Selling Weapons Again

Russia’s outgoing President Vladimir Putin is making an official visit to Libya on April 16-17. Libya plans to purchase Russia’s military hardware in the sum of almost three billion dollars. Respective contracts have been prepared on the threshold of Putin’s visit to Libya. However, it is not ruled out that the contract because of Libya's debt.

Putin is visiting Libya on the invitation from the leader of the Libyan revolution, Muamar Kaddafi. Russia’s Finance Minister, Aleksei Kudrin and the Director of Russia’s major defense export enterprise Rosoboronexport, Anatoly Isaikin, are traveling to Libya with Putin, the Vedomosti newspaper reports will not be signed due to the problem with the Libyan debt.

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Once again Putin is trying to sell twenty year old weapons to another country. Since Brazil, and other african countries turned them down, its nice to see that someone is cooperating with Russia. Oh Wait! Libya might be in way to much debt to even pay the 3 billion dollars this will cost. But in actuallity the planes are up-to-date and could be semi-decent fighters. This could help stabalize Russia's economy more, but I doubt the deal will go through.

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Fighting on a New Level

Federal Security Service of Russia is going to fight terrorists not only be the means of force, but also with ideological decimator. It is well-known that foreign intelligence often uses Nongovernmental organizations (NGO) both to obtain useful information and to force concealed influence on political processes. It was a headache for the authorities to realize.

For example, the militia of Grozny noticed a car parked in the desert area. When the militia demanded to show documents, 2 passengers exerted armed resistance and flew the coop. The third passenger, Salambek Evloev, was arrested. He had the ascertainment of the International Nongovernmental organization. In the boot there were found 2 Kalashnikov guns and 3 explosive belts. The convicted man, though, stated that his mates and he cooperated with World Vision. hat terrorists use exactly the same methods.

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So pretty much, Russia's new way of fighting terrorists is through ideology. That want to confuse the fighting force and try to convince them that what they believe in is false, and they should lay down their weapons for the good of the world. But if we want to be truthful for a moment, anyone that is willing to kill themseleves and other people for their beliefs probably arent going to give them up without question. Personally I belive it is either A.) a way for Russia to avoid going to war, or, B.) They really believe this and it is a complete waste of time and resources.

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US Missles in Europe.....Probably Not

George W. Bush accepted Moscow’s invitation and will come to Russia to meet Vladimir Putin. The US-Russian presidential meeting will take place on April 6 in the city of Sochi, on the Black Sea coast of Russia, after the NATO Summit and after Bush’s visit to Croatia.

“We are glad that President Bush accepted President Putin’s invitation to hold a work meeting and discuss a wide range of questions,” an official spokesman for the Russian presidential administration, Sergei Prikhodko said.

Bush’s national security advisor Steven Hadley said that the forthcoming talks will give an opportunity to estimate the achieved progress and see if the two countries can solve serval other problems.

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So Bush will meet once again with Putin. This time the only real issue the United States is trying to push is the missile defense system. However, this may prove to be another waste of time seeing how Russia doesn't trust the US, and neither does the US trust Russia. With both countries trying to make sure the other won't stab them in the back nothing can be accomplished. So for the sake of truth please no one get there hopes up about a missile defense system, because Russia will not have it.

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Russia announced last week it was lifting trade restrictions on Abkhazia which then called for recognition of its self-declared independence. EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner said there was a "growing pre-occupation and anxiety" that Moscow was planning recognition.

Georgia has accused Russia of encouraging separatism. Ms Ferrero-Waldner said: "Georgia's territorial integrity has always been clearly supported by the EU... this is absolutely clear." She said Sweden and Poland had written to the EU to ask for more to be done to maintain stability in Georgia before parliamentary elections there in May.

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Once again the finger is pointed at Russia. This has been done so rightly though. Russia has been said to be pushing for the splitting up of Jordan. Maybe not as harsh as people make it sound, but Russia spokesmen stated "they just wanted the country to seek the truth." Russia is just trying to cause conflict elsewhere. Really though, what else is new?

