June 2011 |
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The weak dollar leads to higher commodities and that inevitably means higher crude prices and that has some investors bullish on Russia. In the short term, the US dollar and oil have been highly correlated. However if this were to break down, the path of oil price is more important to Russia than the level of the US dollar.
Moscow genuinely wants a strong American presence in Central Asia to secure the borders and create a more stable Afghanistan. Russia's desires for US engagement in the region can be seen in its silence over American military presence in Manas air base in Kyrgyzstan.
An enduring existential reality has been lost in Washington’s post–cold war illusions and the fog of subsequent US wars: the road to American national security still runs through Moscow.
Did Russian President Dmitry Medvedev blush when he signed off on the G-8 declaration of the “Renewed Commitment for Freedom and Democracy” at last week’s G-8 Summit in Deauville, France? Probably not, but he should have.
The strategic rationale for missile defense is growing stronger as rogue states like Iran and North Korea work on developing new and more threatening weapons. However, adequately defending the United States from these emerging threats will require taking steps that Russia threatens could reignite the Cold War.
Russia’s tycoons are weighing a recent push by Dmitry Medvedev to reform corporate governance rules in a shake-up that could tip the balance in several of the country’s big corporate battles.
Experts and analysts believe Russia made the move to protect its own interests in Libya and have a stake in the country's future. Yet they remain skeptical over whether Russia could help make a difference in the Middle East country.
Mikhail Khodorkovsky's claims that he was prosecuted for political reasons have been rejected by the European Court of Human Rights, handing the Kremlin an unexpected victory against the jailed oligarch.
The most urgent issues for Russia and China have been Western intervention in Libya, events in Syria, charges of the West’s hypocrisy concerning Bahrain, and the U.S. determination to keep a military presence in Iraq, all of which suggest that the West is determined to maintain a controlling presence in the Middle East.
Russia is to supply military helicopters to the US for use in Afghanistan, marking a major arms contract between the former cold war foes. US defence officials have defended the decision to buy the Russian-built helicopters, citing the familiarity of most Afghan pilots with the aircraft, which are tailor-made for operations in mountainous terrain.
Investment money is pouring out of Russia, despite the high price of oil and the strengthening ruble. It’s a combination that hasn’t been seen before, and it threatens to do lasting damage to the economy and to President Dmitry Medvedev’s modernization efforts.
Russian banks are shaping up to make acquisitions in eastern and central Europe, taking advantage of the continued weakness of some western institutions amid the financial crisis.
Who is the common foe today? And does Russia’s ruling political party have a role and prestige comparable to the Communist Party of yesteryear? Or is this just another attempt by the new elite -- after dumping a discredited Yeltsin for an eagle-eyed Putin and then adding a smart young Medvedev -- to prevent Russians from turning against the harsh neoliberal post-Soviet order?
The Russian used auto industry relies on used car shipments from Japanese companies that have dried up since the March earthquake and problems at the Fukushima plant.
The Russians are coming. So far, the invaders are both welcome and unexpected – these aren’t the Cold War comrades who aspired to geopolitical domination or the first wave of oligarchs with their treasure chest of natural resources. These Russians propose to conquer the world’s new frontier – the Internet – and they are every bit as cocky as their forebears.
Poland understands the drawbacks of being a border country, and Russia understands it would be better off if its neighbors feared Moscow less. While the difficult process of Polish-Russian rapprochement is not explicitly related to the U.S.-Russia reset, it would have a positive impact on Central Europe as well as the broader trans-Atlantic relationship.
Russia has finalised a controversial agreement to buy four Mistral-class warships from France in its first big arms purchase since the end of the Cold War. Some former Soviet states, including Georgia and the Baltic republics have complained about the deal, fearing that Russia might use the powerful French warships to put pressure on littoral states.
Medvedev no doubt suffered a blow to his prestige from his decision to abstain during the voting on Libya in the United Nations Security Council, overruling the advice of highly professional Russian diplomats that Resolution 1973 was deeply flawed in many respects and was open to varying interpretations in the downstream.
Royal Dutch Shell PLC Chief Executive Peter Voser met Russia's top energy official Wednesday to discuss joint projects on Russia's Arctic shelf, the Black Sea and Sakhalin-3, but he said the company won't seek to swap shares with state oil champion OAO Rosneft.