Russia Monitor Monthly 7/23
Content
U.S. Permanent Military Base in Poland
Comment to Warsaw Institute’s latest special report U.S. Permanent Military Base in Poland: Favorable Solution For the NATO Alliance by Krzysztof Kamiński, President of Warsaw Institute.
Russia’s SVR Improves Its Public Image
After Sergey Naryshkin, a political and official, became the director of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) in 2016, many expected that he would undertake substantial reforms and hoped that he could even liquidate the service. Since then, the service has been doing well while its head has made attempts to alter its functioning, as exemplified by the SVR’s latest information policy.
Heavily Indebted Rosneft Hopes for New Gas Opportunities
Russia’s state-run oil company Rosneft has yet again indicated that the Russian authorities should break Gazprom’s monopoly on gas pipeline exports. This may be closely linked to the recent shifts within the management board of the latter firm. Igor Sechin is, however, unlike to achieve success in this respect while his company may still receive financial aid from the Kremlin to help the heavily indebted company.
Russian Oil Sector: Price Fixing or Attack on Fuel Trade?
Fuel prices in Russia are yet again foreseen to rise, which is due to an agreement between the government and producers that is soon set to expire. Not surprisingly, the state authorities hurried to determine who actually accounted for such a state of matters.
Russia wants to divide Romanian society
Such an opinion has been voiced by David Schlaefer, a political counsellor at the U. S. Embassy in Bucharest. In an interview published on the Digi24 television channel, he observed that Russia’s actions in Romania might worsen this country’s relations with both the United States and the European Union. The Russians are widely known for spreading fake news via various media channels and using it as a political weapon.
Russian Spy Detained in Sweden
A spy scandal in Sweden. An employee of a Swedish high-tech company, who had reportedly been recruited by Russia’s intelligence service to spy for Moscow, has recently been detained in Stockholm, the Swedish Security Service reports. This is yet another case of the detainment of a Russian spy in Europe.
Allegation of High Treason For the Former Chief of the General Staff
Court of Kiev provisionally arrested for a month the former Chief of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Volodymyr Zamana. The retired general was detained on February 25 by SBU and the Prosecutor’s Office charges him of high treason. Zamana, who served as the Chief of the General Staff during the governance of Viktor Yanukovych, rejects the allegations.
Gazprom Fires Top Deputy Managers
On February 25, Russia’s gas company Gazprom issued a laconic statement announcing personnel reshuffles within the firm’s top management. The dismissal of two deputy chairmen of Gazprom’s management committee, Alexander Medvedev and Valery Golubev, puts an end to a particular period in Gazprom’s long history.
Pro-Russian Party Wins Moldova Parliamentary Vote
As expected, the pro-Russian Socialist Party took a lead in parliamentary elections in Moldova while the pro-European ACUM bloc came second in the ballot. The ruling oligarch-led Democratic Party trailed in third place.
Fighter Jet Incident in the Baltic Sea: Sweden Summons Russian Ambassador
The Russian Air Force is getting more and more aggressive not only towards NATO aircraft, but also towards neutral Sweden. On February 19, a dangerous incident occurred in international air space over the Baltic Sea – a Russian fighter jet approached a Swedish reconnaissance plane at a distance of less than 20 metres.
Gazprom Confident of Its Position in Europe
Russia’s gas giant does not fear competition and it intends to retain its market shares in Europe, company officials told investors in Hong Kong. With its recent and bragging about incomplete results achieved in the previous year, Gazprom probably aims to reassure both investors and markets after announcing that two deputy heads in charge of the firm’s strategic activities had been relieved from their obligations.
Iran Worried Over Saudi-Russian Oil Alliance
Although Russia does not fulfill its commitment to reduce oil output as indicated by Saudi Arabia, the OPEC+ organization is not yet deemed to collapse. At the same time, a renewable agreement is unlikely to transform into a fully permanent structure while Moscow’s reluctance to take such steps is triggered by its own internal calculations, and not fears of Iran, Russia’s key ally.
Referendum And Elections. Double Voting in Moldova
The victory of socialists, but without the majority allowing for independent governance. Last Sunday, residents of the Republic of Moldova with a 3.5-million population took part in parliamentary elections. At the opportunity, a referendum in which people voted for and against the decrease in the number of parliamentarians and the possibility to revoke them in case of failure to fulfil their obligations was organised.
The Fall of the Moscow Orthodox Church’s Influence in Ukraine
The atmosphere among the Ukrainian Orthodox believers shows that the process of joining the new canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church by parishes loyal to Moscow is just gaining pace. Despite provocations of pro-Russian activists and Putin’s threats, more and more Ukrainians declare loyalty to the new National Orthodox Church.
Plans of the Federalisation of Moldova
Representatives of the ACUM (Now) oppositional bloc stated that President Dodon presented a plan of the federalisation of Moldova during the conference on security which took place in Munich on February 16, 2019. The president himself announced that he presented the main objectives of the foreign policy of Moldova during the talks with partners in Munich.
New Polls, Tymoshenko in Troubles
Chances of the former PM Yulia Tymoshenko of winning the presidential elections in Ukraine are decreasing. From the beginning of the official campaign, Batkivshchyna’s candidate is having more and more troubles and she fell to the third position in polls. Two newest polls place Volodymyr Zelensky at the first position and Petro Poroshenko at the second.
Putin’s Presidential Address Full of Promises and Threats
Putin’s recent presidential address seemed similar to the one delivered a year before. In his annual speech to Russia’s Federal Assembly, Vladimir Putin paid most attention to the country’s economy and social matters, compiling an exhaustive list packed with concrete promises. This should satisfy Russian citizens who seem bored with the Kremlin’s strong rhetoric on foreign policy.
Swedbank Allegedly Involved in Money Laundering Scandal
A gigantic scandal involving the laundering of huge amounts of money mainly through the Estonian branch of Denmark’s Danske Bank is beginning to unfold. As it turns out, Swedbank, one of the largest Swedish banks, has also been involved in the money laundering procedure. Moreover, some new light has been shed on the so-called Magnitsky case.
U.S. Foothold – Russian stance towards crisis in Venezuela
Maduro is not yet fighting a losing battle against the opposition for tho reasons. First, Venezuela’s military has pledged its loyalty to the leader since the beginning of the crisis. Secondly, the government in Caracas is in the hopes for getting support from the world’s top players–with Russia at the forefront–because Moscow’s assistance is essential to back the country’s armed forces.
Report on the Permanent US Base in Poland Reached the American Congress
Special Report “U.S. Permanent Military Base in Poland: Favorable Solution For the NATO Alliance” has been delivered in several hundred copies to leading American politicians, congressmen, senators and opinion leaders. The report aims to promote Polish interests in the area of security, above all the concept of establishing a permanent US base in Poland, proposed by the Polish authorities.
Warsaw Institute
