchur
Dmitry Medvedev and Vladimir Putin share a friendly moment
On Monday, answering questions from journalists, President Medvedev said "I don't know what's going to happen in 2012, I don't know who'll be running. It can be Medvedev, it can be Putin, it can be someone third... I would prefer to avoid a competition within the friendly forces, it would be bad for the country" said Medvedev making clear that he will not compete with Putin if the latter decides to run. Russian political anaylsts called Medvedev's response a bluff. Sergey Mitrohin, chairman of political party "Yabloko" said that Sergey Ivanov can be that "third" candidate, since he did not get the Putin's endorsement in the last campaign, paving the way for Medvedev's easy victory.
In the meantime, public opinion poll--conducted by Russia's most respected independent agency Levada--showed that if Putin and/or Medvdev were to run today, 27% would give their vote to Putin, 20% to Medvedev, and 4% to Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov. Russia's liberal candidates popular in the West (like chess player Kasparov) did not get enough percentage to show even 0.1% (1 out of 1,000) chance of winning Russia's presidency. While 15% agree that Medvedev has been changing Russia's political course, 45% of the population do not know who to vote for and where to go. Russia, just like America's Republican Party, desperately needs new leader, but does not know where to find one.
First time in Russian history, terrorists managed to successfully attack an important piece of infrastructure. In the middle of the night, the terrorists shot and killed two police officers, taped two power plant workers to chairs, tortured them, found out where the generators were, and planted the bombs at a power plant in Kabardino-Balkaria. The first generator (that had been working since its construction in 1938) exploded at 5:20 am local time. The second generator (remodeled in 1962) exploded 20 minutes later. The third bomb did not work. The fire, amplified by the oil, was put out only by 8 am. FSB detached the third bomb and blew it up in a local forest.
The reports about the amount of power plant's security vary; power plant workers say there were only two police officers guarding the entire power plant at night, while Russian electric corporation Rusgidro says that there are many layers of security. Regardless, the terrorists' timing was perfect, as the day-time shift includes dozens of security and employees, who start their work at 8 am. However--overall--the terrorist act was unsuccessful, as the power plant did not suffer significant damages, and the electric supplies in the region were not interrupted. The Caucuses' Muslim terrorists claimed responsibility for the 2009 hydroelectric plant explosion in Siberia, but the official investigation proved that Islamic extremists were bluffing and had nothing to do with the explosion. This time they clearly did.
Heat in Moscow Broken Up by a Storm. Weekend Forecast: 110F
Yuri Mamchur
The record-breaking heat across Russia was interrupted by a short storm that hit some cities more than others. Not just the farmers, but common people prayed for the rain. And they got it. Now that the brief and strong rain is over, Moscow suburbs forecast for this weekend: 110F. The temperatures will stay high at least until the end of July. No one (but property) was hurt in eastern Moscow, where wind tore out the trees and a construction crane.
Finally, they are talking. I mean if the Chairman of the Duma's Foreign Relations Committee Konstantin Kosachev is saying things like that, it means something. Whether he consulted with the Kremlin before making such a bold and courageous statement or not is an open question, but when a man of his statue says that "our society is to no lesser extent the victim of the erstwhile regime, was no less articulate in condemning the crimes of Stalin's totalitarianism, and acted on its own, without external intervention and democratically, to remove the communist ideology from power," it tells you a lot.
Let us be fair. It is not easy for the country's leaders while the Communist Party (CPRF) still gets around 15 percent of the votes to say publicly that the Soviet system were a criminal one. And most likely the main reason why Lenin's tomb is still sitting on the Red Square is that no one wants CPRF to increase its ratings by getting their people on the streets to defend their beloved corpse.
Street thermometer shows 46 degrees Celsius (115 degrees Fahrenheit) in Russia's fourth largest city of Nizhny Novgorod. (Photo by RIA Novosti)
I am not sure if the snowcaps are melting in the North Pole (there are none in Moscow), but one thing is sure: "current Russian temperatures have overtaken those in Turkey and Egypt," reports RIA Novosti, calling Russia "tropical." The situation is verging on apocalyptic, continues the agency, and many people with heart problems and diabetes have been forced to see doctors, while children are suffering from heat stroke and sunburn. Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin warned "We must stop any attempt to capitalize on this disaster, this drought." Moscow is forecasted to maintain
Moscow, indeed, has been sunny and hot for weeks. An 85-degree day is now considered a cooling. Parts of central Russia are hitting or expecting to hit 115F. Moscow, which is only 3 degrees south of Alaskan Juno's latitude, is not built for the African-style heat. Certain underground subway stations warmed up and reached 90F and pavement on the freeways is softening or melting. Many people do not own air conditioners. Despite the obvious dangers of the extreme heat, my friends and most Muscovites love the weather and are cancelling their plans to travel to warm-climate countries. After all, Moscow suburbs are hotter than Africa!
