La censura sbarca anche in Francia. Il quotidiano France Soir ha licenziato due corrispondenti, da Roma e da Mosca, perché nei loro articoli erano troppo critiche verso i governi di questi paesi. Il quotidiano, nel 2009, è stato rilevato da Alexandre Pougatchev , amico personale di Putin, che non doveva aver gradito le critiche verso il leader russo e quello italiano. http://www.inaltreparole.net/it/giornalismo/francesoircegiornalistecensura231109.htmlLa censura sbarca anche in Francia. Il quotidiano France Soir ha licenziato due... more
I'll admit, I don't play a lot of video games. Nor do I blog about video games. I do, however, love to blog about Russia. And so it caught my eye this week when the two crossed paths. It was reported yesterday that Russia has apparently banned the sale of the game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. The deal is this: the game takes place in a world where Russia is ruled by extreme nationalists. At one point in the game, you're an undercover Army officer who participates in a bloody slaughter of civilians at an airport. It's perpetrated by a Russian extremist cell and the scene begins with its leader telling everyone "No Russian."
Paul Tassi at True/Slant played through the level and described it as such:
"You walk out into the security gate at an airport, with lines full of people swarming to get through to their flights. I cocked my head while playing, as did all the civilians who turned to stare at us, and before I knew what was happening, Makarov and his men opened fire. My jaw hit the floor as I watched them mow down about thirty people in under five seconds. But then the level actually begins, and it’s one of the most disturbing things I’ve ever taken part in. The game forces you to walk at a snail’s pace through the airport, so you get the full effect of what’s happening. All around you, fleeing civilians are being mowed down by Makarov’s team, and you witness some crawling away trying to hide, and some sitting up against walls, nursing their wounds....The entire time the scene was unfolding, I was just thinking in my head “This is the Mumbai Massacre, I am playing the Mumbai Massacre.”
The Russians understandably took umbrage to the scene and yesterday the internet was afire with reports of the game's banning. Today, however, Activision says the game has not been banned in Russia, but that the controversial scene has been removed. I haven't found anything about the game in a cursory look through the English-language Russian press, but if you see anything send it our way.
Just hours after Iranian President Ahmadinejad agreed to accept an IAEA deal to enrich uranium out of the country, they suddenly backed out. The plan had been to take Iran's nuclear stockpile and send it to Russia to be enriched. It's disappointing for those concerned about Iran's plans for its enriching uranium - though I don't think it's particularly surprising.
I was thinking about how long Iran has been playing this game, and it brought to mind this Supernews gem: Iran: Deal or No Deal?
That piece was produced in 2006. Over three years ago. It's kind of disheartening to see what looks like the same game playing out, but with a few different players. No more Bush or Condoleeza Rice, and Putin is now the Prime Minister of Russia, not the President. But it's hard not to watch this and see Iran doing the same things today. Is there another card up the Obama Administration's negotiating sleeve? Let's hope so.
Yes you read it right, Russias Body Building and Fitness Federation are to send Arnold Schwarzenegger a bronze bust of Vladimiar Putin as a gift.
The bust is currently being made and will delivered in March to Arnie.
"Putin is such a complex personality. He's left no one indifferent," said Alexander Chernoshchyokov, a Saint Petersburg-based sculptor who has been working on the bust since June.Yes you read it right, Russias Body Building and Fitness Federation are to send Arnold... more
La Bulgaria deve esercitare un fascino particolare sul nostro presidente del consiglio, che quando ci va è sempre ispirato a dichiarazioni anti democratiche. Sarà perché in passato era famosa per essere la nazione più fedele alla linea sovietica di tutto il Patto di Varsavia. E in effetti lui vorrebbe governare proprio come Stalin, senza opposizione e circondato dal culto della personalità. Dopo l'editto bulgaro del 2002 per cacciare dalla televisione Santoro, Biagi e Luttazzi, oggi arrivano nuove interessanti idee "bulgare".La Bulgaria deve esercitare un fascino particolare sul nostro presidente del... more
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin proposed to Chinese and Central Asian leaders the idea of holding a joint song competition called "Intervision" to rival the Eurovision Song Contest. I like how he didn't have time to think of an original name.
The contest would potentially see Chinese crooners competing for a prize with Uzbeks, Tajiks, Kazakhs, Russians and Kyrgyz.
Putin thinki this would strengthen cultural ties between the nations.
One slight problem, Russia are in Eurovision. Does this mean they are going to do both?Shock horror!
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin proposed to Chinese and Central... more
Iran's traditional emblem has been the Persian lion. Russia's should be a vulture: Prime Minister Vladimir Putin intends to feed on the carcass left by any confrontation with Iran.
For Moscow, this crisis isn't about Tehran's acquisition of nukes. It's about Russia's acquisition of a stranglehold on global energy markets.
