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Russia’s Military Is a Paper Tiger in the Baltic

Details: 26 August 2015; Matthew Bodner

The Kremlin’s aggressive tactics in Ukraine have caused experts and Western military leaders to sound the alarm over the threat Russia poses toward the NATO member states in the Baltic region. But would Russia’s military have the upper hand in a Baltic conflict with the West? Journalist and military analyst Matthew Bodner breaks down the two sides’ assets and determines that Russia would face a tall task in confronting NATO.

Details

Opinions

Political Prisoners

The Curious Case of the Soviet Star Painter

Details: 27 August 2015; Alexander Podrabinek

On August 17, Moscow’s Tagansky District Court initiated proceedings on the so-called “roofers’ case”: Last year, roofer Pavel Ushivets scaled the golden pinnacle of a Stalin-era skyscraper and painted half of it blue to resemble Ukraine’s national colors, then planted a Ukrainian flag on its spire. Instead of arresting the roofer, though, police arrested four base-jumpers who happened to climb the building that same day. According to writer Alexander Podrabinek, the vandalism case initiated against the base-jumpers is ridiculous both in form and in content, and the accused are essentially being held hostage.

Details: Law

The Kremlin’s Scorn for Strasbourg

Details: 24 August 2015; Ekaterina Mishina

In July, one of the most talked-about events in Russia was the Constitutional Court’s ruling that Russia may deviate from compliance with decisions of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). However, as IMR legal expert Ekaterina Mishina notes, this decision should come as no surprise. Rather, it is the natural extension of a widely held attitude in political circles, according to which Russia can afford not to comply with judgments of the Strasbourg Court if it doesn’t like them.

Details: Media Must-Reads

Show Trials, Yakunin’s Firing, and Putin’s Bonfire of Delicacies

15–21 August 2015

Details: 21 August 2015

This week, the Economist examined the highly politicized criminal trials taking place in Russia, including those of Ukrainian pilot Nadia Savchenko and Estonian security officer Eston Kohver. Also, Leonid Bershidsky of Bloomberg View broke down the significance of Vladimir Yakunin’s dismissal from Russian Railways, while Julia Ioffe wrote in Foreign Policy about the Kremlin’s clumsy policy of destroying contraband food.

Details: Economics

The Kremlin’s Economic Gambit

Details: 20 August 2015; Ezekiel Pfeifer

Despite the conventional view that Russia’s economy will rebound when the price of oil swings upward, experts agree that what it really needs is an influx of capital investment. As IMR analyst Ezekiel Pfeifer writes, the Kremlin is attempting to stimulate investment by taking the risky step of allowing people’s wages to decline. The question is: Will the gambit work?

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