India-Russia: News & Analysis

[Austin]

Post-Soviet Integration is Unstoppable – Putin

MOSCOW, February 14 (RIA Novosti) – Nothing can stop or slow down the reintegration of the post-Soviet space, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday.

“We’ve heard some recent nervous and outspoken remarks regarding integration in the post-Soviet space. Let’s put them down to the emotional rhetoric of these politicians,” Putin said at a meeting of FSB (Federal Security Service) officers.

“Close integration is an intrinsic global process,” he said, adding Russia could face attempts to stop work toward integration.

“Different forms of pressure, including mechanisms of so-called ‘soft power’ may be used here,” the president said calling for closer contacts with Belarus, Kazakhstan and other integration partners.

“Any direct or indirect interference in our domestic matters, any forms of pressure on Russia, our allies and partners is intolerable,” Putin said.

Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia have since January 1, 2012, been part of a Common Economic Space (EEP), or Customs Union. The union allows free movement of capital, goods and services across the three states’ national borders. Kazakhstan's Central Asian neighbor Kyrgyzstan has applied to join.

Russia views this grouping as a precursor to a broader Eurasian Economic Union, and has even touted membership to Ukraine and Moldova, although Kiev has long harbored ambitions of moving closer to the EU.

In December 2012, then US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton criticized Russia’s post-Soviet integration initiative, in an address to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

“It’s going to be called a Customs Union, it will be called Eurasian Union and all of that. But let’s make no mistake about it,” Clinton said, branding the move as “re-Sovietization.”

Putin shortly afterwards dismissed her comments as “utter nonsense.”

Putin on Thursday also criticized the attempts of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) financed from abroad to speak on behalf of Russian society.

“No one has the monopoly or right to speak on behalf of Russian society as a whole, most of all those structures governed and financed from abroad. We have outlined a precise system for NGO work in Russia,” Putin said referring to a controversial NGO law which came into force in November.

[Austin]

I wish our intelligence also releases such yearly information

In 2012, Russia was stopped work 34 staff employees and 181 agents of foreign intelligence services

MOSCOW, February 14. / Itar-Tass /. Russian President Vladimir Putin said that "thanks to the operations of our counter-intelligence units was stopped work 34 staff employees and 181 agents of foreign intelligence services, of which 12 have been caught red-handed." The Head of State said at the Board of the FSB, adding that "counter-intelligence - the key activities of the FSB."

"The object of domestic spying is promising technologies and developments, plans for construction and development of the armed forces and the military-industrial complex, the most important political and economic information", - Putin listed.

[Klaus]

Stalin's influence lingers in Russia, 60 years after his death.

there is still a place for Stalin in President Vladimir Putin's Russia, and there was plenty of praise for him at a discussion under paintings of cherubs at a church hotel adorned with icons and a portrait of Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill.

One speaker said Stalin restored national pride, another said he laid the groundwork for a great Russian future, and a third said the nation must be grateful to Stalin for the "sacred victory" over Nazi Germany in World War Two.

Putin ... has deliberately manipulated the dictator's image to reinforce his effort to build a 'power vertical' in Russia," the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace think tank said in a report, referring to Putin's domination of Russia under a system that concentrates power in the hands of the president.

Support for Stalin has risen in Russia since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 gutted the social safety net, damaged national pride and left many Russians longing for the perceived order and stability of the Communist era.

But Lev Gudkov, director of independent Levada Center polling group, said the biggest shift occurred after Putin came to power in 2000 and "launched a comprehensive programme to ideologically reeducate society".

Something sorely needed in India with respect to its civilizational past glory and something which will be needed in TSP when it finally implodes.

Nowadays, efforts to debunk the criticism and clean up Stalin's image are a fixture of bookshop shelves, and school notebooks decorated with Stalin's photo went on sale last year - something unthinkable at that time.

In Volgograd, the city where Putin celebrated the 70th anniversary of the 1943 Battle of Stalingrad last month, local authorities now allow the city to be referred to by its old name at annual anniversary events and on five other days every year.

Stalin's image is far from pervasive, and there are limits to his rehabilitation.
Calls to change Volgograd's name back to Stalingrad seem unlikely to succeed, and a campaign to return a giant statue of Stalin to a Moscow metro station fell flat in 2010 - though former Soviet anthem lyrics praising him were put up.

In a 2009 speech, Medvedev said the millions of deaths and "maimed destinies" caused by the Soviet government could not be justified, and in 2010 he said Stalin "committed many crimes against his people".

For Putin, such words could undermine the power structure built by a longtime Soviet KGB officer who has brought many former colleagues from security and intelligence into prominent positions and used their successor agencies to quash dissent.

Quite a few pointers there for a future nationalist gov to implement in India, with respect to its true history, civilizational heritage and its distortion.

[member_19686]

[Agnimitra]

Militant Islam aligns with Russia abroad, devours its ‘soft underbelly’ at home

Following the prayer in the Moscow Cathedral Mosque, during his visit in February 2010, Hamas leader Khaled Masha’al admitted that in the Council of Muftis of Russia it felt like home.
While the statement probably pleased the Russian leaders, in reality these words should have alerted them. Whether it was Mashaal’s intention or not, this acknowledgment could be perceived as a prophecy: the dawn of Islamic fundamentalism which illuminates the future of the northern superpower.

Islam is the second largest religious denomination in Russia after the Orthodox Church. According to the official census there are about 15 million Muslims (10 percent); the Spiritual Board of Muslims mentions 20 millions.

Good synopsis of USSR's/Russia's bargain with Islamism:

Unlike in European countries, Islam was a natural component in the religious and national mosaic of Russia, but the relationship between the government and the Muslims has always been controversial.

On the one hand, Empress Catherine II patronized Islam by lifting restrictions on the construction of mosques; on the other, the ruthless conquest of the Caucasus by the Russian Empire in the mid XIX century led to virtual genocide of the natives.

This ambivalence remained under the Soviet regime as well.

Originally, communists considered the Muslims natural allies against the Tsarist regime (the same way the multiculturalists see Islam as an ally in their fight against traditional and Christian values).

Islamic places of worship were never subjected to mass destruction to such a scale as were churches and synagogues, and muftis were never repressed.

The Muslim Autonomous Republics of Bashkiria, Tataria and Turkestan had been established under the Communist regime. In October 1926, the muftis of Russia were eager to unite Muslims around the world under the banner of Communist revolution against “imperialism”. However, the subsequent Stalinist repressions and especially the deportation of Chechens and Crimean Tatars left a deep scar in the hearts of Muslims.

The Brezhnev regime, in the 70s was more lenient to the Muslims than to Christians and Jews. Muslims were allowed to publish the Koran, print lunar calendars and open mosques. A magazine — “Muslims of the Soviet East” — had emerged for sale to the general public.

The war in Afghanistan and the Islamic revolution in Iran were a turning point in the 80s.

Wahhabism, sponsored by Saudi Arabia , began to penetrate the Soviet Union. The Muslim youth was instigated by Islamic militancy, and KGB repressions only fueled the rage against the atheist regime.

Yeltsin and his entourage attempted to flirt with Islam, but without the desired effect. In August 1996 President of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev introduced Sharia law, which provisions cruel punishment for adultery and consumption of alcohol. Three years later, after the proclamation of “Islamic Emirate” in Dagestan, the second Chechen war had begun.

The North Caucasus was subdued, Kadyrov’s clan was brought to power by the Kremlin, and nonetheless, it was clear that the quiet period was only temporary. The problem wasn’t so much in terrorist attacks of separatists in Moscow and Dagestan, but in the popularity of Sharia state, “Jihad” and “Caucasian Imamate” among intellectuals and spiritual leaders in the North Caucasus. Bans and repressions only enhance the influence of Wahhabism; adherents of traditional Islam and Sufis taunt and bully.

Nowadays the waves of militant Islam have gushed far beyond the Caucasian Ridge, covering the entire European part of the country. Islamic extremism has taken deep root in the Muslim communities of two “capitals”: Moscow and St. Petersburg. In February, Russian security services arrested three hundred Islamic radicals from the “Petersburg Jamaat”. A cell of “Hizb ut-Tahrir” with immigrants from Central Asia and Azerbaijan is very active even in Siberia.

Militant Islam is rapidly infiltrating in the “soft underbelly” of Russia: the Volga region – the solar plexus of the country with such ancient Russian cities as Izhevsk, Cheboksary, Ufa, Penza, Saransk, and, of course, Kazan — the capital of Tatarstan — a major scientific and industrial center of the country. Until recently Tatarstan (or Tataria) was an integral part of Russia. The separatist sentiments were historically weak in this region, where Islam had religious and cultural character. It was inherent. Islam became the national religion of the Tatars in the 14th century, but the Tatars, like other nomadic tribes, never showed excessive religious zeal. Conquered by Ivan the Terrible in the XVI century, the Khanate of Kazan remained loyal to Russia.

The situation began to change dramatically in recent years. The pressure of nationalism combined with militant Islam caused recession of the Moderate Hanafi Islam. “Muslim Brotherhood” (“Ikhwan al-Muslimun”), which includes Hamas, is gaining power. Only after the blunt propaganda of this movement and Yusuf al-Qaradawi’s ideas to kill Russian soldiers in Chechnya in February 2003, did Russia’s Supreme Court recognize the “Muslim Brotherhood” as an illegitimate terrorist organization.

Nevertheless, that didn’t prevent Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov from “cuddling” with Hamas leaders in Moscow.

In 2012 Wahhabi terrorists murdered a moderate and tolerant imam and known theologian – Waliullah Yakupov, and tried to kill the Mufti of Tatarstan – Ildus Fayzov.

