For Russia’s Navy, A Damaged Aircraft Carrier Is Bad Enough. A Sunken Dry Dock Is Even Worse
The decades-old dock is now sitting on the bottom of Kola Bay, not far from the major Arctic Circle city of Murmansk. Even if it is raised to the surface, it may be beyond repair, meaning Russia’s only aircraft carrier, several of its largest naval ships, and at least one ballistic-missile submarine may be unserviceable for months, if not years.
VISUAL REPORTS
Western Countries Condemn Separatist Vote In Eastern Ukraine
The United States, France, and Germany have condemned elections by Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine as a "sham" and “illegal." Kyiv and its international backers said the November 11 polls would further hamper efforts to end a conflict that has killed more than 10,300 people since April 2014.
Simonyan’s Crimea Bridge Rom-Com Panned By Critics
A glimpse is offered here of the Russian rom-com, set during the construction of a bridge linking Crimea to Russia, which has been mostly panned by critics while underperforming at the box-office.
Belgrade Religious Leaders Send Messages Of Peace
Representatives of six religious communities signed a Message of Peace on the premises of the Belgrade Catholic Archdiocese on November 9, marking the centenary of the end of World War I.
Kristallnacht: Remembering The Night Of Broken Glass
Eighty years ago on the night of November 9 - 10, 1938, Nazi paramilitary forces, along with German civilians, targeted Jews throughout Germany and regions it had annexed. The violence is remembered as the unofficial start of the Holocaust.
OTHER NEWS
Finland Probes Possible Russian GPS Jamming Of NATO
Finland says it is investigating whether Russia has recently interfered with global positioning system signals in the northern Finish region of Lapland during NATO war games. Norway issued a similar warning about loss of GPS signals for pilots in its own airspace in late October.
Citing Security Threat, FSB Suspends Satellite Internet Project
A project called OneWeb, founded by a former Google executive to deploy 900 small satellites to provide high-speed internet and communications for the planet, has been suspended by Russia’s security services as a “threat to national security.” To date, Airbus, Qualcomm and SoftBank have invested about $1.7 billion in the project, which was on track to be Roscosmos’s largest, while affording it access to modern technologies. (Russian Service)
Russians And Chechens Shun Federation’s Military Draft
Conscription of Chechens to serve in the Russian federal military has dwindled since the draft was implemented in the early 2000s, with only 70 conscripts expected to serve in Russia’s southern military district in 2018. Observers cite numerous reasons on both sides for low recruitment, including insubordination, demands for Halal food, and a preference among Chechen authorities to have local conscripts report to them. Parents have reportedly paid up to $3,695 to have their children serve in the local National Guard rather than risk that they serve under the command of Russian officers who fought in Chechnya in the 1990s. (Caucasus Realities website)
Russian Duma Considers Nationalizing ‘Sleeping’ Accounts
Russian lawmakers are studying the possibility of transferring unclaimed bank deposits amounting to billions of rubles to the federal budget. The problem is particularly acute at Sberbank, where “dormant” accounts belonging to deceased pensioners without beneficiaries are estimated at 6-7% of all holdings. (in Russian, Current Time TV)
Russian Capital Outflows Grow, As Debt Does, Too
The Bank of Russia reports that capital outflows from Russia from January-October 2018 rose to $42.2 billion, triple the amount for the same period last year, and will amount to $66 billion by year’s end. At the same time the number of people barred from leaving Russia due to financial debt is estimated at 6 million, which is 60% higher than one year ago. (Russian Service)
Navalny Barred From Leaving Russia Ahead Of ECHR Ruling
Russian opposition politician Aleksei Navalny says authorities have barred him from leaving the country to attend a ruling at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg on a case he filed against the state.
Rights Group Declares Three Russian Activists 'Prisoners Of Conscience'
Amnesty International has recognized Yan Sidorov, Vladislav Mordasov, and Vyacheslav Shamshin, three Russian activists arrested during protests in the city of Rostov-on-Don in 2017, as prisoners of conscience.
At Least 50 Inmates Reportedly Killed In Tajik Prison Riot
At least 50 inmates were killed in a prison riot in Tajikistan last week, sources have told RFE/RL, doubling the death toll in violence that the government has said almost nothing about publicly.
Tajik Leader Lambastes Security Forces For Failing To Prevent Attack On Cyclists
Tajik President Emomali Rahmon has criticized the country's security forces for their failure to prevent the killing of four foreign cyclists in late July. Speaking in Dushanbe on November 10, Rahmon said the attack on a southern mountain road had been prepared for "half a year" and the suspects had been on the police's list of potential terrorists.
Kazakh Mother Mourns Daughter Killed After Joining Islamic State
This week, Gulzhan Imasheva learned that her daughter Gulbanu was killed in Syria, more than three years after she ran away from her hometown in northwestern Kazakhstan to join Islamic State (IS) extremists abroad. Kazakh authorities say she was one of about 800 Kazakh citizens who have left their country to join IS militants in the Middle East since early 2014.
The Gas Man Cometh In Turkmenistan
With only weeks before the energy-rich but financially strapped country halts generous subsidies for natural gas, water, and electricity, authorities in the country's capital are banging on doors to make sure households have installed devices to measure usage and that citizens are prepared to pay.
MAJLIS PODCAST: What Caused The Khujand Prison Violence?
INFOGRAPHIC: Russia’s Growing Network Of Civilian Cyber-Snitches