Putin congratulates Yanukovych
Putin congratulates Yanukovych on his apparent victory in the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election despite the lack of an official result, after the Central Election Commission’s preliminary announcement that with 99% of ballots counted, Yanukovych is ahead of Yushchenko 49%-47%. With the pro-Russian candidate victorious:
We will be able to do a great deal to strengthen the European and international security and build a united and prospering Europe. I value your determination to work together and express deep satisfaction with the constructive contacts that have been established between us. Continuing our active dialogue will definitely contribute to the expansion of bilateral cooperation inthe name of prosperity between the two brotherly nations
Time – Person of the Year
Putin is chosen as Time’s Person of the Year, over runner-ups former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, British author J.K. Rowling, Chinese President Hu Jintao and the U.S. Commander in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus. Managing editor Richard Stengel explains the choice:
He’s not a good guy, but he’s done extraordinary things. He’s a new tsar of Russia and he’s dangerous in the sense that he doesn’t care about civil liberties; he doesn’t care about free speech; he cares about stability. But stability is what Russia needed and that’s why Russians adore him.
Putin seeks compromise
Putin is supports Ukraine’s cease-fire declaration and is now asking for both sides to reach a compromise. Putin says the compromise must guarantee the rights of the Russian-speaking residents of eastern Ukraine. They must feel they are an “integral part” of their own country. The comments were made today following a ceremony commemorating the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union on this day in 1941.
Military power use revoked
A vote by the upper parliament prevents Putin from using troops in Ukraine to deal with the crisis. Putin had requested the order be revoked on June 24. Only one lawmaker votes against revoking his power to use force, 153 vote in favor.
Calls for closer US ties
In a Fourth of July message to President Obama, Putin says he hopes for better ties with the US. According to the Kremlin’s website, Putin:
expressed a hope for the successful development of the relationship between both countries, based on equal rights and utilitarianism, despite all the difficulties and disagreements they are facing at the moment
The response from The White House from National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden:
We’ve seen the message but have no particular comment.
Dutch PM asks Putin to use his power
With almost two-thirds of the people killed in the crash of flight MH17 being Dutch, the Dutch Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, urges President Vladimir Putin to use his power to influence the rebels to allow full access to the crash site. In a press briefing he says:
I want to see results in the form of unimpeded access and rapid recovery. This is now priority number one.
Cameron urges Putin to allow access
Cameron asks Putin to intervene so that victims of the crash can be removed from the scene and returned to their countries.
Wants diplomatic solution
Branson tells CNN that he and the leaders of 15 major companies including Unilever, PayPal, and eBay, want a diplomatic solution and to avoid a new Cold War scenario:
I just think it’s extremely sad to see in my lifetime the Berlin Wall coming down, and then a number of years later, all that hope seemingly disappearing. And I have a lot of Russian friends, a lot of Ukrainian friends, a lot of business leaders from both countries. And I’ve spoken with them, and they’re equally sad. And we felt it was important to speak out to beg our politicians to — through diplomacy to resolve this particular issue. And then, as quickly as possible, to try to get back to the normality that existed between Russia and Europe and the rest of the world after the Berlin Wall came down.
On whether the entrepreneurs will seek a meeting with Putin:
The first important thing that’s happening is that the president of Ukraine is meeting with President Putin next week, and let’s hope that something positive comes out of that. If that fails, then the group of people that we’ve put together, the group of Russian business leaders would be delighted to meet up with President Putin and see whether a compromise can be reached. The group of Ukrainian business leaders that we have onboard would be delighted to sit with the Ukrainian president. And I think we could use our negotiating skills, our entrepreneurial skills to reach a compromise.
On whether Putin is open to diplomacy:
I don’t know. I think that we would be irresponsible if we didn’t give it a try. And I think that he feels that when he got reelected, the West didn’t welcome him into office, that he was somewhat ostracized by the West. And therefore, he’s going it alone somewhat. And I think that whatever caused him to feel that, it’s up to the West, I think, to make it clear that we want Russia to be — ultimately, that we want Russia to be part of Europe, we want to be able to trust each other completely. And that’s what we’ve all got to try to work towards and try to put the last year firmly behind us and try to find a positive way forward.
Wants meeting with Putin
Branson tells CNN Money that he has written an open letter to Putin and wants to meet with the president personally:
We all speak with one voice, and I must have spoken over 100 Russian businessmen, over 100 Ukrainian businessmen, and western businessmen, and every one of us are incredibly sad that the e dreams of what had happened when the Berlin Wall came down of the Russian people being able to trade merrily and go on the holiday with western peoples, with working together to sort out the bigger problems of the world, seems to be diminishing rapidly.
Intervention should be limited to sanctions:
President Putin, I think he needs to realize that Russian business people, and the people who have signed this document, you know, the biggest car manufacturer in Russia, the biggest dairy producers in Russia, the biggest supermarket chain, they are all self- made people who are very saddened and worried a about the way things are going. But the last thing that is needed is military intervention. And, you know, that should be a thing of the past. Further military intervention will result in decades, I think, of Russia being ostracized. It means that Europe won’t buy its fuel from Russia. The people of Russia will suffer, and that is not the answer.
Putin needs to regain the trust of the business community:
We need to get President Putin to feel not that Ukraine should be a part of Europe or Ukraine should be part of Russia, but that we should all be part of one world. I would be delighted to sit down with him and delighted to meet him and be delighted to see whether, you know, issues can be bridged, because they have to be bridged one day. And you know, today is better than waiting for tomorrow.