Recently, the Tatar Youth Union “Azatlyk” (Freedom) announced the year 2013, in Tatarstan, as the “Year of Batu Khan” – grandson of Genghis Khan and ruler of Golden Horde – who collected toll from the Russian cities in XIII century. The “Azatlyk” promises to hold protest rallies “in honor of burning down of Russian cities: Moscow, Ryazan, Suzdal, Vladimir, Kozelsk”. Batu Khan was a pagan who worshiped “the great blue sky”. His only “religion” was embezzlement and toll collection from the conquered population. Suddenly “Batu Khan” has become a “protector of Islam”. “Azatlyk” intends to distribute calendars, postcards and icons with the image of the founder of the Golden Horde, in order, according to its leader Nail Nabiullin, to cause “Russia and Europe shiver from the sounds of horses’ hooves and whistling arrows of Tatar warriors.”

Protest rallies under the slogan “Tatarstan isn’t Russia” and “Suitcase, Railway Station, Russia” become ordinary in Kazan. The Russian language is ousted by the Tatar one. Abdullah – the self-proclaimed “Emir of Tatarstan” – issued a statement in which he claimed responsibility for killing two members of the FSB in Moscow and the detonation of the gas pipeline in a Moscow suburb. He threatens to eliminate Putin and carry out a series of terrorist attacks at strategic sites in Russia . The local Salafi leader Ramil Yunusov and activists of “Hizb ut-Tahrir” freely preach in Tatarstan.

Moreover, radical Islam is spreading in Krasnodar and Stavropol regions between the North Caucasus and the Volga region. Last year Russia was shaken by a scandal over the demand of Muslim leaders in the Stavropol region to force Muslim schoolgirls to wear “hijabs” – veils in schools.

Radical Islam penetrates into the heart of Russia , its ancient and primordial territories.

What does the Kremlin make of this? Nothing. It would rather, like Churchill was saying, “feed a crocodile hoping it will eat him last”.

[Klaus]

^^^ It could be argued that Putin's ideological re-education RE- Stalin program could be coming just in time to tackle Wahhabism in European Russia. The million dollar question is whether the re-education program is oriented to commence a pogrom at a future date, despite "largely proven" studies of Islamism becoming violent when confronted, confined and under pressure (which IMO is largely deficient).

This also corroborates Russia's Asian strategy, they only need to invest it with more muscle vis-a-vis PRC in Siberia and the Far East.

[Aditya_V]

^^^ It could be argued that Putin's ideological re-education RE- Stalin program could be coming just in time to tackle Wahhabism in European Russia. The million dollar question is whether the re-education program is oriented to commence a pogrom at a future date, despite "largely proven" studies of Islamism becoming violent when confronted, confined and under pressure (which IMO is largely deficient).

This also corroborates Russia's Asian strategy, they only need to invest it with more muscle vis-a-vis PRC in Siberia and the Far East.

That is pure BS, Islamism becomes peaceful when confronted, confined and under pressure as compared to being appeassed.

What made Musharaf align with US against Taliban- bombing back to stone age?? it is rather the opposite. that why Islamists ask for Multi CUlti, Secularism in lands where Muslims are minority but would never ask that for say Pakistan, Iran or GCC or OIC. the punishment for Murtad , conversion away from Islam in OIC is punishable by Death.

In fact Islamism is not commented about but true is none of Muslim Majority countries have benn peaceful thanks to Islamism.

The reason why GCC countries have had historically such a low level of population was the constant conflicts apart from being a desert. Even in India population dwindled until relative peace was established in the 1900's.

[RajeshA]

Aditya_V ji,

it is basically the level of confrontation that matters here and also the intellectual and spiritual tools one uses in this confrontation. I wrote a post to further explore this dimension but decided to post it in "Bharatiya - Identity, Vision, Agenda, Proposition" Thread.

As I mentioned in the post, "Freedom of Religion" and "Christianity Tolerance for Any Abrahamism" are the shields that Islam uses including in Russia.

Without these shields, the efforts would be to target the ideologues of the Islamic movements and not just the foot-soldiers, and to free the people from the ideology. But that never happens, because the ideologues, the Mullahs enjoy in the present international system "religious immunity" and that immunity is provided by the Judeo-Christian-dominated world order and the drones, the followers are never liberated for they are considered the property of the ideologues.

Under these restrictions, Russia does not have much of a choice, as one cannot take the level of confrontation there where it needs to be to be effective.

[Klaus]

That is pure BS, Islamism becomes peaceful when confronted, confined and under pressure as compared to being appeased

I believe so too. I was referring to an article posted in one of the threads a few days ago, which alluded to the idea of a volatile Islamism under confrontation and pressure. Cannot find it now.

I have a strong suspicion about the intent of that particular article.

[arun]

Op-Ed by Vladimir Radyuhin in the Hindu on Russian weapon sales to P.R. China.

The pious Russina hope:

“When and if China succeeds in copying Russia’s new weapon platforms the Russian industry will hopefully move ahead with new technologies,”

Despite the known threat:

“We should stop selling them the rope to hang us with,”

The bottom line conclusion of the article:

Russian officials from top to bottom tend to look at India with “drowsy apathy,” while Mr. Putin’s visit to India last year was long on “meaningless protocol” and short on time and substance.

Read it all:

The dragon gets a bear hug

[member_23370]

When did Su-35 become capable of taking on Rafale? The article is a complete joke. More like a poor marketing ploy. Amur 1650 is mediocre in every way to scorpene and even RuN doesn't like it. More importantly did the Song and Yuan fail so miserably that chinese are running back to Amur?

[Austin]

Indo-Russian Trade are far below its potential and the recent Shyam Sistema deal cancelled due to 2G scandal has left bitter memories.

If the relation has to sustain then it need to have strong business relationship developed even $20 billion is penuts if they manage to achieve it by 2015

[Philip]

Cui bono?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne ... tente.html

Spying claims against top British diplomat threaten Anglo-Russian détente
As William Hague and Philip Hammond prepare to meet their Russian counterparts in London this week, Jason Lewis reveals how a very suspicious spying slur is threatening to derail the reconciliation.

Xcpts:

By Jason Lewis, Investigations Editor
09 Mar 2013

To the outside world he is the epitome of diplomatic decorum: polite, softly spoken, with razor-sharp intellect. He has friends all over eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, where he has a record of distinguished service on behalf of Britain, and is known for his keen ear for choral music and love of sailing.

Having joined the Foreign Office 30 years ago, straight out of Cambridge, he has earned a reputation for his brilliant mind and as an unfailingly safe pair of hands.

And yet to the astonishment of those who know him, Denis Keefe, the respected deputy ambassador to Russia, has for the past few months been trailed by a bizarre cloud of rumours and intrigue straight out of a Jason Bourne film.

Wherever Mr Keefe goes outside Moscow, he runs the risk of being accosted by Russian journalists and accused of being a spy.

Regional news reports froth with insinuations that he is something far more subversive than a diplomat, and has been sent by Britain to ferret out information and undermine the government of President Vladimir Putin.

British officials have tried to play down official anger at the hounding of Mr Keefe, which The Sunday Telegraph is reporting for the first time in Britain.

But the accusations, described by diplomatic sources as “an unprecedented attack on a very senior diplomat”, threaten to cast a shadow over a meeting this week in London designed to “reset” the thorny relationship between Britain and Russia.

William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, and Philip Hammond, the Defence Secretary, will meet their Russian counterparts for a “strategic dialogue” intended to look beyond a series of angry rows that have hampered cooperation between the two countries.

They include the recent decision to grant asylum in Britain to Andrei Borodin, a billionaire former Russian banker accused by Moscow of fraud, Russia’s attempts to hinder investigations into the poisoning in London of the former spy Alexander Litvinenko, and the beginning this week of the posthumous “show trial” of the late Sergei Magnitsky.

Magnitsky, a Russian lawyer who worked for a London-based hedge fund, uncovered what is thought to be the largest tax fraud ever committed in Russia, but on reporting it was himself imprisoned, and later died in custody, aged 37.

The allegations against Mr Keefe are being seen in some circles as a deliberate attempt to discredit British officials in Moscow and to undermine efforts to improve relations with Russia.

Last month, the career diplomat, who speaks six languages including fluent Russian, was confronted by a Russian journalist, who demanded: “They say you are a spy for MI6 – tell us, does James Bond exist?”

Evidently irritated, Mr Keefe, 54, replied: “I don’t think this is a serious matter or that it has anything to do with me.”

Another reporter pressed him on his alleged MI6 status: “Can you give a straightforward answer to this question? Do you confirm or deny it?” He was quoted as replying: “Please. This is not a serious question. Please …”

Mr Keefe, a father of six who lists his interests as singing, sailing, walking and learning languages, was also questioned about his links to Russian opposition figures.

One of his first diplomatic postings, on joining the Foreign Office in 1982, was to Prague. Before the 1989 Velvet Revolution, he made friends with opponents of the one-party state, including Vaclav Havel. He later returned to help the newly democratic Czech Republic prepare to join Nato and the European Union.

He was also ambassador to Georgia during the 2008 Russo-Georgian War, and several reports used that against him – accusing him of becoming involved in the dispute over the breakaway region of South Ossetia. One report said he “actively advocated Georgia’s accession to Nato and urged speedy modernisation of its army, presenting Russia as a direct threat to the former Soviet republic”.

Neither episode endeared him to hardliners in the Putin regime and the incidents appear calculated to undermine him. A Siberian television channel, NTN-4, devoted a two-and-a-half minute slot to alleging that a former spy had listed Mr Keefe “as an officer of the secret intelligence service”. It stated that “in MI6, like in our intelligence services, there is no such thing as a former officer”.

The presenter questioned whether it was wise to invite Mr Keefe — “an intelligence service officer of a foreign country” — to Akademgorodok, a university town which is the hub of Russia’s cutting edge science and nuclear research.

In December, Mr Keefe faced a similar attack on a visit to the Ural Mountains to award diplomas to Open University graduates. One report bluntly stated: “Denis Keefe can be described as an undercover spy with his diplomatic position serving as a smoke screen.”

A news website warned students, officials and teachers to be wary in case Mr Keefe tried to “recruit” them. “A person well-versed in recruiting agents like Denis Keefe, bearing in mind his serious diplomatic experience, could easily catch in his net the immature soul of a graduate or a participant in Britain’s Open University programme,” it said.

