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POPSRussian job stimulis plan-will it work? "It is well-documented and proven that subsidising jobs is not an effective method of job creation," said Vladimir Gimpelson, director of the Higher School of Economics' Centre for Labour Research. "When the subsidies stop, the jobs go too." Alexandra Eftivyeva, chief economist at VTB Capital, said the best way to support employment was not to directly support people but to help their employers "restore their working capital credit".
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POPSUS military supplies allowed through Russia U.S. ground routes through Russia would likely cross into Kazakhstan and then Uzbekistan before entering northern Afghanistan. The United States has reached a preliminary deal with Kazakhstan to use its territory, and officials have said they are considering resuming military cooperation with Uzbekistan, which neighbors Afghanistan. That option is problematic for Washington: Uzbekistan kicked U.S. forces out of a base there after sharp U.S. criticism of the country's human rights record and the government's brutal quashing of a 2005 uprising.
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POPSRussia to complete Iranian nuclear plant on time Rosatom head Sergei Kiriyenko said on Thursday a trial run of the Bushehr plant was scheduled for this year. "Yes. We are moving according to schedule," he said, answering a question as to whether a trial run was possible before the end of this year. Iran's Atomic Energy Organization earlier said the Bushehr plant was 94.8% complete. Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said it was due to be put into operation in the first half of 2009.
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POPSAmerica's favorite bogeyman We all need a good enemy. As U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates once shrewdly pointed out, the talk of a new Cold War fills him “with nostalgia for a less complex time.” Indeed, the world made a glib sort of sense back then — communism vs. capitalism, good vs. evil empire.
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POPSTurkey takes go slow approach to former Soviet states It’s unlikely that Turkey would ever be in position to become a strategic partner of Russia’s due to Ankara’s desire to gain influence in the Caucasus and Central Asia, Erdem said. But, he added, that fact doesn’t preclude expanded commercial ties with the Kremlin. Russia recently became Turkey’s largest trading partner, he pointed out. Erdem voiced understanding for Russia’s position on the potential expansion of NATO into Georgia and Ukraine, as well as for Moscow’s concern over US plans to build missile defense systems in Poland and the Czech Republic.
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POPSEU seeks to increase influence in former Soviet areas Beyond the signal that the EU wants to reinforce its presence in the Caucasus and Black Sea regions, the success of the initiative depends on concrete achievements. "The ground is prepared, but a lot depends on what happens in tangible terms,"
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POPSGunmen Attack Vessels,Kidnap Russians in Nigeria The attacks took place in the offshore area known as OML 123, referring to the 370 sq-km licence area controlled by Addax. Six similar incidents occurred earlier this year, the most recent two weeks ago. Addax and police officials were not immediately available for comment.
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POPSRussia To Supply Lebanon With Fighter Jets Russia has sought to expand its influence in the Middle East and hopes to host a Mideast peace conference next year. It is a member of the so-called Mideast Quartet, which also includes the United States, the European Union and the United Nations.
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POPSOver 30 countries exporting arms to Sudan
According to UN report of 10-21-08. The embargo was imposed in 2004 and extended in 2005, requiring nations to "...take the necessary measures to prevent the sale or supply" to all the warring parties in Darfur. Since that time, Sudan, by its own reports, has acquired: * At least 45 new military aircraft, including combat aircraft, fighter jets and parts provided by Belarus and Russia. * More than $25 million worth of tanks and armored combat vehicles, which Sudan claims were provided by China, Switzerland, Iran, Germany, India and Syria. * A total of $29.5 million in small arms and light weapons (excluding ammunition and parts). * $600,000 worth of ammunition, though a range of countries report selling Sudan nearly $10 million in ammunition. * $270,000 worth of swords, cutlasses and bayonets, the same weapons reportedly used by the Janjaweed in attacks on civilians. Sudan's import figures and worldwide export figures "seriously underestimate the arms sal
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POPSAbkhazia asserts control over Kodori Gorge in dispute with Georgia Dzhonua scoffed at Tbilisi’s assertions that Georgian forces stationed in the Upper Kodori Gorge had been acting in a law-enforcement capacity, rather than as regular soldiers. "Police don’t need bunkers, grenade launchers howitzer batteries," Dzhonua said. "Do your police in America need this? ? Everything that was needed to start a war, it was all there." Georgian officials were in Geneva for the October 15 talks with Russia and were not immediately available to respond to Abkhaz allegations. Abkhaz officials say that a ban has been put on media visits to the Upper Kodori Gorge so long as unexploded ordnance remains in the area. "There’re a lot of mines, unexploded ammunition, explosive devices, so we stopped journalists from visiting," de facto Deputy Defense Minister Maj. Gen. Gari Kupalba told Western reporters on September 30.
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POPSTajik exile flees Russia for safety of Paris Deciding to leave Moscow may have been a spur-of-the-moment action, but he revealed that he started thinking about the need to leave quickly when he got word that Tajik officials were mulling whether to renew their efforts to bring him back to Dushanbe. "I pre-planned some appointments with French politicians, diplomats, correspondents and NGOs to discuss Tajikistan’s problems," says Atovullo. France is likely only a transit country for Atovullo. He intends to move soon to Hamburg, where he will wait for the "whirlwind" in Moscow to abate. Atovullo hopes to return to Moscow in the not-so-distant future. He explained that because Tajiks can travel to Moscow relatively easily, he is able to be more effective as a Tajik opposition activist when operating in the Russian capital.
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POPSGeorgia closes air space to Russia "If Georgia doesn’t provide an air corridor, Russia will find alternative ways of supplying its military base here," Aghabekian told EurasiaNet. "After all, Russia is bound by an agreement with Armenia that commits it to keeping the base combat-ready and on high alert. Russia will resort to any method to honor that obligation."
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POPSOn Russia suing Bank of NY under US RICO law Then there was the role being played by Miami injury lawyer Steven Marks, who openly pitched the lawsuit to the Russian government; while he's hardly the first stateside lawyer to sell the idea of litigation against U.S. companies to foreign sovereigns, that trend in itself is one that deserves closer attention.
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POPSEthnic Georgians face citizenship dilemma in Abkhazia Not all Gali residents are concerned with the passport situation. Zura B., an unemployed man who asked not to be identified, said he would probably take an Abkhaz passport since he cannot visit Moscow with his Georgian passport. "They won’t take away my Georgian passport and I won’t swear to anything. There are ways to get around such things," Zura said.
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