Visit RIA Novosti's website to see the photos of Russians enjoying the heat.
Many Western media outlets said that there has been a media blockade in Russia of the recent spy scandal. My experience in the Moscow suburbs has been quite the opposite.
When Vice President Joe Biden appeared on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" last Friday night, he said it was all right that the United States only got four accused spies from Russia while giving up 10. "We got back four really good ones," said Biden. "And the 10, they've been here a long time, but they hadn't done much." When comedy host Leno showed Biden an alluring photo of accused Russian spy Anna Chapman, a darling of New York tabloids, Biden said "let me make it clear, it wasn't my idea to send her back. I thought they'd take Rush Limbaugh."
Enjoy the full photo version of the spy swap brought to you by the Russian media (in the extended post).
6 Children, 1 Adult Die at a Russian Summer Camp; Medvedev Orders Country-Wide Inspection
Yuri Mamchur
Having visited then-Soviet and later Russian summer camps as a kid, and later having volunteered as a camp counselor in America, I have noticed the indescribable differences in attitude towards kids' safety in two countries. While the unregulated environment of Russian summer camps maybe provides for a better, wilder "summer adventure," American camps drill into camp counselors and children "safety first" and eventually provide it - the safety.
Yesterday's events in Yeysk (Krasnodar Krai) speak volumes about the degradation of Russian government and private institutions in their ensuring of children's safety. Seven camp counselors and 63 children (ages 8-16, all from Moscow), traveled by boat to a local island. Despite the signs "Swimming Strictly Prohibited" and absence of lifeguards or medical personnel, camp counselors allowed children to swim. In the meantime, counselors got drunk! While the counselors were drinking, six children disappeared. One counselor attempted to save the kids--who were being dragged into the open sea by strong currents--and died himself.
Government will cover all funeral expenses, and... that's basically it. Unlike the American Camping Association (ACA) there is no independent organization supervising summer camps' safety standards in Russia. Government officials who are supposed to fulfill the ACA's role are easily bribable, and most of them are using their 30-to-48-day vacations during summertime. An American family would see an opportunity to sue such a camp for millions of dollars. However, Russian camps do not have insurance to cover expenses associated with such legal cases, and the legal system itself does not allow for such law suits. I assume the parents of dead children can hope for about $5,000-$10,000 per child in government compensations from Moscow Mayor Luzhkov or Russian Federal government.
A friend in Moscow told me a true story. A couple weeks after the Moscow subway bombing, he was taking a train. A lady, in a traditional Muslim dress (but not in burqa), entered his subway car. All the passengers crammed--pressing each other--into the opposite side of the train car. The Muslim lady set down on the other side of the train car by herself, and started crying very hard. My friend was one of many who felt guilty, yet confused about what was right, and whose freedoms were more important. He still does not know what the right answer is. On the other hand, he told me how much he respects the U.S. for being able to fight for their freedom, yet respect each other's choices, no matter how challenging it is.
For over two centuries, America has been a free country with free people. The freedom of the nation as a whole and individual freedoms have not conflicted throughout the country's history but only complimented each other. Russia Blog's editors hope that today's ever-changing and challenging world will only strengthen America and its people. Happy Fourth of July, America!
An American friend wrote to me about the current Russian spy scandal in America: "Not good PR for you and [your friend] if he decides to go to Harvard... this is all hilarious... I'm loving all the coverage of a bunch of Russians getting paid to befriend Americans. I wish the U.S. had a program like this, I'd totally do this! Can you imagine?! I'd get my rent and tuition paid just to blurt out stuff that you can automatically look up (in even more depth) on the internet."
This ordinary American summed it all up in the brief four lines: this is funny, embarrassing, wasteful, and - most importantly - hurtful to many Russians like me--to those who honestly fight through American immigration hurdles, challenge the financial crisis to earn income, pass application tests and study hard to get American college and graduate degrees, make new life-long friends, fall in love with America's culture and natural beauty, and by default share their knowledge (and income) with Russian and American friends, families, businesses, and government agencies.