“And you don’t need a codebreaker to work out what that could lead to.”

Diplomatic sources have told The Sunday Telegraph that the continuing allegations, which appeared to stem from a discredited list of MI6 agents posted online in 2005, were “ridiculous”.

They come after painstaking efforts to rebuild Anglo-Russian relations, following the Litvinenko poisoning in London in 2006.

An inquest into his death will open on May 1, but his murder led to a series of tit-for-tat diplomatic expulsions. The then British ambassador, Anthony Brenton, was subjected to a four-month campaign of harassment, with members of a pro-Kremlin youth group interrupting his speeches, stalking him at weekends and banging fists on his diplomatic Jaguar.

In an embarrassing revelation, British agents were caught red-handed using a transmitter hidden inside a fake rock, planted on a Moscow street, so spies could pass them secrets.

At the same time, Russian police raided offices of the British Council, claiming that the body – which promotes British culture abroad – had violated Russian laws, including tax regulation.

“It is a cultural, not a political institution and we strongly reject any attempt to link it to Russia’s failure to cooperate with our efforts to bring the murderer of Alexander Litvinenko to justice,” said a Foreign Office spokesman at the time.

Leading British companies, including BP, faced problems operating in Russia, which had a negative effect on trade for both countries. More than 600 UK companies are active in Russia and Russian firms account for about a quarter of foreign share flotations on the London Stock Exchange.

Two years ago, David Cameron signed a series of trade deals and a symbolic memorandum on cooperation, and this week’s meeting in London was seen as an important “incremental step” towards restoring relations with the Russians.

But the timing of the attacks on Mr Keefe, coupled with continuing pressure to extradite the main suspects in the murder of Mr Litvinenko, a British citizen, provide an uncomfortable backdrop. On Saturday night Whitehall sources insisted that difficult issues, including the murder, would “not be left outside the room” at this week’s meeting.

Nataliya Magnitskaya, mother of Sergei Magnitsky, grieves over her son 's body

But MI6 was again accused last week of being at the centre of another anti-Russian conspiracy – this time in connection with Monday’s opening of the trial of Magnitsky.

He is charged with defrauding the Russian state, along with the British-based millionaire businessman Bill Browder, the head of Hermitage Capital Management, which employed Magnitsky. Mr Browder has declined to go to Moscow for the trial.

A widely viewed television documentary in Russia last week accused the two men of being part of an MI6 conspiracy to undermine the Russian government.

An investment fund auditor, Magnitsky said he had uncovered a £150 million tax fraud involving Russian government officials, but was then arrested himself on accusations of fraud.

He died in prison in 2009, having been denied visits from his family, forced into increasingly squalid cells, and ultimately contracting pancreatitis. Despite repeated requests, he was refused medical assistance and died, having been put in a straitjacket and showing signs of beatings. The case has become a rallying call for critics of Mr Putin’s regime, who accuse the state of a campaign of intimidation against political opponents.

German Gorbuntsov was gunned down, Alexander Litvinenko was poisoned, Andrei Borodin was granted asylum

The meeting equally comes against the background of a “lack of will” by the Russian authorities to help solve the attempted murder of the Russian banker German Gorbuntsov, who was shot six times outside his flat near Canary Wharf in March last year.

Mr Gorbuntsov claimed that the attempt on his life was linked to people close to Mr Putin, and his decision to help the police investigate the attempted murder of his business partner in Moscow in 2009.

Initially, Russian police offered to cooperate, but Scotland Yard later said it was having trouble getting permission to send investigators to Moscow.

A senior Brtitish source said: “The Russians do not understand that our officials and judiciary take independent decisions, that our media asks tough questions and that the British Government insists that British citizens’ rights and lives should be protected.

“It is a major cultural difference. It continues to make our relationship with Russia tricky.”

[Austin]

Russian Policy on India and South Asia
Petr Topychkanov

South Asian countries1 are given a prominent role in several Russian doctrines and strategies. The 2008 Russian Foreign Policy Concept, which outlines Russian foreign policy goals and objectives, dwells at some length on India and other countries in the region. It sets out several objectives with regard to India on bilateral, trilateral and multilateral levels:

“Russia pursues a closer strategic partnership with India and aims to strengthen cooperation on pressing international issues; its goal is to foster mutually beneficial bilateral ties in all areas, with a focus on trade and economic cooperation.”

“Russia shares China’s and India’s interest in establishing effective foreign-policy and economic cooperation in the trilateral Russia-India-China format.”

Since Russia “regards improving the quality of international governance and creating a self-regulating international system as an important priority”, it intends to “step up cooperation in such formats as the G8... The Big Three (Russia, India, China) and BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China)”.

Russia’s strategies in South Asia and the nearby regions are also outlined in the Russian Naval Doctrine Up To 2020 and the Russian National Security Strategy Up To 2020. The 2001 Naval Doctrine states the following long-term Russian goals in the Indian Ocean:

“Strengthening the Russian shipping and fishing industries, and undertaking joint efforts with other countries to protect shipping from piracy”.

“Pursuing a deliberate strategy of turning the Indian Ocean into a zone of peace, stability and good-neighborly relations; ensuring periodic Russian naval presence in the Indian Ocean”. 2

The National Security Strategy predicts that conflicts in several South Asian countries will have a negative impact on international security in the medium time frame.3

The Russian strategy in South Asia is further fleshed out in President Putin’s keynote article “Russia and the Changing World”. The article says that Russia is an “inalienable and integral part of Greater Europe”, which also aims to capitalize on economic growth in Asia Pacific, especially in China and India. It dwells at some length on China — but devotes only two sentences to India, saying that the country is Russia’s privileged strategic partner, and that Russian-Indian relations have a major impact on the formation of a poly-centric world.4

On the whole, the following conclusions can be made about South Asia’s role in Russian foreign-policy strategy based on the Russian political declarations:

For the next decade at the very least, the region will be a source of threats to Russian security such as political instability, international conflicts, terrorism and drug trafficking.

Russia intends to respond to these threats, while also developing closer bilateral relations with South Asian countries, and playing a more prominent role in various international political formats.

South Asia is seen as a region where integration processes are very important for Russia and for the Russian economy (with a recognition that India is the main engine of economic growth in the region).

Russia has clear priorities in South Asia. India is seen as a privileged strategic partner; Afghanistan as a close neighbor; Pakistan as a leading regional power, roughly on a par with Turkey, Egypt, Algeria, Iran or Saudi Arabia as far as Russian foreign policy is concerned.

Preparations for countering regional security threats by military instruments are being made in the following three areas:

Russia intends to achieve an adequate presence for its armed forces in the southern theater, which is part of the remit of the new South Operational-Strategic Command, established in 2010.

The Russian naval forces intend to establish a permanent presence in the Indian Ocean — probably using ships and submarines of the Black Sea Fleet, which became part of the South Operational-Strategic Command in 2010.5

The 2010 Russian Military Doctrine states that Moscow intends to provide “troops for the CSTO Collective Rapid Response Forces in order to ensure rapid response to military threats facing the CSTO member states and to achieve other objectives set out by the CSTO Collective Security Council, to be used in accordance with the procedures outlined in the Agreement on Rapid Deployment, Use and Comprehensive Support of the Collective Rapid Response Forces of the Central Asian Collective Security Region”. 6

This has been a brief summary of Russia’s stated policy goals in South Asia. Let us now look at whether these stated goals match policies on the ground, using Russian-Indian relations as a case study.

India: Russia’s privileged strategic partner

The were several articles focusing on Russian-Indian relations ahead of President Putin’s visit to New Delhi on December 24, 2012. One piece, with an ominous headline “Relations with Delhi Souring”, quotes T.L Shaumyan, head of the Indian Studies Center and the Oriental Institute in Moscow, as saying that “the current situation in Russian-Indian relations is quite dramatic; it is very different from what we have got used to seeing over the past decades”.7 Similar sentiment has been voiced by Indian experts. N. Unnikrishnan, Vice President of the Observer Research Foundation, says that "superficially, it appeared that bilateral ties were beset by several problems that defied a satisfactory resolution".8 M.K Bhadrakumar, the former Indian ambassador to Turkey and Uzbekistan, calls for urgent measures "to arrest and reverse the free fall of the Indian-Russian relationship".9

Such assessments appear overly pessimistic — although they do reflect serous problems the Russian-Indian relationship is currently facing. These problems affect the strategic partnership between the two countries, but they do not undermine its foundations, i.e. mutual trust, a spirit of equality, and a consensus between politicians in Moscow and New Delhi about the inadmissibility of any damage to bilateral relations. President Putin is determined to preserve and take forward Russia’s strategic partnership with India — witness, for example, the headline of his article in the Hindu newspaper: "For Russia, Deepening Friendship with India is a Top Foreign Policy Priority".10 It has to be recognized, however, that the article skirts the existing problems between the two countries, and does not offer any solutions.

Most of the areas of Russian-Indian cooperation — including military-technical cooperation and energy — are dominated by government agencies and state-owned companies. The BrahMos cruise missile and the Kudankulam nuclear power plant are just two of the numerous examples. In areas where the government’s presence is less obvious or totally absent, examples of cooperation are few and far between. The most prominent of them was MTS India, which provided mobile communications services in India until 2012, when the country’s Supreme Court annulled 122 licenses over irregularities during the licensing process. Even though MTS India had not done anything illegal, its business in India has suffered serious damage.11

There are many pieces of evidence pointing to a serious imbalance between government-led and private sector cooperation between Russia and India. Despite official proclamations of “strategic partnership” by Moscow and New Delhi, Russia accounted for a measly 0.86 per cent of India’s foreign trade in 2011. According to the Indian Ministry of Trade statistics, in April-November 2012 Russia ranked 27th on imports from India, and 35th on exports — well behind countries such as China, the United States, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Germany, and others.12 Bilateral trade between Russia and India is only just approaching 10 bn dollars — a modest target the two countries hoped to reach back in 2010. According to Russia’s Federal Customs Service, trade with India stood at 8.9 bn dollars in 2011, and 8.7 bn in January-October 2012;13 the optimistic projection for 2015 is 20 bn dollars.14

In March 2012 Russian defense contractors had 10.8 bn dollars worth of Indian orders; the figure was announced by V.K. Dzirkaln, deputy head of the Russian Federal Service for Military and Technical Cooperation.15 Additional contracts were signed during President Putin’s Indian trip in late 2012, including a 1.3 bn dollar order for 71 Mi-17V-5 helicopters, and a 1.6 bn dollar order for 42 Su-30MKI aircraft assembly kits.16

The imbalance between government-led and private-sector cooperation projects suggests that the existing understanding of “strategic partnership” is largely limited to the arms trade and energy projects (especially nuclear power). The importance of these areas should not be underestimated. But by focusing on them to the exclusion of all else, the Russian and Indian governments make their partnership vulnerable to unpredictable ups and downs.

