August 10:
Russia’s Muslim community has entered the controversy surrounding the trial of several members of the punk band Pussy Riot, unexpectedly siding with the protestors. Rosbusiness Consulting reports that following a comment by President Putin suggesting that a girl “defiling” a Muslim holy site would have been dealt with even more harshly, the Council of Muftis of Russia publicly disagreed, and even voiced support for the women’s release. The council cited the sacred Sunna, in which a man guilty of defiling a mosque was seized and taken before the prophet, before being quickly forgiven and “let go in peace.” The group was joined by the Jewish community in expressing its hopes that the women would be granted leniency.
August 11:
Russian President Vladimir Putin added to his promises for modernization of the country’s military. On the eve of the 100th anniversary of Russia’s air force, Putin pledged to purchase 600 military planes and 1,000 helicopters as part of a $720 billion spending spree aimed at arming Russia’s forces with “state-of-the-art modern technology.” According to Reuters, he further promised that existing aircraft will be “modernized,” to bolster the forces still enfeebled from the drastic budget cuts that followed the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union.
August 13:
Many analysts view the trial of the members of the punk band Pussy Riot an illustration of the growing ties between the Kremlin and the Orthodox Christian Church. Patriarch Kirill, the head of the church, inspired the controversial protest by calling Vladimir Putin’s presidential reign a “miracle from God,” and late last year, reports the Washington Times, he was given an official residence in the Kremlin, a privilege not granted to the Patriarch since before the 1917 revolution. Although the Russian Constitution provides for the separation of church and state, church officials have made it clear that they seek a closer “cooperation” with the Kremlin. “Our church does not consider itself an enemy of the state,” said a leading church official. “The Western idea that the state and the church should be slight rivals and slight enemies is both bizarre and incorrect from an Orthodox point of view.” For his part, Prime Minister Medvedev denied that the Orthodox church holds sway over government policy, although he acknowledged that, “the church occupies a fitting place in the life of our society and government.”
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August 14:
The Russian Foreign Ministry quickly moved to contradict a Saudi newspaper claim that Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov believed Syrian President al-Assad was “ready to step down.” The denial is the latest in a string of recent contradicted reports involving Syria, prompting the Foreign Ministry to suggest that Syria “is becoming the subject of a propaganda war,” in which some media outlets disseminate “blatant disinformation.” Reuters reports that the ministry maintained its stance that Russia is “not propping up Assad and would accept his exit in a political transition decided by the Syrian people,” but reiterated that this transition could not be forced by international actors, such as the UN Security Council.
August 15:
The Washington Free Beacon revealed that several pro-Putin factions in the Kremlin are pushing for the resumption of cancelled sales of air defense missile systems to Iran. They argue that the S-300 missile system does not fall under the purview of the June 2010 U.N. Security Council Resolution that led to the cancellation of the 2007 contract between Tehran and Moscow. The West vehemently opposes the potential sale, arguing that the missiles could be “reconfigured and deployed as a conventional, short-range ballistic missile system that can hit both ground and seaborne targets,” and could additionally be fitted with a nuclear warhead. The renewed interest in the contract is likely the result of unfulfilled contracts with Syria, which if completed, would provide a $5.5 billion payoff for Russia.
August 16:
A federal judge is expected to hand down a verdict within a day or two in the case against the three members of the punk band Pussy Riot, who could face three years jail time on charges of hooliganism. Reuters reports that the trial has drawn international condemnation, including from the United States, who called the proceedings “political motivated.” Russia’s opposition activists agree, arguing that the entire trial originated as Putin’s ploy to strengthen ties with the outraged members of the Orthodox Christian Church. “I know for a fact that they can now jail anyone,” said prominent opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who is also under investigation for allegedly stealing from a state timber firm. President Putin recently suggested to reporters that while the women had done “nothing good,” they “should not be judged too harshly.