Putin's playing with fire -- but he's sure we'll be the ones burned.
As for the Obama administration's desperate (and stunningly naive) hope that economic sanctions can deter President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad and his fellow thugs-for-Allah from pursuing nuclear weapons, forget it.
Even were Putin to permit his front-man, President Dmitri Medvedev, to agree to half-baked sanctions, Moscow would violate them before Obama could step out of Air Force One with a piece of paper in his hand guaranteeing peace in our time.
The current crisis is a win-win-win for Putin. But before laying out his plan, let's run the numbers:
The Persian Gulf's littoral states hold over 60 percent of the world's proven oil reserves and 40 percent of the natural gas. Russia has "just" 10 percent of the oil reserves and 35 percent of the world's natural gas.
Do the math: Iran and its neighbors, along with Russia, own two-thirds of the world's oil reserves and 70 percent of the natural gas. And the global economy still runs on oil and gas, folks.
Despite the State Department's compartmentalization mentality, Russia and Iran don't exist in separate worlds. It's less than a day's drive from Russia's southern border through Azerbaijan to Iran's northwestern border. I've driven it.
This is one macro-region for energy, the zone of ultimate control. Putin gets it, even if we don't. Here's Czar Vladimir's strategic trifecta:
* For now, Russia profits wonderfully from its trade, both legal and illicit, with Iran, while the West talks itself to death. Life is good.
* But life could get even better: If Iran's nuclear quest isn't blocked, a nuclear arsenal will give Iran de facto control of all Persian Gulf oil. Putin envisions a Moscow-Tehran axis, an energy cartel that dramatically increases the value of his oil and gas -- the only economic props keeping the corpse of Russia upright.
* If Israel's driven to a forlorn-hope attack on Iran's nuke program, Iran will respond by striking Gulf Arab oil fields and facilities, while closing the Strait of Hormuz. The US military will be in it, like it or not. Oil and gas prices will soar unimaginably -- and the bear will have its paws on the golden tap.
So the worst outcome for Putin -- more of the same -- is still good. A bad outcome for everybody else is even better in Putin's strategy to renew Russia's superpower status.
Why on earth would this guy help us stop Iran? When he hates us, anyway? (It isn't you, Barack. It's just business.)
For all his viciousness, Putin's a serious strategist. We don't have any high-level strategists. Not one. On either side of the Potomac.
In his first decade on the throne, Czar Vladimir focused on addicting Europe to Russian gas, while moving successfully to exert control over as many pipelines as possible. That was the constructive decade.
The second decade in the reign of Vladimir I is the energy-cartel-building phase. This will be the confrontational phase.
Energy's the only real power Putin has, so he's maximizing it.
It's no accident that a strategic triangle has emerged between Moscow, Tehran and Caracas -- home of the great Latin mischief-lover, Hugo Chavez, who thrives on his own nation's petro-wealth.
The big Russia news today is that the Obama administration abandoned plans (cooked up back during the Bush administration) to build a missile defense system in Poland and the Czech Republic.
For a little background, Bush pitched this missile defense shield to the two former Warsaw Pact countries as a way to defend the West against a potential Iranian nuclear threat. The Russians totally hated it.
Der Spiegel is one among many in chorus of reports that Moscow is jubilant over the decision. (Though FP asks how much the Czech Republic and Poland really wanted the installations anyway.)
So the question today is: Did the US just capitulate? Did the Obama Administration give the Russians a big strategic win?The big Russia news today is that the Obama administration abandoned plans (cooked up... more
The longer Barack Obama is in the office, the weaker he looks to the world. The action that he took to go back on the missile installations in Eastern Europe was one more step down the road to appeasement. Every day, Obama looks more like Neville Chamberlain of Britain, who appeased Hitler before World War II. Prime Minister Putin of Russia began to shake his fist at Obama immediately after the he took the oath of office:The longer Barack Obama is in the office, the weaker he looks to the world. The action... more
In a further deterioration of Western Hemispheric relations, Hugo Chavez has accepted "defensive" missiles from Russia. What a pity the Organization of American States was not vibrant enough to forestall such actions.In a further deterioration of Western Hemispheric relations, Hugo Chavez has accepted... more
The American issue of GQ is running a story detailing Putin's link to the Moscow bombings used to justify his second invasion of Chechnya, and the subsequent fervor that brought him to power. The magazine is now attempting to keep the story from being read in Russia for fear of loss of Russian revenue. Great story detailing the likely involvement of Russian security forces in framing Chechens at great cost in lives of working-class Muscovites.The American issue of GQ is running a story detailing Putin's link to the Moscow... more
When Russian Prime Minister Viadimir Putin crossed into Georgia without permission on August 13,2009. it was one more action to test the strength of President Barack Obama. The last time Putin did something like this was when he traveled to South Ossetia, just days after Obama spoke in Moscow.