It is obvious, for example, that a possible downturn in arms trade and defense industry cooperation can have a major adverse impact on all other areas of cooperation. In 2011 Russia crashed out of the bidding for an Indian contract for 126 medium multirole jets; its MiG-35 was rejected at the very first round of the tender. Shortly afterwards Moscow cancelled two rounds of joint Russian-Indian military exercises: a naval exercise in April and ground maneuvers in June. Many experts and journalists immediately jumped to the erroneous conclusion that the cancellation was linked to the Indian tender decision. As a result, Russia’s fairly predictable failure to win the Indian Air Force contract, and government officials’ failure to explain in a timely manner the true reasons for the cancellation of joint exercises had led the media to wrong conclusions about the state of the Russian-Indian relationship.

Conclusion

Political relations between Russia and India remain constructive; there is a climate of trust and a spirit of equal partnership. But trade relations — including arms trade and defense industry cooperation — are facing problems which create the impression of a crisis in the Russian-Indian relationship.

To resolve these problems, to prevent them from reappearing in the future, and to preserve the climate of trust and good will, the following recommendations should be taken into account:

The Russian government should always keep a close eye on Russian policies in South Asia.

It should carefully select candidates for missions to South Asian countries; Russian representatives should not depend on the interests of individual companies, and they must have a direct line to the top Russian leadership.

Russia should transition from ad-hoc policies to a comprehensive and overarching strategy in South Asia; that strategy should be clearly communicated to all the government agencies, companies and other interested parties.

Russia should inform the South Asian audience about its positions, plans and approaches in a timely manner.

There should be ongoing informal or semi-formal dialogue between experts and politicians in Russia and South Asian countries.

1. Russia traditionally categorizes Afghanistan as a Middle Eastern country; for example, Afghan studies are the domain of Russia’s Oriental institutes, such as the Middle East History department of the Institute of Asian and African Countries, or the Middle Eastern Studies Center at the Oriental Institute. But according to the UN classification, Afghanistan is part of South Asia (Composition of macro geographical (continental) regions, geographical sub-regions, and selected economic and other groupings // Millennium Development Goals Indicators (http://millenniumindicators.un.org/unsd ... 9regin.htm). The Russian Foreign Ministry shares the UN approach; the remit of the ministry’s Second Asia Department includes Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

2. Russian Naval Doctrine Until 2020, July 27, 2011 // Russian Foreign Ministry (http://www.mid.ru/bdomp/ns-osndoc.nsf/e ... enDocument).

3. Russian National Security Strategy Until 2020, May 13, 2009 // Russian President (http://www.kremlin.ru/ref_notes/424).

4. Putin V.V. Russia and the Changing World. February 27, 2012 // Moscovskie Novosti (mn.ru/politics/20120227/312306749.html).

5. Boltenkov D.E. Reform of the Russian Navy // Boltenkov D.E., Gayday A.M., Karnaukhov A.A., Lavrov A.V., Tseluyko V.A. Russia’s New Army // Edited by M.S. Barabanov. Moscow: Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, 2010. P. 87.

6. Russian Military Doctrine, February 5, 2010 // Russian President (http://news.kremlin.ru/ref_notes/461).

7. Gabuyev A., Strokan S. Relations with Delhi Souring // Vlast. December 24, 2012. No 51 (1005).

8. Unnikrishnan N. India, Russia Cannot Give Up on Each Other, Dec. 28, 2012 // Observer Research Foundation (http://www.observerindia.com/cms/sites/ ... maid=46155).

9. Bhadrakumar M.K. Wanted: an Ambassador to Russia, Dec. 25, 2012 // Russia & India Report (http://indrus.in/articles/2012/12/25/wa ... 21271.html).

10. Putin V. For Russia, Deepening Friendship with India is a Top Foreign Policy Priority // the Hindu. Dec. 24, 2012.

11. Part of the blame lies with executives of AFK Sistema, the Russian parent of MTS India. They have threatened to pull out of India and warned of consequences in other areas of bilateral relations (Aulakh G. Sistema Threatens to Exit India if Trai’s Proposal to Auction is Accepted // the Economic Times. May 18, 2012; Russia’s Sistema Says India Straining Ties before Putin Trip // Reuters. Dec. 10, 2012).

12. System on Foreign Trade Performance Analysis, Jan. 1, 2013 // Department of Commerce (http://commerce.nic.in/ftpa/cntq.asp).

13. The Far-Abroad Countries: January-October 2012, December 11, 2012 // Federal Customs Service (http://www.customs.ru/attachments/artic ... TSA_05.xls).

14. Putin V. Op. cit.

15. India accounts for almost a third of Russian defense export orders // RIA Novosti, March 30, 2012 (http://ria.ru/defense_safety/20120330/609769755.html).

16. Results of Vladimir Putin’s visit to India on December 24, 2012 // Russian Embassy in India (http://www.rusembassy.in/index.php?opti ... 46&lang=ru).

[Austin]

Putin Says BRICS Should Focus on Key World Issues

“We propose our partners to transform BRICS from a dialogue forum, which coordinates positions on a limited number of issues into a full-fledged mechanism of strategic cooperation,” Putin said ahead of the organization’s summit in Durban, on March 26-27.

“The mechanism that will enable to seek jointly solutions for key issues in the world politics,” Putin said.

He said a joint declaration is being drafted for the summit that will touch upon the international key issues, such as the ongoing conflict in Syria as well as problems in Afghanistan, Iran and the Middle East.

“We are not viewing BRICS as a geopolitical competitor to the western countries and their organizations and on the contrary we are open to discussions with all interested parties within the frames of the multipolar peace model,” the Russian president said.

[Austin]

Nothing strategic but a positive news

Rosstat: In 2012, in Russia, the number of poor people fell by 2.2 million (-12%)

The number of people with incomes below the poverty line in 2012 sokratilas L to 2.2 million in annual terms (- 12.2%) to 15.8 million people, according to Rosstat.

By the end of 2012 the number of poor people was 11.2% of the total population, by the end of 2011 such individuals was 12.7%

[Philip]

Controversial Russian oligarch,Boris Berezovsky has been found dead in his home in London.BB,who was a key figure in the Yeltsin regime,fell out with Vladimir Putin whom he supported earlier,as Putin turned out to be no puppet and a man who went after the oligarchs who had looted Russia.He became embroiled in anti-Putin activities from his self-imposed exile in London,lost a famous case against fellow Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich,the Chelsea football club owner,and was a spent force before his death.After Putin was elected Russian president,the gang of oligarchs who had prospered immensely under the disgraced Yeltsin regime had to either hand over their loot or flee to the west ,from where many of them have openly tried to topple Putin.


Boris Berezovsky found dead

Speculation that Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky may have taken his own life after losing much of his personal fortune

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/ma ... ead-london

Mark Townsend and Simon Goodley
guardian.co.uk, Saturday 23 March 2013 18.01 GMT

(FILES) In this photo taken on August 31
Boris Berezovsky has died in Britain at the age of 67. The news emerged on a Facebook post that appeared to have been made by his son-in-law. Photograph: Andrew Cowie/Getty

The Russian oligarch and fierce Kremlin critic Boris Berezovsky has been confirmed dead, prompting speculation that he may have taken his life after losing vast sums from his personal fortune.

The news emerged on a Facebook post that appeared to have been made by his son-in-law Egor Schuppe.

According to the post, Berezovsky was recently depressed and had failed to keep in touch with friends, often choosing to stay at home rather than socialise.

Meanwhile, Aleksandr Dobrovinksy, head of Moscow-based The Alexander Dobrovinsky & Partners law firm, appeared to confirm that the 67-year-old former billionaire had killed himself.

A statement on the lawyer's social network page said: "Just got a call from London. Boris Berezovsky committed suicide. He was a difficult man. A move of disparity? Impossible to live poor? A strike of blows? I am afraid no one will get to know now."

Later, Damian Kudriavtsev, the former chief executive of Kommersant Publishing House was reported to have said that the businessman's death occurred at 11:00am in London.

On his twitter account, Kudriavtsev was reported to have claimed that there were no signs of a violent death.

His death, however, has not been officially confirmed and no official details disclosed.

The news came seven months after Berezovsky lost a $5.6-billion court battle with rival oligarch and Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich.

Berezovsky had been demanding than £3bn damages – relating to deals done between the pair in Russia. But instead he agreed to pay £35m towards Abramovich's legal costs in the wake of a damning ruling by Judge Mrs Justice Gloster.

The case also left his reputation in tatters, with the Gloster describing Berezovsky as an "inherently unreliable witness," who was "deliberately dishonest" and viewed truth as a "transitory, flexible concept" during the highly publicised dispute over the ownership of the profitable oil company Sibneft.

The judge was given no details of Berezovsky's legal bill, but the Lawyer magazine said the case is thought to have generated total fees of over £100m.

His financial difficulties were recently exacerbated after his former mistress Elena Gorbunova, 43, claimed Berezovsky owed her $8 million in compensation over the sale of their $40 million residence in Surrey.

Details from the second High Court Battle in January heard how his former partner of 20 years won a freezing order, reported to be $200m, on his assets after they split last year over fears he owed her cash and was in dire financial straits.