"Boris and Natasha" Shake Up U.S.-Soviet (er, Russian) Relations
Bruce Chapman
Stories continue to pour forth about the Russian spy scandal. Everyone seems a bit embarrassed. The Russians pretend to be indignant, but they don't deny that the eleven folks caught with lots of spy equipment, fake identification and other espionage giveaways, were, in fact,....well,....spies.
What really should embarrass the Kremlin is the apparently farcical quality of the spy craft. References have been made to John LeCarre and James Bond. A much more appropriate comparison is to the cartoon characters of Boris Badenov and Natasha Fatale in the Rocky and Bullwinkle TV show that was popular from the 60s to the 80s. See, for example, an excerpt from "Boris and Natasha Take Washington."
Some think that all the Kremlin really wanted was what they got, impressions of life in the USA and what people close to government think. If so, it is another example of wasteful government spending. The Russian public need something comparable to the Tea Parties to demand better value for their tax monies. This pitiful excuse for spying is what about we would expect of the American government under Obama. It is the exact sort of soft power intelligence the Left here seems to think is important. Only it is hidden.
The Kremlin would be better off following the Internet, including our own Russia Blog! Given what they appear to be after, the Russian government should sponsor more conferences and exchanges right out in the open where people of different views and experiences from the US and Russia can learn from one another.
That would prove more productive, cost less and lead to fewer arrests.
TIME: the Road from Western Capitals These Days Leads to Moscow
Yuri Mamchur
Presidents Obama and Medvedev enjoying burgers at Ray's Hell Burger in Virginia
Following the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum that hosted world's leading CEOs and once again brought together Medvedev and Sarkozy, and the casual lunch in Virginia where Medvedev and Obama ate burgers and split the fries, TIME wrote a refreshing article about Russia. Coincidentally, a week ago, I hosted in Moscow a friend, an American business owner. His conclusion was the following: given a) the demographics of Russia, b) Russia's wealth with natural resources, and c) Russia's central location to the world's fastest growing economies, Russia has no choice, but to grow. The West has no choice, but to participate in that growth.
Steve Jobs gave Dmitry Medvedev the new iPhone 4G. Luckily for Medvedev, his device came unlocked and he has already used it in Russia without any "help" from AT&T.
The children of Russia's baby-boomers grew up and are buying cars, refrigerators, and groceries. They also travel, and learn from their Western counterparts to love stuff. They spend money and learn and earn to spend even more. Russia is gifted with the natural resources. The climate change and advances in technology guarantee that Russia is not going to run out of oil, gas, gold, and timber any time soon. China, India, and Central Asia need Russia. Whether Europe and America like it or not, they need Russia too--in dealing with the Muslim world and expanding personal economies. Furthermore, Americans who tend to be idealistic and sum up things to all-or-nothing (let's say, perceived human rights vs. possible economic gains), in large missed the boat of Russian opportunities: French Ashan took the place of America's Wal-Mart, German Metro Cash and Carry eliminated opportunities for Costco, and Starbucks is shy in stealing customers from Russia's Coffee House and Shokoladnitsa.
Russian Business Leader Saves Historic Landmark from Closure
Yuri Mamchur
Viktor Vekselberg and Arnold Shwarzenneger signed a historic document in front of Dmitry Medvedev to maintain and protect the U.S. Fort Ross national park
(San Francisco, CA, 22 June 2010) -- California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and corporate leader Victor Vekselberg, Chairman of Renova Group -- alongside Russian President Dmitry Medvedev -- sign a historic agreement to support and preserve California's Fort Ross State Park. The site was on the verge of closure given California's ongoing budgetary crisis. The Renova Group of Companies and State of California view their cooperation as fostering deeper cross-cultural relations between Russia and the United States and promoting enhanced understanding and connection between the peoples of the United States and Russia.
An early agricultural supplier to Alaska, Fort Ross was a thriving Russian settlement from 1812 to 1841. The Fort's Russian settlers were the first to introduce to the area shipbuilding and windmills, as well as advances in science, natural studies, agriculture, and conservation. At the forefront of multicultural sharing, Fort Ross was a place where Russians and local Native Americans shared peaceful relations and where innovation and respect for the land were valued highly.
Hearing of the impending closure, the Renova Group, headed by Victor Vekselberg, has committed substantial financial support to the park and will promote long-term solutions to budgetary and other issues through establishment of a public charitable foundation, the Renova Fort Ross Foundation.
