Russia Reform Monitor: No. 1827

April 5:

According to U.S. officials, a Russian Tu-22M Backfire bomber recently simulated firing air-launched cruise missiles at an Aegis ship deployed near Japan – as part of U.S. missile defenses. A second mock attack was reportedly conducted the day after against a ground-based missile defense site. The Washington Free Beacon reports that the set-up of the exercises is eerily similar to the Pentagon-operated missile defense radar on the northern tip of Japan, designed to monitor North Korean missile launches. “Russia continues to conduct aggressive offensive missile training in the Pacific against U.S. and Allied Forces,” noted retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Tom McInerney. “We should understand that they look at ‘reset’ differently than we do . . . They look at it as regaining their previous USSR position as a superpower.” Another analyst suggested that the simulations are a “demonstration of continued Russia opposition to and hyping of their animosity toward U.S. missile defense deployments globally.” The exercises came weeks ahead of an official U.S. visit to Moscow in a continuing effort to restart stalled missile defense talks with the Kremlin.

April 7:

Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived on a state visit in Germany to a warning from German Chancellor Angela Merkel that Russia “needs an active civil society to flourish.” Reuters reports that as Russia’s European trade partner along with the Netherlands, the visit was expected to focus on trade, but protestors gathered en masse outside of the meetings, some carrying Syrian flags, while others wore devil masks or carried images of Putin dressed in a prisoner’s striped uniform. Chancellor Merkel further cautioned that Russia is “propped by its raw material deposits,” but that further trade with Germany could “help it in its aims to innovate and diversify.” Putin remained firm on his stance on the rights issues that plague his administration, but expressed confidence both in the Euro and in bilateral trade growth.

April 8:

Russian journalist Mikhail Beketov, who was known for writing scathing articles of regional officials, died of heart failure nearly five years after he was brutally beaten in an unsolved attack. Three of his fingers and one of his legs had to be amputated after the incident, leaving Beketov in a wheelchair for the remainder of his life. He became a rallying cause for the country’s opposition activists after officials barely investigated the crime, ignoring both witnesses and potentially revealing surveillance videos. According to the New York Times, Beketov wrote several provocative articles about authorities in Khimki, which led to a string of attacks starting in 2007, when someone beat his dog to death and set his car on fire. The writer warned a friend before the final attack that something might happen to him, and told her the police should look in the Khimki administration.” Officials quickly suspended the case for a lack of evidence.

President Putin announced during his German state visit that the Kremlin will restructure the 2.5 billion euro loan it granted Cyprus in 2011. “At the request of the European Commission we decided to restructure this debt.” Putin noted. “By doing this we contribute to the solution of the Cypriot problem.” He further expressed a hope that the unique bailout granted to Cypriot banks will be “an isolated case,” and that “these methods of helping out of the crisis in the troubled Eurozone will not be used anymore.” Cyprus seeks an adjustment that will reduce the debt by 10 percent, RIA Novosti reports, as the country is already 75 million euros short for its bills in April, which includes social payments and government salaries.

April 9:

Russia’s religious head, Patriarch Kirill, called feminism a “very dangerous phenomenon” which offers an illusion of freedom to women “who should focus on their families and children.” “Man turns his sight outward, he should work, make money,” Kirill said, according to the New York Times. “While a woman is always focused inwards towards her children, her home. If this exceptionally important role of a woman is destroyed everything will be destroyed as a consequence – family and, if you wish, the homeland.” The Patriarch made the comments at a meeting of the Union of Orthodox Ukrainian Women in Moscow, adding that feminism is opposed to “family values.”

April 12:

American officials released the names of eighteen Russians designated as human rights abusers, in a move likely to increase bilateral tensions. Reuters reports that sixteen of those individuals were officials connected to the death of well-known whistleblower Sergei Magnitsky. Before the list’s release, Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, warned that “the appearance of any lists will doubtless have a very negative effect on bilateral Russian-American relations,” but after, Alexei Pushkov, the head of the State Duma’s international affairs committee, called the list “minimal.” “The U.S. presidential administration decided not to take the path of aggravating a political crisis with Moscow,” he added. Several U.S. officials agreed with the summary, calling the list “timid” with “significant omissions.” Late last month, Democratic Representative James McGovern sent a list to the White House with over 230 names that he claimed could be included on the blacklist. The individuals listed will face visa bans and a freeze of any assets held within the United States.