The asset freeze was thought to include two luxury properties Berezovsky was allegedly trying to sell in France which, she maintained, were promised to her.

Evidence that the businessman was in serious financial difficulties surfaced with recent reports that the exiled oligarch was attempting to auction off an Andy Warhol limited edition portrait of Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin in the hope of paying off creditors and legal bills.

The 1987 portrait by the Pop Art pioneer has been estimated by Christie's to be worth between $45,000 and $75,000, and is reportedly in excellent condition

Berezovsky left Russia in the late 1990s over a money laundering scandal with Aeroflot airlines and has been the subject of an extradition by Russia while appearing on its most wanted list since 2001 on charges of fraud, money-laundering and attempted violent power takeover.

A Russian court sentenced Berezovsky in absentia for embezzling $2 billion from two major state companies, as well as for fraud and money-laundering.

Moscow has repeatedly requested his extradition although British authorities have not complied.

In 2007 Berezovsky said he had been told to leave England by British police for his own safety after the British security services claimed they had evidence of an assassination plot against him.

[Austin]

In 2007 Berezovsky said he had been told to leave England by British police for his own safety after the British security services claimed they had evidence of an assassination plot against him.

Why would british police say that when they grant asylum to any one perceived as being anti-Putin . Infact any hard intelligence of assasination attempt has it own political millage in the west.

Yeltsin caused most harm to Russian National interest during the 90's which lead to the 98 Rouble Melting and that was his nemesis some thing that left a hard impact on the memory of Russian people even today , where they prefer stability over economic liberisation.

Yeltsin would always be remembered as one of the key players who could break SU but could never build Russia.

[SaiK]

Wonder if we can get our oil via Russia-China pipeline.. perhaps linking it somewhere in the median, if technology permits through the mountains..

[Austin]

I doubt but we are building LNG Terminals and have our stakes in Sakhlin project , majorly importing Gas.

Since China shares border with Russia it is cheaper in long run to build a pipeline and let the oil/gas flow , then to transport it via Sea or build an LNG Terminal.

Russia and Europe do have pipe lines that pass under sea like Nord and South Stream that gives Gas to Europe but the distance is not that greater.

Our best bet for cheap Gas was Pipeline via Iran but under US pressure that has been dropped , Now pakistan is being brave to get that pipeline working for them

[Philip]

Startling news about the Berezovsky death.He was depressed ,missed Russia and had written to Putin wanting to come back,saying he would not dabble in politics,etc.This would be ahuge blow to wetsern/British intel agencies,as they used him for many anti-Puitin operations and he would blow the lid off them.His death could yet be an assassination...but by the west.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/ma ... -all-clear
Boris Berezovsky death: house given all-clear by hazard police
Radiation experts investigating death of Russian oligarch have given his Ascot mansion the all-clear

Ian Cobain, Mark Townsend, Simon Goodley, Howard Amos and Miriam Elder
guardian.co.uk, Sunday 24 March 2013 11.33 GMT

Boris Berezovsky
Police and press near Boris Berezovsky's home in Ascot, Berkshire: the Russian oligarch was found dead on Saturday. Photograph: Chris Ison/PA

Radiation experts investigating the death of the Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky have given his mansion the all-clear.

The businessman was found dead at his Berkshire home on Saturday by a bodyguard, and specialist officers in chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear substances were examining the property.

Thames Valley police said they were continuing to investigate the death of the 67-year-old.

The circumstances of his death were unclear, though there were unconfirmed claims that the former power-broker of Russian politics had killed himself at the property in Ascot.

In an interview with Forbes Russia magazine on the eve of his death, Berezovsky said he had lost "meaning" from his life and wanted to return to Russia. He said he had "underestimated how important" Russia was to him, and he felt uncomfortable as an immigrant in Britain.

Berezovsky is believed to have written to the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, recently to float the idea of going back to his homeland. If he did, he said, he had no interest in engaging in politics and would focus on science.

His death comes only months after he lost a high-profile and personally disastrous court case against his fellow Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich. He had accused the Chelsea football club owner of blackmail, breach of trust and breach of contract in relation to a Russian oil company.

After the claims were dismissed, he was ordered by the high court to pay £35m of Abramovich's legal costs. His financial difficulties were exacerbated after his former mistress, Elena Gorbunova, 43, claimed Berezovsky owed her £5m in compensation over the sale of their £25m residence in Surrey.

Berezovsky is said by friends to have become deeply depressed last year, not just because he lost to Abramovich, but because the damning judgment at the end of the case had so badly damaged his reputation.

The businessman thought highly of the British legal system – explaining in an interview with the Guardian six years ago that it had been one of the reasons he settled in the UK – and is said to have been distraught that the judge, Mrs Justice Gloster, described him as "dishonest", "unreliable" and "deluded".

One close friend said Berezovsky had taken antidepressants last year and had checked into the Priory clinic for a brief period about four months ago while being treated for depression, adding: "He was very, very low. He talked about suicide. He would say to me: 'It's all over, it's all finished, there's no point in anything – the best thing that could happen to me is that I have a heart attack.'

"But I still don't believe he had the courage to take his own life – he loved life too much."

Following the loss of his fortune, Berezovsky was said to have been concerned about his ability to support his children. He had six children by three women: his two ex-wives and Gorbunova. While two of his children are in their 40s, two are in their 20s and his youngest are aged 12 and 10. The businessmen had been mired in a series of legal disputes, and is said to have been worn down by his long battles with the Russian state, during which there were reports that he had faced a number of assassination plots.

Berezovsky, a Kremlin insider in the days of Boris Yeltsin, left Russia in 2000 after a quarrel with Vladimir Putin and has been the subject of an extradition order by Russia. He had appeared on Moscow's most wanted list since 2001 on charges of fraud, money-laundering and attempted interference in the Russian political process. A Russian court sentenced Berezovsky in absentia for embezzling $2bn from two major state companies. Moscow repeatedly requested his extradition, but British authorities did not comply.

He had forged close contacts with a number of influential British figures around the time of the 1996 Russian election, in which Yeltsin defeated a communist challenger, and was permitted to settle in the UK. In time, he changed his name to Platon Elenin, Platon being the name of a character in a Russian film based loosely upon his life. He was subsequently given a British passport in this name.

In 2007, Berezovsky said he had been told to leave by British police for his own safety after the British security services claimed they had evidence of an assassination plot against him.

In the meantime, he led a lavish lifestyle, with properties in London, the home counties and the south of France, a private plane and a 1927 Rolls-Royce.

All that was wiped out by the disastrous defeat in the Abramovich case. Last week, he was reported to have been selling a £50,000 Andy Warhol portrait of Lenin.

One Russian lawyer, Alexander Dobrovinsky, said Berezovsky "was in a dreadful, horrendous state; covered in debt, almost broke".

According to Putin's official spokesman, Berezovsky wrote a personal letter to the Russian president two months ago, asking for forgiveness. "Boris Berezovsky passed a letter personally written by him. He admitted that he made lots of mistakes and asked Vladimir Putin to forgive him," said Dmitry Peskov. "He asked Putin for a chance to come back to Russia."

Peskov said nothing about Putin's reaction to Berezovsky's letter, adding: "I can say that in any case information about somebody's death – whoever the person was – cannot bring positive emotions." In the UK, however, friends of Berezovsky cast doubt on this claim.

In Russia, Berezovsky's death was greeted with surprise, with former associates and observers offering opinions on his legacy and the possible causes of his unexpected demise.

The opposition politician Boris Nemtsov, who was a rival of Berezovsky in the late 1990s and knew him well, said: "His life at the end was terrible … he lost money, he lost to Abramovich and he lost his wife … he not only suffered financially but also personally.

"His minuses for the country were more than his pluses, but he wasn't too much of a devil – although he often wanted to look like a devil."

The prominent opposition activist Sergei Parkhomenko, talking to the liberal radio station Ekho Moskvy about Berezovsky's differences with Putin, said: "We were talking once and we turned to the strange topic of health and illness. He told me: 'My health is yet another weapon. Who dies first, loses. And I never lose.'"

Parkhomenko added: "He didn't seem like a potential suicide."

Mark Feigin, a lawyer, who worked as a civil servant in the 1990s and met Berezovsky several times, said: "He was not a little person in politics and had unbelievable energy … things you couldn't do, Berezovsky could do.

"Over the last few months he had been experiencing a full exhaustion of his internal reserves. Maybe this caught up with him."

Andrei Sidelnikov, a Russian emigrant, told gazeta.ru he had known Berezovsky for 11 years. He said: "Such a person could never commit suicide. He was an exceptionally joyous person and, despite his various reverses in life, always remained as such. My personal opinion is that his death has either natural causes, or [is the work of] the Russian secret service. Everybody knows that Boris was Putin's enemy number one."

RIA Novosti, a state-run news agency, cited a source close to Berezovsky, saying he had died of a heart attack, and had recently undergone treatment for health problems in Israel.

[Philip]

Just as suspected.There was a mysterious "scarf" close to the body.Though the local bobbies have ruled out "foul play",the fact that Berezovsky was planning to return to Russia after writing to pres.Putin and pledging good behaviour,was a grave threat to western intel agencies who had used the oligarch for years in anti-Putin operations.Where has his estimated "$3 billion" fortune gone ? He owed Abramovich only 40+ million in his failed court case.Much appears to have been used up in failed attempts to oust Pres.Putin and topple his regime.

Had Boris B returned,he would've exposed a whole world of western intel operations against Russia that would've been an intelligence and diplomatic catastrophe.Furthermore,the real truth of the Litvinenko assassination using polonium would've been exposed-as the same tactic is suspected of finishing off Yasser Arafat.The "Lit-hit" was meant to disgrace pres.Putin and the Russian govt. in an attempt to show that it was no better than the dreaded KGB. Boris B was too much a man who loved life and even in his depressed state,close friends refuse to believe that he committed suicide.He was a spent force and therefore posed no danger to the Russian govt. at all,but if he returned to Russia,would be a grave embarrassment to the west,with the potential of opening a pandora's box of western dirty tricks in the shadowy world of espionage.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/ma ... led-police
No evidence Boris Berezovsky was killed, say police

Friends express scepticism about apparent suicide as reports emerge that Russian was found with scarf next to his body.