Today, the Kremlin launched two separate Twitter accounts. One in English, and one in Russian language. Aside from tweeting about an outing with President Obama to Ray's Hell Burger in Virginia, President Medvedev posted the following today:
The decision of major American companies to come to Russia and invest shows that we can agree on more than just missiles.
While Western media isn't yet abuzz about the Kremlin tapping into Twitter, the comparisons to other leaders jumping on the popular short message system can't be far behind.
June 12: Russia Day or Remember Tsar Mikhail II Day?
W George Krasnow
On June 12, 1918, Grand Duke Mikhail Aleksandrovich (henceforth Michael) and his secretary Brian Johnson, a Brit, were randomly executed in the outskirts of the far away city of Perm in the Ural Mountains. A year ago, Russia "rehabilitated" both, along with other Romanov-related victims of Soviet repression. The decision followed a similar act about Tsar Nicholas II and his family on October 1, 2008.
However, the Russian media at large failed to single Michael out from among the other Romanovs. Didn't Tsar Nicholas abdicate in favor of Michael, his younger brother? If so, shouldn't he be treated as Michael II, the last of the Romanov tsars?
Yes, he should. So thinks Donald Crawford, the co-author of a 1997 book Michael and Natasha: The Life and Love of Michael II, the Last of the Romanov Tsars. Crawford is a lawyer and the publisher of "Parliamentary Briefs" in London. He is fully aware of deviations from the law in both Nicholas's abdication and Michael's deferring his assumption of power contingent upon the decision of the popularly elected Constituent Assembly. However, Crawford insists that those deviations were necessary in order to save the spirit of the law and Russia herself. He is right in calling Michael "the last of the Romanov tsars." Not for the sake of anybody's vanity, of which Michael had none. But for the sake of extraordinary legacy that Michael bequeathed to Russia. That legacy is worthy of any tsar.
The region is heavily populated by Christians and Muslims, ethnic Russians, Chechens, and other Caucasian nations ("Caucasian" in Russian means a person from the Caucasus, rather than a white person, and, in fact, word "Caucasian" often replaces the word "black" in everyday language). Local authorities and Russian federal government are concerned about potential ethnic-based clashes. No matter how upsetting Islamic jihad is to all of us, blowing up innocent people is definitely not a rational response. Russia Blog extends condolences to the affected families.
What Does Russia's New Foreign Policy Doctrine Mean?
Edward Lozansky
I'd disagree with the widespread notion that Russia's new foreign policy doctrine (or rather proposals for changes in the current foreign policy in the document under discussion) is oriented toward the West. After reading carefully that Foreign Ministry document, I'd say that it is oriented toward West, East, South, North, and any other direction that has a potential for promoting Russia's interests.
The prefix "pro-" in the above interpretation of the proposals is clearly out of place. In realpolitik, any "pro-" subsumes that there is a balancing "anti-" somewhere, overtly or covertly. Not in this document. If anything, it is simply pro-Russian and definitely not anti-- any nation or group of nations.
The only rational interpretation of the thinking underlying this document is that Russia should strive to develop closer political, economic, social and even perhaps military ties with the Euro-Atlantic community or, to put it a bit bolder, civilization - but not at the expense of the other parts of the world.
BusinessWeek reports that imprisoned Russian tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky ended his hunger strike... after one day. He initially declared the hunger strike to draw attention to what he claimed were improper court rulings. He said Russia's courts were ignoring a legal change initiated by President Dmitry Medvedev that allows people charged with white-collar crimes to be released on bail. On Wednesday, Khodorkovsky issued a statement saying his appeal "has achieved its purpose" and he was ending the strike after Medvedev's spokeswoman said the president had been informed.
Khodorkovsky is serving an eight-year sentence for tax evasion and is on trial on charges of embezzling more than $25 billion worth of oil from subsidiaries of Yukos, his former company. Mr. J. Clifford Baxter, former vice chairman of Enron Corporation, committed a suicide. Other Enron executives went to prison. Maybe, Mr. Khodorkovsky is not that special; after all, $25 billion is a lot of money. Fortunately, there is plenty of food in Russian prisons to feed a hungry oligarch. The prisons seem to be not as horrifying as The Wall Street Journal portraits them (sometimes referring to them as "gulags"). If someone does not know the definition of "gulag" - one can be found here; "hunger strike" - here. In the last few weeks, Mr. Khodorkovsky was able to give an interview to CNN, get noticed by the BusinessWeek, write a letter to the president, get hungry, and have a hearty meal. Not bad for a hunger strike at a gulag!
