WebMemo posted November 20, 2007 by Yevgeny Volk, Ph.D.
Who's Who in Russia's Parliamentary Elections
On December 2, an estimated 100 million Russian voters are
expected to elect 450 deputies to the State Duma, the Russian
Federal Assembly's lower house. Unlike every parliamentary election
since 1993, all the deputies will be chosen from the party lists
compiled by the leaders of 11 parties formally registered to run in
the election. The 450 seats will be distributed…
WebMemo posted May 24, 2006 by Yevgeny Volk, Ph.D.
Russia's NGO Law: An Attack on Freedom and Civil Society
In early May Russian
President Vladimir Putin signed executive orders that give the
Justice Ministry and the Federal Registration Service broad powers
of control over non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The
mechanisms for enforcing the new NGO law are now in place.
The Federal Registration Service, whose staff has swelled by
as much as five thousand, will…
WebMemo posted September 9, 2004 by Yevgeny Volk, Ph.D.
Terrorist and Authoritarian Threats in Russia
Last week a
tragedy befell Russia. On September 1, terrorists seized some 1,200
hostages at a school of the North Ossetian city Beslan. Two days
later, a violent conclusion to the armed standoff between the
terrorists and federal troops resulted in nearly 1000 casualties,
with 335 dead (including nearly 200 children), over 400 wounded,
and some 200 missing. Such is…
Backgrounder posted November 6, 1998 by Yevgeny Volk, Ph.D., Evgueni Volk, Ph.D.
Who's Who in Primakov's New Russian Government
On September 11, 1998, the Russian State Duma (the
lower house of parliament) approved President Boris Yeltsin's
choice of Evgeny Primakov as Prime Minister. The Duma's action came
in the turbulent wake of the August 17 devaluation of the ruble and
the dismissal of former Prime Minister Sergei Kiriyenko and his
government. After the Duma twice rejected the nomination…
Executive Memorandum posted April 6, 1998 by Ariel Cohen, Ph.D., Yevgeny Volk, Ph.D., Dr. Ariel Cohen, Evgueni Volk, Ph.D.
Yeltsin's Gambit: Political Crisis in Moscow
On March 23, 1998, Russian President Boris Yeltsin sacked his
entire government. Yeltsin appointed a political rookie,
35-year-old Minister of Energy Sergei Kirienko, as Acting Prime
Minister, replacing five-year veteran Viktor Chernomyrdin, aged 59.
First Deputy Prime Minister Anatoly Chubais, a leading economic
reformer, was fired by special presidential decree and…
Executive Memorandum posted April 21, 1997 by Ariel Cohen, Ph.D., Yevgeny Volk, Ph.D., Dr. Ariel Cohen, Evgueni Volk, Ph.D.
Russia's Union With Belarus: Expensive and Troubling
On April 2, Presidents Boris Yeltsin of Russia and Alexander
Lukashenka of Belarus signed a treaty creating a union between
their two countries that will include common citizenship, a common
currency, and joint armed forces. The top legislative and executive
representatives of the two countries will participate in a
supranational ruling body--a Supreme Soviet or…
Executive Memorandum posted October 23, 1996 by Yevgeny Volk, Ph.D., Ariel Cohen, Ph.D., Evgueni Volk, Ph.D., Dr. Ariel Cohen
Lebed Dismissed But Not Tamed
On October 17, President Boris Yeltsin
fired National Security Aide and Security Council Secretary
Alexander Lebed, denouncing him for "acting without proper
authority" and committing "errors intolerable to Russia." Yeltsin's
allies went even further: Prime Minister Victor Chernomyrdin
charged the controversial general with "Bonapartism," while
Interior Minister…