by Maia Gemmill | 13 Sep 2007 |
The Duma hasn't even confirmed Viktor Zubkov as Russia's new prime minister, and already he's raising eyebrows. Early commentary on Zubkov pegged him as a quietly competent bureaucrat who was unlikely to make waves or alter the balance of the intra-Kremlin jockeying over succession.But it's so much fun to confound the pundits: today Zubkov told reporters that a run for the presidency is not off the table. So who is this mysterious fellow?Here's...
by Maia Gemmill | 13 Sep 2007 |
I like Foreign Policy's Passport blog. I really do. But this kind of thing BUGS the living daylights out of me. They have a perfectly good post on a bizarre attempt by a Russian regional governor to increase the local birthrate. And it's illustrated with a stock photo of a rather bizarre postage stamp commemorating the "Week of the Child". At least, I'm pretty sure that's what it says. The reason I'm not totally positive?The stamp is from...
by Maia Gemmill | 12 Sep 2007 |
Update below the fold--Ivanov is not the new PM.Reuters is reporting that Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov has stepped down. No replacement has yet been named, though Vedomosti is reporting that First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov is the most likely candidate.Prime ministers may come and go, but this is big news because of the open question: who will be the next president of Russia. While I wouldn't be entirely shocked if there was...
by Rodger Payne | 10 Sep 2007 |
General Petraeus finished delivering his prepared remarks to the House Foreign Affairs and Armed Services Committees not long ago -- and I've already been interviewed about them by the local NPR station (WFPL).Basically, I concluded that his report was not surprising. Most analysts expected an optimistic assessment that would not call for a substantial reduction in American troops. The General is only talking about returning the US troop level...
by Maia Gemmill | 7 Sep 2007 |
Can you imagine if the FBI were confiscating computers in local Democratic party offices, merely three months before the Congressional elections?Selective enforcement of the rules has long been a way of controlling political opponents in post-Soviet space. Everyone breaks the rules, but only those who represent a threat to the authorities get a visit from the tax authorities, or the building inspector, or the like. Leonid Kuchma, former...
by Maia Gemmill | 6 Sep 2007 |
I find it difficult sometimes to adequately explain to Americans Vladimir Putin's popularity in Russia. We get media stories about Putin's tightening hold on media and political freedoms, and Americans automatically assume that the Russian people must resent this creeping dictatorship.Yet Putin is highly popular, with poll numbers achieved only by American presidents in the aftermath of a major crisis. His positives consistently rank in the...
by Maia Gemmill | 6 Sep 2007 |
While I was in grad school, I helped to make ends meet by tutoring high school students. Believe or not, I'm actually high-school competent in a wide variety of subjects. Unfortunately, though, a lot high school-level work follows this pattern: plug numbers into formula, write answer, move on. While this might not sound like a bad strategy, my students often accepted that whatever answer they got must be correct, by virtue of having been spit...
by Peter | 6 Sep 2007 |
With his approval ratings in the low thirties--historic lows for a sitting President--Bush is now turning to "history" to vindicate him and his decisions on Iraq. He's hoping to become another Truman, unpopular due to a war on his watch but later lauded by those looking back on his acomplishments. I don't think this is likely to happen.First, this weekend, we recieved an interesting look inside the Bush inner-circle and decision-making process....
by Peter | 5 Sep 2007 |
Seriously. Why does the cheese stand alone?I know I'm woefully behind on substantive posts-- I promise they are coming-- but this question has been vexing me for some time now. And, since I spent much of today singing along to Sesame Street kids songs with my 6 month old (and Big Bird conveniently edits the lyrics of the Farmer in the Dell from "The Cheese Stands Alone" to "The rest is up to you"), I've become critically concerned about this.In...
by Rodger Payne | 4 Sep 2007 |
Note: A full citation of the piece is below the fold.OK, so this is shameless self promotion. The September 2007 Perspectives on Politics, which arrived in my mailbox today, includes my article "Neorealists as Critical Theorists: The Purpose of Foreign Policy Debate."Editor Jim Johnson offers a brief explanation of the article in his "Introduction and Comments" piece at the front of the journal: Rodger Payne seeks to catch the neo-realists...
by Maia Gemmill | 1 Sep 2007 |
Jack Shafer at Slate draws our attention to an advertising section included in yesterday's Washington Post: Russia Beyond the Headlines. Most people I know with an interest in Russia are also fascinated by Soviet propaganda, and Shafer, I think, correctly identifies this as a particularly amusing, if less effective, example of the genre.It also provides an interesting window into the psyche of the Russian government, though. Take this piece on...
by Rodger Payne | 31 Aug 2007 |
Dan Plesch, Director of the School of Oriental and African Studies’ Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy, and international security consultant Martin Butcher have recently authored and released "Considering a war with Iran: A discussion paper on WMD in the Middle East." The pre-publication paper was embargoed until August 28 and is dated September 2007. Here is the central finding: The study concludes that the US has made military...