It was reported earlier by ITAR-Tass, the Russian news agency, that Putin would be bolstering defenses and military bases plus building a new naval base in the area. Apparently, the Russian Prime Minister knows he has nothing to fear from the West as the last time he crossed the line and invaded Georgia, consequences were short lived. After a brief period of frozen times, the U.S.,E.U. and NATO all resumed cooperation with the Russians.When Russian Prime Minister Viadimir Putin crossed into Georgia without permission on... more
Nuovi morti in Cecenia all'indomani della visita di Vladimir Putin, che doveva trasmettere ulteriore sostegno a Kadyrov. La loro alleanza è solo riuscita a mettere a tacere gli oppositori di governo.
E la Corte Suprema della Sharia dell'Emirato del Caucaso ha condannato a morte Akhmed Zakaiev, esponente storico degli indipendentisti che vive in esilio a Londra.Nuovi morti in Cecenia all'indomani della visita di Vladimir Putin, che doveva... more
A Russian company has come up with Gogul, a supposedly child friendly online portal that won't let users 'gogul' Russian PM, Vladimir Putin.
I guess those pics of a bare chested Putin on a horse are kinda risque...A Russian company has come up with Gogul, a supposedly child friendly online portal... more
At the beginning so many promises but now the reconstruction of l'Aquila is becoming more and more difficult. So in the asking form for a house there's someone who remembers about a Premier promise and ask of living at Villa Certosa.At the beginning so many promises but now the reconstruction of l'Aquila is becoming... more
Assassinations of state, in Chechnya, do not stop: last victims (after Anna Politkovskaja e Natalia Estemirova) were Zarema Sadulaieva and her husband Alik Dzhabrailov.
Reporters withouth borders say that from March 2000, 20 journalists were killed and the Moscow newspaper Novaya Gazeta has been the hardest journal hit with 4 journalists killed.
President Kadyrov repression, with the support of Valdimir Putin, continues.Assassinations of state, in Chechnya, do not stop: last victims (after Anna... more
Non si fermano gli assassini di stato in Cecenia: ultime vittime Zarema Sadulaieva e suo marito Alik Dzhabrailov. La repressione del presidente Kadyrov, con il pieno appoggio di Vladimir Putin, continua.
Zarema e Alik avevano solo 33 anni e il loro omicidio arriva a quattro giorni dalla decisione del tribunale militare di Mosca di aprire un nuovo processo per i tre presunti assassini di Anna Politkovskaya, giornalista di Novaya Gazeta. Le prove però rimarranno le stesse e l'assassinio di Anna, dunque, rimarrà impunito.Non si fermano gli assassini di stato in Cecenia: ultime vittime Zarema Sadulaieva e... more
200 miles off the US East Coast, Russian attack submarines are at sea to see what the can see. These aging Akula class nuclear powered subs ("Akula" is the NATO reporting name, the Russian name is "Schuka-B") have good sensors, and are designed mostly for attacking shipping or covert strikes at American capital ships. These aren't "boomers" - the subs that launch nuclear weapons.
So... why? Well, the simplest answer is to get press for a popular product that Russia is trying to sell more units of. Early models of Akula were produced in the early '80s, while many upgrades have brought the Akula into the 1990s. Many countries buy ships from Russia, and attack subs are a primarily defensive weapon - used to attack supply lines of invaders, or to attack an enemy that controls the seas, perhaps with an aircraft carrier.
Now that Russian politicians are rediscovering the power of blind nationalism, it's also possible that this is just Russian retaliation for the constant American naval presence around Russian territorial waters. In light of this fact, the American military has said that Russia is acting within its rights and within the rights of every nation (*cough cough American boomers*) to sail in international waters off any country's coast.200 miles off the US East Coast, Russian attack submarines are at sea to see what the... more
There's another victim of the Chechen question: is Natalia Estemirova. She was a journalist and she was working for the Russian non-governmental organization Memorial. She won the Anna Politkovskaya award in 2007 when she said "nothing has been done to investigate the crimes committed in Chechnya since 2000".
The truth on her murder will never arrive. As Anna, she was killed because she was trying to do her job.There's another victim of the Chechen question: is Natalia Estemirova. She was a... more
Thanks to blog "The Duck of Minerva" for pointing us to this amazing (amazing) video of Vladimir Putin as the hero in several recognizable scenarios.
Putin to me is one of the world's most fascinating celebrity figures (for example: those h-o-t shirtless pictures of him fishing from a year or so ago.
It's Friday - enjoy!Thanks to blog "The Duck of Minerva" for pointing us to this amazing (amazing) video... more