Robert Booth and Luke Harding
The Guardian, Monday 25 March 2013

Boris Berezovsky
Boris Berezovsky was found dead at a mansion in Sunningdale, Berkshire. Police tests for radioactive material found nothing. Photograph: Andrew Cowie/AFP/Getty

Detectives investigating the death of exiled Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky have said there is no evidence of any outside involvement after he was found dead at his Berkshire mansion, reportedly with a scarf next to his body.

Berezovsky was discovered by a member of his staff who had not seen his boss for 17 hours until he forced open a bathroom door which was locked from the inside to find the 67-year-old lying dead on the floor.

Thames Valley police said officers were now "building a picture of the last days of Mr Berezovsky's life, speaking to close friends and family to gain a better understanding of his state of mind". Berezovsky had been suffering from depression for several months after a shattering high court defeat last year to his former business partner, Roman Abramovich, and amid mounting debts.

Berezovsky's former wife, Galina, who owns the house and had allowed him to live there, arrived while a paramedic was on the scene and has told friends that a scarf was found next to his body. Nikolai Glushkov, one of Berezovsky's oldest friends, spoke to her afterwards and said last night: "Boris was strangled. Either he did it himself or with the help of someone. [But] I don't believe it was suicide. This was not just a normal death."

Glushkov, a former deputy director of Aeroflot, who like Berezovsky fled from Russia to Britain, said Galina emerged from the scene believing Berezovsky may have been murdered. Other friends were also sceptical about suicide.

DCI Kevin Brown, of Thames Valley, police said: "It would be wrong to speculate on the cause of death until the postmortem has been carried out. We do not have any evidence at this stage to suggest third-party involvement."

He added: "We are at the early stages of the investigation and we are retaining an open mind as we progress."

The staff member who discovered the body and called the emergency services is understood to have been the only other person in the house at the time.

Fears that Berezovsky was poisoned were raised late on Saturday when police officers trained in handling chemical, biological and radioactive material were called in. Lanes around the gated lakeside property were sealed off to vehicles and pedestrians after a personal electronic dosimeter, a device worn by the paramedic that typically picks up abnormal levels of radiation, was triggered. After specialists gave the property the all-clear on Sunday morning, scene-of-crime officers went in to continue the investigation around Berezovsky's body, which remained in situ. A Home Office pathologist is expected to carry out a postmortem early this week. Berezovsky had reportedly also suffered from heart problems.

Berezovsky's prominence as a critic of Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, and his repeatedly expressed fear of assassination attempts fuelled speculation that he may have been targeted.

His was the third suspicious death in the past five years to befall a businessman from the former USSR in the affluent crescent of suburbia just beyond the M25 in Surrey and Berkshire. Less than 10 miles from the scene of Berezovsky's death, Russian supergrass Alexander Perepilichnyy died while jogging last year – his death remains unexplained – while 15 miles away, at Downside Manor near Leatherhead, Berezovsky's former business partner Badri Patarkatsishvili died suddenly in 2008, sparking fevered speculation. A pathologist concluded he died of heart disease.

Two weeks ago Berezovsky met his lawyers in London to prepare for his testimony at the inquest into the death in London by radiation poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko. An associate at the meeting described him as seeming "quite low" and "not as ebulliant and chipper as usual".

Litvinenko's widow, Marina, said she was too upset to comment on Berezovsky's death. Berezovsky had supported Litvinenko after he fled to Britain. He had accused Putin of orchestrating Litvinenko's murder by polonium in 2006, allegedly carried out by two former KGB agents.

Berezovsky had been suffering from depression after his legal defeat last year by Abramovich, which left him facing legal bills estimated at £100m. Lord Bell, a PR adviser and friend who saw him for lunch in London two weeks ago and spoke to him again by phone more recently, said Berezovsky was "very depressed and very low" after the judge in his case against the Chelsea football club owner ruled he was "dishonest" and "deluded".

"He was very shocked by the decision in the Abramovich case," added Andrew Stephenson, a lawyer who has represented him for the past 20 years. "To have an English judge say 'I don't believe you' really destroyed his confidence and the platform he had [to campaign against Putin]."

Bell said he didn't think it likely Berezovsky would kill himself and said his friend's heart problems would be the most likely cause. "I don't think there's foul play," he said. "I can't see any reason why they [Moscow] would bother. They had managed to destroy him and they would have preferred to see him in misery and they will be rather upset he has escaped it."

In the months after the Abramovich ruling, Berezovsky holed up in his mansion with his sole remaining bodyguard, having laid off the rest to save money. He often refused to take phone calls and was admitted to the Priory for two days of treatment, friends said. He also spent some time in Israel, where he kept a yacht.

More recently he had started to emerge from his shell, although he remained preoccupied by how to meet debts and losses with many of his assets frozen as a result of Kremlin legal actions.

Bell said Berezovsky's children were "totally distraught" at the news, saying that a family friend had told him Berezovsky's son, Artem, was "in tears and unable to speak".

• This article was amended on 25 March 2013 to clarify the fact that Berezovsky was discovered by a member of his staff who had not seen his boss for 17 hours, not 11 hours as originally stated

[Pranav]

Startling news about the Berezovsky death. .... His death could yet be an assassination ... but by the west.

An interesting and perceptive hypothesis.

[Austin]

Berezovsky was almost bankrupt and 2 months back he wrote a letter to Putin expressing his desire to come back to russia , he it seems was also depressed so probably one fine day he simply decided that living was no longer worth and committed sucide probably a decision taken in depression ?

I saw his video where he says immediately after Putin election that Putin would exactly do what Yelsin did so far .being a oligarch it means make him and others like him more richer by looting the state and that is why they selected him , 6 months later in his interview he says Putin is a dictator shortly before he fled Russia to west.

Ruthless as he may be , One must admire Putin that he kept Interest of Russia first and ahead of every thing and just used the oligarch to reach his goal which is to become president and get the ex-KGB/SVR/FSB folks at his side only possible when you are at the top before he started stripping Oligarch of their power and wealth ,looted during Yelstin era.

It shows Putin personality he is calm and calculated guy cant predict what is in his mind until he revels his card

[Austin]

Rosneft’s win-win offer to ONGC

Upbeat on scaling stakes in oil exploration in Russia, Dinesh Sarraf, Managing Director of ONGC Videsh (OVL), has projected that “Russia will be the key point for an aggressive expansion of our project portfolio over the next few years.” In a letter to members of parliament in late December, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Veerappa Moily said that the OVL was studying the opportunities offered by the Magadan-2 and Magadan-3 offshore areas in the Sea of Okhotsk. OVL representatives have since visited the oilfields and conducted a preliminary evaluation, which, according to Moily, concluded that the risks were high.

India is forced to take the risk because it currently imports up to 80 percent of its crude oil and is constantly on the lookout for more sources. Magadan-2’s recoverable reserves are estimated at 78.9 million tonnes of oil, and Magadan-3 is estimated to have 31 million tonnes of oil and 105.5 billion cubic metres of natural gas.

[Agnimitra]

The middle class and radical Islam in Russia

Video report in the link.

[Karan Dixit]

MOSCOW: India is unlikely to slap a fine on Russia for the delay in the delivery of aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov caused by engine problems, an official with Russia's state-run arms exporter has said.

Admiral Gorshkov - rechristened as INS Vikramaditya - was supposed to have been handed over to India in December last year, but sea trials in September revealed that the ship's boilers were not fully functional.

http://articles.economictimes.indiatime ... class-ship

[Austin]

Interview President Vladimir Putin granted an interview to the German ARD channel

Russia made decisive choice for democracy - Putin

[Austin]

Russia May Hold 680 Trillion Cubic Meters of Unconventional Gas

Russia holder of the world’s biggest natural-gas reserves, may have 2 1/2 times more unconventional resources than conventional supplies, according to OAO Gazprom. (OGZD)

The country may hold as much as 680 trillion cubic meters of unconventional resources, which include gas from shale, sandstones and coal beds, Viktor Skorobogatov, director of the gas resources center at Gazprom’s VNIIGAZ research unit, said in an interview in the company’s corporate magazine.

Gazprom, Russia’s gas exporter, has concentrated on conventional gas as traditional fields continue to pump out fuel from western Siberia to the country's Far East. That focus saw the nation overtaken by the U.S. as No. 1 gas producer in 2009 as advances in technology made shale drilling economically feasible in North America.

Still, Russia had 44.6 trillion cubic meters of gas reserves at the end of last year, compared with 8.5 trillion cubic meters in the U.S., according to BP Plc (BP/) data.

“No country in the world can compete with Russia in terms of the volume of natural-gas reserves and its vast resource potential in both traditional and unconventional,” Skorobogatov said in the interview, excerpts of which were distributed today by e-mail. Russia’s conventional gas resources total at least 250 trillion cubic meters, out of a global total of 600 trillion to 650 trillion cubic meters, he said.

President Vladimir Putin in April urged Russian energy producers to “rise to the challenge” of a changing market as the U.S. increased output of shale gas. In October, he ordered Gazprom to report on its export policies after acknowledging that U.S. shale-gas production had become profitable.

Extraction of shale gas, which Russia is now “actively studying,” involves blasting a mixture of sand, water and chemicals underground, fracturing the rock to release fuel.

Russia’s shale-gas resources are estimated at about 5 trillion to 20 trillion cubic meters, Skorobogatov said. Hydrates account for about 75 percent of all the nation’s unconventional resources, or 500 trillion cubic meters, followed by tight gas at 110 trillion cubic meters and coal-bed methane at 50 trillion cubic meters, he said.

As much as 90 percent of Russia’s unconventional resources are located in the east, mainly in the Urals and Siberia, according to Skorobogatov. Coal-bed methane and tight-gas ventures, already under development as pilot projects, may start producing after 2020, while development of hydrates and shale won’t start before 2025 or 2030, he said.