Nuclear threat
Putin tells NATO and US not to mess with Russia. He also says that Moscow doesn’t want or intend to wade into any “large-scale conflicts”.
I want to remind you that Russia is one of the most powerful nuclear nations. This is a reality, not just words. We must always be ready to repel any aggression against Russia and (potential enemies) should be aware … it is better not to come against Russia as regards a possible armed conflict.
‘Russia can take Kiev in two weeks’
Barroso questions Putin on the apparent presence of as many as 1,600 Russian troops in Ukraine at a closed-door discussion at an EU summit in Brussels, and the Russian leader responds that he could take the country’s capital in a fortnight. Details of the talk leaked by the Italian La Repubblica newspaper show that he responds:
The problem is not this, but that if I want I’ll take Kiev in two weeks
A Kremlin foreign policy advisor says the remarks are out of context, however the Kremlin does not deny that Putin has spoken of taking Kiev.
‘Russia at war with Europe’
Lithuanian president Dalia Grybauskaite says that Russia is now effectively at war with Europe:
It is the fact that Russia is in a war state against Ukraine. That means it is in a state of war against a country which would like to be closely integrated with the EU. Practically Russia is in a state of war against Europe. That means we need to help Ukraine to … defend its territory and its people and to help militarily, especially with the military materials to help Ukraine to defend itself because today Ukraine is fighting a war on behalf of all Europe.
‘Cannot appease Putin’
Cameron says at a closed-door EU summit in Brussels that the international community cannot afford to appease Putin, comparing Russia’s actions to Hitler in 1938. The Italian La Repubblica newspaper obtains details of the discussion:
We run the risk of repeating the mistakes made in Munich in ’38. We cannot know what will happen next. This time we cannot meet Putin’s demands. He has already taken Crimea and we cannot allow him to take the whole country.
Downing Street declines to confirm the remarks, but does not contest the accuracy of the report.
Ceasefire begins
Ukraine, Russia and the Kremlin-backed separatists sign a ceasefire deal. Gunfire and shelling appear to fall silent across the east of the country as the agreement takes effect. Poroshenko says he ordered his forces to halt hostilities at 6 p.m. local time (11 a.m. EDT) after the deal was signed in Minsk, Belarus capital, by the three sides and a representative of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. Separatist leaders also say they ordered their forces to hold fire. Poroshenko says the cease-fire is based on an agreement reached during a ‘long conversation’ with Putin and will be overseen by international monitors from the OSCE. The European Union is preparing additional sanctions in case it fails. The negotiators also agree on withdrawal of all heavy weaponry, the release of all prisoners and the delivery of humanitarian aid to devastated cities in eastern Ukraine.
Russia to produce own Wikipedia
Russia’s presidential library says the country has begun producing its own alternative to Wikipedia, to provide more ‘detailed and reliable’ information about the country for Russian citizens. The library says it has analyzed Wikipedia:
Analysis of this resource showed that it is not capable of providing information about the region and life of the country in a detailed or sufficient way. The creation of an alternative Wikipedia has begun.
It isn’t known if access to Wikipedia in Russia will be affected.
Caps vodka prices
0 CommentsPutin calls for his government to cap rising vodka prices amid fears that sharp price inflation will drive people to drink illegal liquor. According to a leading university study last year, 25% of Russian men die before reaching their mid-50s, and alcohol was found to be a contributing factor in some of these early deaths. Since last year, the government-regulated minimum price of half a litre (17 oz) of vodka has increased by around 30% to 220 roubles ($4.10; £2.64). Annual inflation in Russia is currently at 9.4%.
Inflation tops 10%
Russian inflation reaches more than 10% for the first time in more than five years due to sanctions and the rouble collapse, which is the biggest since 1998. Сonsumer prices increased 10.4 percent this year through Dec. 22, the Federal Statistics Service in Moscow said. Prices grew 0.9 percent in the week through that date, the most since April 2008, when the service started to provide weekly data. ING Groep economist:
Companies are saying ‘everybody is raising prices and so will I, especially when people start panic-buying not only electronics and cars but also everyday goods’
A Bank of Russia base case forecast predicts inflation to reach 11.5% next quarter, before then decelerating.
Says Blatter deserves Nobel prize
Putin praises Blatter in an interview by the Swiss broadcaster RTS:
We all know the situation developing around Mr Blatter right now. I don’t want to go into details but I don’t believe a word about him being involved in corruptiton personally. I think people like Mr Blatter or the heads of big international sporting federations, or the Olympic Games, deserve special recognition. If there is anyone who deserves the Nobel prize, it’s those people.
Sisi, Putin to meet
Sisi will meet with Putin next Wednesday in Moscow to promote closer strategic and economic ties with Russia. Issues concerning the Middle East will be also be discussed.
Wants to meet Putin over gay rights
In an interview with the BBC while in Ukraine, John says he wants to meet Putin to discuss gay rights. Discussing how Putin has said that gays target children:
Give me a break. You are President of Russia, and you go and say stupid things like that?..I would like to meet [Putin]…It’s probably pie in the sky… He may laugh behind my back when he shuts the door, and call me an absolute idiot, but at least I can think I have the conscience to say I tried.