A visitor to Moscow might wonder how streets that are wider than almost any in newer cities in the US happen to be get that way, especially since they are bounded often by buildings that are a hundred or more years old.
The answer is that before World War II they moved thebuildings. (Tip of the hat to Matt Scholz.)
How is that possible; I mean politically? Well, it probably helps if you start with a dictatorship...!
FSB Finds Way around Russia's Ban on Capital Punishment When Dealing with Terrorism
Yuri Mamchur
One of the suicide bombers (with her boyfriend in this picture) was only 17 when she detonated herself during the terrorist attack that took 40 lives in Moscow Metro in March.
This one is going to make Americans jealous. Members of a gang who sent two "black widow" suicide bombers into the Moscow Metro have been killed by secret agents, the head of Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said yesterday, reports UK's Times. One of those killed by the FSB had escorted the women suicide bombers to Moscow from the North Caucasus region of Russia and another had led the women to the underground network on the day of the attacks, Mr. Bortnikov, the FSB chief said. Three people believed to have organized the terror attack were killed after refusing to surrender he told President Medvedev. "To our great regret, we did not manage to seize them alive. They offered bitter armed resistance and were destroyed," he added. President Medvedev said that "there was nothing to be sorry about."
"I wonder how many pieces they were sliced & diced into..." asked us one of our readers. Regardless of the amount of slicing and dicing, the way Russia's FSB avoided dealing with legalities of a lifetime sentence versus a death penalty was truly remarkable. European laws and human rights organizations pressed Russian government to issue moratorium on capital punishment in 1996. On November 19, 2009, the Constitutional Court of Russia extended the national moratorium "until the ratification of 6th Protocol to the European Convention of Human Rights," of which Russia is already a signatory, effectively banning capital punishment during peacetime. We sincerely hope that terrorists continue their "bitter armed resistance" when detained by FSB, FBI, or CIA agents.
Russian Special Forces Attack Pirates, Free Sailors; Russians Ready to Declare War against Somalia
Yuri Mamchur
Russian vessel "Moscow University" was hijacked by pirates and 24 hours later freed by Russian navy.
A Russian warship hunted down an oil tanker hijacked by Somali pirates and special forces rappelled on board Thursday, surprising the outlaws, who surrendered after a 22-minute gunbattle. Twenty-three Russian sailors were freed, reports MSNBC. The dramatic Indian Ocean rescue came a day after pirates seized the tanker, which was heading toward China carrying $50 million worth of crude. One pirate was killed and 10 others were arrested, officials said.
The Russian destroyer Marshal Shaposhnikov had rushed to the scene following Wednesday's seizure of the Liberian-flagged tanker, Moscow University. Special forces troops rappelled down to the tanker from a helicopter, Rear Adm. Jan Thornqvist, the EU Naval Force commander, told an Associated Press reporter. "The operation's success was due to the surprise factor, said a Russian military officer aboard the warship. "The pirates were taken by surprise. They did not expect such resolute measures from us," Capt. Ildar Akhmerov told RIA Novosti news agency.
The pirates were to be taken to Moscow to face criminal charges. Russia Blog does not envy the pirates fate in Russian prisons, assuming they survive the "relocation." President Medvedev hinted that hard times are awaiting them. "Perhaps we should get back to the idea of establishing an international court and other legal tools" to prosecute pirates, he said. "Until then, we'll have to do what our forefathers did when they met the pirates."
Russia Blog presents up-to-date news, facts and commentary on the state of events in Russia and the former Soviet Union. The blog is managed by Yuri Mamchur, Director of Discovery Institute's Real Russia Project, a member of MBA class 2011 at Vanderbilt University's Owen Graduate School of Management, and a composer in his spare time.
Yesterday's events in 
Government will cover all funeral expenses, and... that's basically it. Unlike the 
An American friend wrote to me about the current Russian spy scandal in America: "
On June 12, 1918, Grand Duke Mikhail Aleksandrovich (henceforth Michael) and his secretary Brian Johnson, a Brit, were randomly executed in the outskirts of the far away city of Perm in the Ural Mountains. A year ago, Russia "rehabilitated" both, along with other Romanov-related victims of Soviet repression. The decision followed a similar act about Tsar Nicholas II and his family on October 1, 2008.