[Karan Dixit]

Kaliningrad, April 6 (IANS/RIA Novosti) The last in a series of three frigates that Russia is building for India has started final trials, a shipyard spokesman said.
The Trikand frigate is being built at the Yantar shipyard in Russia's Baltic exclave of Kaliningrad. The Trikand carried out workup trials March 14 and was cleared for final state trials April 4, spokesman Sergei Mikhailov said.
The trials will last through the end of April.
The frigate is due to be handed over to the Indian Navy this June, Mikhailov said.
In 2006, Russia and India signed a $1.6 billion contract on the construction of three modified Krivak III class (also known as Talwar class) guided missile frigates for India.
The first frigate, INS Teg, joined the Indian Navy April 27, 2012, and the second, The Tarkash, arrived at the port of Mumbai in India Dec 30, 2012.
The frigates are each armed with eight BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles.
They are also equipped with a 100-mm gun, a Shtil surface-to-air missile system, two Kashtan air-defence gun/missile systems, two twin 533-mm torpedo launchers and an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) helicopter.

http://www.newstrackindia.com/newsdetai ... ials-.html

[Austin]

Russia and India create commission on emergency situations

Russia’s Emergency Situations Ministry and India’s Interior Ministry have created a commission on emergency situations.

On Wednesday, Russian Emergencies Minister Vladimir Puchkov and Indian Interior Minister Sushilkumar Shinde signed a document on the Russian-Indian commission on emergency situations. “We should work out a simplified model for providing aid to each other... It is true that our Indian colleagues do not like to ask for aid and we also do not like. However, during large-scale disasters - floods, tsunamis and earthquakes, specialists’ joint efforts help minimize the losses,” Puchkov said.

He expressed hope that this mechanism would start operating within weeks.

In addition, Puchkov proposed the Indian colleagues to work on developing systems of space monitoring, observation and laboratory control.

The Russian-Indian commission will inform everyone about the direct threat to natural and technogenic catastrophes and work out proposals to train specialists.Russia and India will also exchange information about research studies and plan research projects.

[svinayak]

There are prediction of large scale earthquakes in the IOR region this year. Need to see of they are man made

[Prem]

There are prediction of large scale earthquakes in the IOR region this year. Need to see of they are man made

Iranian just had one last week near their main Nuke site.

[RSoami]

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-04-1 ... -moon.html

Russia to spend $ 50 billion on space

[Singha]

Russia knows how to give a resounding slap whenever anyone attempts to push it. tit for tat.

--NYT---
Russia Bans 18 Americans After Similar US Move
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: April 13, 2013 at 6:38 AM ET

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia on Saturday named 18 Americans banned from entering the country in response to Washington imposing sanctions on 18 Russians for alleged human rights violations.

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The list released by the Foreign Ministry includes John Yoo, a former U.S. Justice Department official who wrote legal memos authorizing harsh interrogation techniques; David Addington, the chief of staff for former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney; and two former commanders of the Guantanamo Bay detention center: retired Maj. Gen. Geoffrey Miller and Adm. Jeffrey Harbeson.

The move came a day after the United States announced its sanctions under the Magnitsky Law, named for Russian lawyer Sergei Magnitsky, who was arrested in 2008 for tax evasion after accusing Russian police officials of stealing $230 million in tax rebates. He died in prison the next year, allegedly after being beaten and denied medical treatment.

Neither Washington nor Moscow put high-ranking or politically prominent figures on their lists, perhaps aiming to limit the effect on U.S.-Russian relations that have deteriorated, despite President Barack Obama's initiative to "reset" relations with Moscow.

The Magnitsky law infuriated Russian authorities, and parliament quickly passed a retaliatory measure than banned Americans from adopting Russian children. Russia also has banned U.S. funding for any non-governmental organization deemed to be engaging in politics.

"I think that both sides showed a definite restraint because in Washington and in Moscow there were hotheads demanding to inflate the list to an unthinkable size," parliament member Vyacheslav Nikonov, who focuses on foreign affairs, was quoted as saying by the news agency Interfax.

The ITAR-Tass news agency quoted Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov as saying there also is a "closed part" of the list of banned Americans and that the United States knows of its existence. The U.S. law in turn allows the administration to compile a separate classified list of Russian officials subject to visa bans.

The public U.S. list includes Artem Kuznetsov and Pavel Karpov, two Russian Interior Ministry officers who put Magnitsky behind bars after he accused them of stealing $230 million from the state. Two tax officials the lawyer accused of approving the fraudulent tax refunds, and several other Interior Ministry officials accused of persecuting Magnitsky, also were on the list. Absent were senior officials from Russia's President Vladimir Putin's entourage whom some human rights advocates had hoped to see sanctioned.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said in a statement Saturday that the U.S. sanctions struck "a strong blow to bilateral relations and joint trust."

The U.S. Embassy in Moscow said it had no immediate comment.

Also on Russia's list are 14 Americans whom Russia says violated the rights of Russians abroad. It does not give specifics of the alleged violations, but includes several current or former federal prosecutors in the case of Viktor Bout, the Russian arms merchant sentenced in 2012 to 25 years in prison for selling weapons to a U.S.-designated foreign terrorist group.

A federal judge, one FBI agent and four U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents also are on the list. Some of them were involved in the case of Konstantin Yaroshenko, a Russian pilot convicted for drug smuggling.

"It's important that the criteria on which the Russian list was composed differ fundamentally from the Americans'. On the Russian list, including the closed part, are people actually responsible for the legalization of torture and indefinite detention of prisoners in Guantanamo, for arrests and unjust sentences for our countrymen," Ryabkov was quoted as saying.

[Austin]

Its very stupid to have something called Magnitsky law that ban some person that are accused of this or that violation/human rights etc .....Its like Russia coming with a law called George Bush law because he is responsible for killing 4000 American Soldiers or indirectly/directly a million Iraqi and then ban people entering their country.

Equally Stupid by Russians to ban US couple adopting children from Russia , even though there are some recent bad incident of Russian child facing problems but its like playing politics with Orphans or similarly banning US officials by bringing similar law.

Not sure when these two nation start acting mature , Cold war lives on in different form.

[Austin]

Interview with Indian Ambassador to Russia Ajai Malhotra with columnist "NG" Vladimir Skosyreva

[quote]Moscow and New Delhi: Synergy aspirations

Russia - the main partner of India in nuclear energy, defense, space, science and technology

Indian Ambassador to Russia Ajai Malhotra interview with columnist "NG" Vladimir Skosyreva notes that our countries are linked by a relationship of trust, based on the support of parties in both states. Cooperation between Russia and India has a strong base of common interests and the growing economic opportunities. He did not stop the global crisis had a negative impact on international trade - our bilateral trade has continued to grow, the two countries reached new joint projects.

- Leaders of Russia and India say that our countries are linked by relations privileged strategic partnership. But in practice, what this means?

- These days, many of the country without making much sense it, use the term "strategic partnership" to describe relations with another State. But in the relationship between Russia and India it has a special and profound content. Our unique and diverse connections - a reflection of the exceptional goodwill and trust between us. We are very attentive to safety and other concerns of each other.

Neither India nor Russia threaten each other. On the contrary, everyone knows that the strengthening of political and economic power of a partner in his favor. In addition to India and Russia political parties unanimously favor a close and friendly relations between us.

In practice, this was reflected in the fact that Russia was the first country with which India holds an annual meeting at the highest level. Summits allow executives to strengthen and promote the strategic partnership that extends both in culture and in the long-term cooperation in many key and sensitive areas. Thus, Russia has become a major partner of India in sectors such as peaceful nuclear energy, defense, space, science and technology.

Russia - the only country with which India has established an intergovernmental commission on military-technical cooperation. The largest program of cooperation in science and technology, India is also implementing with Russia. All this confirms that it is not rhetoric, but practical actions form the basis of our strategic partnership.

- In recent years, India has given many large contracts for the supply of weapons from Europe, the U.S. and Israel. Russia's role in this area is reduced?

- Russian defense companies faced stiff competition from the producers of weapons from other countries for decades. Yet our defense ties have grown. In many cases, Russian companies have shown their competitiveness in terms of our defense needs. But arms manufacturers from other countries over the past decade have won some of our tenders. This is nothing new.

Defence cooperation is an important pillar of our strategic partnership. We produce T-90, SU-30MKI fighter jets and other equipment. In August last year, we agreed to work together to make India a missile system "Smerch". In 2012, we adopted the helicopter Mi-17V5, and ship "Chakra", frigate "Tag", "Tarkash." In December last year we signed defense contracts worth about U.S. $ 4 billion, scheduling supply 71 Mi-17V5 and 42 Su-30MKI aircraft from Russia to India. We regularly conduct joint military exercises.

In recent years, our relationship has been a dramatic change. From a buyer-seller relationship, we moved on to relationships that include joint research, design, development and production of complex defense systems. Evidence of this fundamental shift has supersonic missile "Brahmos". These weapons began to build 15 years ago. More recent examples are the fifth generation fighter aircraft and multi-purpose transport aircraft. These projects are evidence that the scale of our military-technical partnership is not reduced.

- Will India to participate in the development of the GLONASS system?

- During a summit in December last year, "NIS GLONASS" signed a memorandum of understanding with companies Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) on a pilot project, when will study the possibility of using GLONASS ground infrastructure BSNL / MTNL. If the study is successful, it will open the way for the use of GLONASS in India in sectors such as handling of the disaster, transportation, phone service, long distance communication. By the way, "NIS GLONASS" signed an agreement on strategic partnership with Tata Consultancy Services Partnership in technology. So the first steps in this area have been made.

- Nuclear power plant at Kudankulam - is Russia's largest industrial project in India. Why its launch is postponed? When will the block number 1 and number 2?

- The development of nuclear power - is one of the foundations of our cooperation with Russia. We implement the best technology to provide the most advanced security standards. Work on the unit № 1 NPP "Kudankulam" finished. He is expected to be operational this month. Work on the second block was accelerated. It will be ready for launch by the end of the year.

- India has agreed that Russia will construct block number 3 and number 4 in Kudankulam. But there was disagreement on legal and civil liability in the event of an accident. The solution to this dispute was found?

- We are committed to the implementation of the agreement between India and Russia from 2008 on cooperation in nuclear energy, and the "road map" of 2010 on the construction of nuclear power plants in India, constructed in Russia.

As for block number 3 and number 4 in Kudankulam, the financial report of the state credit for both of them was signed in July 2012.

- The volume of Russian-Indian trade does not meet the high level of political relations between our countries. What is done in order to increase trade?

- We are always looking for new ways to expand trade. To this end, we used numerous institutional arrangements and business communication platform in 2012. For example, our minister of trade, industry and the textile industry led a large delegation of businessmen at the St. Petersburg Economic Forum in June 2012. Its lobby was the third Russian-Indian dialogue businessmen. Last fall, many of the Indian Council for Trade and other delegations have participated in trade shows in Russia.

As a result of last year, the Indo-Russian trade grew by 24.5%, up from 8.87 billion dollars in 2011 to 11.04 billion dollars in 2012. In percentage terms, these figures were the best of 25 major trading partners of Russia. As for the volume of trade, India climbed five places in the list of the leading trading partner of Russia. In 2011, she was on the 23 th place, and in 2012 - on the 18th. All this has occurred against the current economic situation in the world. Russia's foreign trade grew by a modest 1.8%, and in India it is generally not increased. We will continue to work hard to fulfill the task of increasing trade in 2015 to $ 20 billion.

- What is the volume of Indian investments in Russia? Why is big business in India are reluctant to make investments in Russia?

- Indian investments in Russia are about $ 8 billion. They exceed the Russian investments in India. Large investments made ONGC Videsh Ltd, State Bank / Canara Bank, through Commercial Bank of India Ltd; ICICI Bank, Tata Group, SUN Group, Carborundum Universal, L & T, Universal Food Technology and others. In Russia solidly represented Indian pharmaceutical companies.

Part of caution displayed by businessmen from both sides, because there is not sufficient information on improving the economic situation and the latest developments. We will work hard to make the Russian and Indian companies were more aware of the opportunities in both countries. The economic slowdown in the world also encourages businessmen in both countries more closely examine the conditions in Russia and India. New opportunities offered by Russia's accession to the WTO.

Meanwhile, in December 2012, a number of favorable events. State Bank of India and the Russian Direct Investment Fund signed a memorandum of understanding for a $ 2 billion, to encourage investment in long-term projects in both countries. At the same time a document was signed on a joint venture between Elder Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Mumbai and Russia PharmEco.

- India is involved in oil and gas projects on Sakhalin. Are deliveries from there to India liquefied natural gas?

- The energy sector is illustrative of the fact that our economies are complementary. Russia - a leading provider of energy, and India - one of the fastest growing energy consumers.

The company ONGC Videsh Ltd has made large investments in the project "Sakhalin-1" and Tomsk. And the biggest share of the oil it receives from foreign investment comes from Russia. She sees an opportunity to make new investments in oil and gas through the acquisition of assets for participation in projects with companies such as "Rosneft", "Gazprom", "Novatek". This refers to projects in Siberia, the Russian Far East and the Arctic shelf.

In Russia now, obviously, no excess of liquefied natural gas for export. But the picture is likely to change in the next few years. Therefore, in 2012 an agreement was signed with a subsidiary company "Gazprom" on the purchase of 2.5 million metric tons of liquefied natural gas per year from 2018-2019 onwards, for the next two decades.

- Last year, India was attended by over 100 thousand tourists from Russia. Israel and many other countries abolished visas to increase the flow of tourists from Russia. Why India does not go on this way?

- We have introduced a more liberal visa regime in June 2011. This has helped to increase by 22% annually the number of Russian tourists in India in 2011 and 2012. The number of visas issued in Moscow and our consulates in St. Petersburg and Vladivostok, reached 160,000 in 2012. We are taking other initiatives to attract Russian tourists. In 2013, the number of visas issued to Russian tourists in the first quarter of 2013, soared by 60%. If this pace continues, this year's visit to India 250,000 Russian tourists!

India established a visa-free regime for holders of diplomatic and official passports from Russia. But this option for tourists is not considered. Instead, we are studying the possibility to provide tourists from Russia and other countries visa on arrival. However, the decision on this matter is still pending.


Vladimir Skosyrev [/quote]

[Philip]

Reg, the "penalty" for late delivery for the Gorky,a solution was worked out for the first batch of Talwars,which had some teething problems with missiles.The warranty on the frigates was extended by a few more years.The same could probably be done with the carrier,extending her AMC/warranty substantially. Alternatively,the penalty could be written off with lower costs for new orders for MIG-29K aircraft/ASW kamov helos for the carrier.

[Austin]

For the record

Celebrated 50 years of successful cooperation RAC "MiG" with India

The Embassy of India in Moscow, a meeting dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the start of deliveries of MiG-21, the Ministry of Defence of India. This historic event marked the beginning of cooperation between the two countries in the military-technical sphere.



In connection with the anniversary, the General Director of JSC "Russian Aircraft Corporation" MiG "Sergei Korotkov presented to the Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of India to the Russian Federation, Mr. Ajay Malhotra (Ajai Malhotra) model of the MiG-29K and MiG-29UPG

The event was air attaché at the Embassy of India in the Russian Air Commodore Vikram Singh (Vikram Singh), the Naval Attaché at the Embassy of India in Russia Commodore Ajay Bhave Vinaya (Bhave Ajay Vinay), Deputy Director of Marketing of the "RSK "MiG" Mikhail Globenko.

Speaking at the meeting, Ajai Malhotra said that half a century of experience working together on the aircraft "MiG" - is a good example of the effectiveness of the Russian-Indian military-technical cooperation, which is based on friendly relations of the two states.

Sergei Korotkov said that the Indian Air Force was among the first foreign customers receive the most advanced aircraft grade "MiG".

A characteristic feature of the key projects for the fighters "MiG" was the consistent development of the scientific and industrial cooperation and technology transfer. In particular, combat aircraft MiG-21 and MiG-27 produced corporation Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) under license.

The head of the RAC "MiG", in modern designs, such as MiG-29K/KUB and MiG-29UPG, Indian national structures act as full participants in all phases of the programs.

"Corporation" MiG "is interested in expanding the cooperation with government, military, scientific and industrial structures of India", - Sergey Korotkov.

Chronicle of cooperation with India through the RAC "MiG"

1962 - An agreement on the supply of MiG-21
1963 - the first deliveries of the Indian Air Force MiG-21F-13
1964 - The Company HAL mastered production of the MiG-21FL
1965 - Delivery of the Indian Air Force MiG-21FL, MiG-21U
1967 - The Company has transferred the Indian Air Force HAL first MiG-21, built under license
1971 - HAL mastered production of the MiG-21M
1973 - The Company has transferred the Indian Air Force HAL first MiG-21M
1977 - Delivery of the Indian Air Force MiG-21bis
1980 - Delivery of the Indian Air Force MiG-23
1982 - Delivery of the Indian Air Force MiG-25RB and MiG-23MF.
1983-1987 years. - Serial production of the MiG-21bis factory HAL under license
1986-1995 years. - Delivery of the Indian Air Force MiG-29
1988-1997 years. - Serial production of the MiG-27ML factory HAL under license
1996-2005. - Modernization of MiG-21UPG with HAL and the plant "Sokol"
2004-2006. - Integration of components on board MiG-29K/KUB Indian development
2009-2011. - The supply of aircraft of the Indian Navy contract MiG-29K/KUB 2004
July-August 2012 - flights MiG-29K/KUB from aboard the aircraft carrier "Vikramaditya"
December 2012 - Indian Air Force delivery of modernized MiG-29UPG
December 2012 - the beginning of deliveries of aircraft of the Indian Navy contract MiG-29K/KUB 2010

[Austin]

Miffed Russia may stop arms sale to India

Russia has questioned New Delhi’s fairness and transparency in awarding multi-billion dollar military contracts, and warned that it may have to reconsider doing business with India.

“We know what gimmicks are used to manipulate deals,” Russian ambassador to India Alexander Kadakin told HT in an exclusive interview, adding that his country may not bid for Indian military tenders in the future. “Sometimes, terms of tenders are crafted specifically to get the required results.”

The statement comes in the wake of Russia losing ground in the Indian arms market in the past few years, with international rivals winning tenders to supply modern fighter jets, mid-air refuellers, heavy-lift helicopters and attack choppers to the Indian military.

Russia’s current defence portfolio in India is worth $20 billion ( Rs. 1,08,000 crore).

But such outcomes have weakened the standing of India’s oldest and largest arms supplier.

Israel, the second largest defence supplier to India, has bagged business worth more than $10 billion ( Rs. 54,000 cr) in the past 10-12 years. The US, currently at number three, could overtake Israel if India chooses to place some follow-on orders for platforms already contracted.

Instead of tenders, Russia now wants to sell military equipment to India directly through government-to-government deals, Kadakin said.

India has ordered equipment worth $8 billion ( Rs. 43,200 crore) from the US in the past five years through Washington’s foreign military sales programme, a government-to-government method for selling US-built platforms.

“If we emerge number two, it doesn’t mean our platform is any worse. But it sends out that impression and causes damage to our reputation,” Kadakin said. He added that Russia had stood by India when strictest sanctions were imposed on the country after it conducted nuclear tests.

Kadakin acknowledged that India, being “an emerging superpower”, had the right to build defence ties with other countries, but was quick to point out that unlike “some newly-acquired partners”, Russia had never hesitated to transfer the most sensitive defence technologies to India.

“Name a country that will lease you a nuclear submarine. Will the Americans, the British or the French lease you such a platform?” Kadakin asked, referring to the Akula-II nuclear-powered attack submarine leased to India by Russia last year. “This is the unique character of our privileged strategic partnership. Your people have to realise this.”