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Russia and India Over?

It seems that they are moving further and further apart over a number of issues. Their leaders still visit each other's countries and rarely miss any opportunity to emphasise their decades-old ties. But nagging doubts remain over their ability to redefine their relationship in a fast-changing world.

The Admiral Gorschkov is a good example. From a negotiated price of $700m, the Russians subsequently demanded $1.2bn with delivery delayed till 2013. Around the same time, the Indian navy has refused to accept an upgraded diesel-powered submarine after delays in the installation of a missile system.

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Over the recent years with Russia trying to regain its status among world nations, India has taking a step back. They look at Russia as an unstable and undecided country. With trade between the two being one of the few ways Russia is staying afloat, these conflicts could be decide how Russia will come out in the end. Both sides deny the relationship between the countries is souring, but only acts and time will tell.

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Russia Upgrades fighter Jets

Russia has made yet another accomplishment for its defense industry as it won a billion-dollar contract from India to upgrade about 70 MiG fighter jets.

An official spokesman for Russia’s MiG design bureau said that the five-year contract stipulates Russia’s participation in the installment of new radars, weapons control systems and the improvement of engines for MiG-29 fighters. Some of the planes to be upgraded date back to the 1980s.

India has long been a leading customer of Russia’s defense industry, but its relationship with Russia soured recently amid a dispute over the refurbishment of a Soviet-built aircraft carrier. A Russian shipyard had fallen far behind schedule and demanded a higher price for its work, prompting protests from the Indians.

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India has recently wanted countries to sign major arms deals with them. Countries such as Russia, Sweden, and other European countries have been offered the arms deals. Russia has taken the most recent one. They will refurbish around 30 fighter jets and sell more than 150 new ones to them. However India may be asking Russia to take some of the planes back because of quality concerns. Either way this is a major step for Russia, it will allow their economy to boom and will help recover the relationship between India and Russia.

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Billionares in Russia

Boosted by soaring oil and commodity prices, the ranks of the country's billionaires have swollen to 87, up from 53 a year ago,
according to Forbes' new world rich list, released Thursday. Forbes' richest Russian, Oleg Deripaska, the majority owner of aluminum giant United Company RusAl, stormed up from 40th to 9th on the list with an estimated fortune of $28 billion -- leaving Chelsea football club owner Roman Abramovich, the former No. 1, trailing in his wake.

With 19 of the global top 100, Russia also now boasts more billionaires than any other country apart from the United States. The 87 Russians on the list have a combined wealth of just over $470 billion -- or more than twice the country's GDP when Putin came to power in 2000. The Russian billionaires are also the youngest from any major economy, with an average age of 46, compared with a global average of 61.


Deripaska broke into the world top 10 for the first time on the strength of his Russian Aluminum merging with two other companies to create the world's top producer of primary aluminum.

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The results of this list show that while Russia economy suffers there are some that are rich beyond imagination. The break between the lower class and higher class is extremely large and there is very little of a middle class. The primary way the billionares have gain their money are by milking the country of its natural resources such as; oil and alluminum. Instead of paying their workers decent or regualar wages, they cut their pay to hold on to their newly gained profit.

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Oil War between Russia and Ukraine

It seems that Ukraine is not going to sit on its hands and watch Russia cutting its gas shipments to the former Soviet nation. Naftogaz, the Ukrainian oil and gas corporation, informed Russia’s Gazprom that it would reduce the amount of transit gas shipments to European countries. A telegram from Naftogaz to Gazprom said that Ukraine was going to cut gas supplies to Western Europe by 60 million cubic meters a day.

"It means that Gazprom will supply this amount of gas to Ukraine, but it won't reach European consumers," a spokesman for the Russian natural gas monopoly, Sergei Kupriyanov said. He said the Naftogaz move will result in supplies of Russian gas to other parts of Europe dropping from some 386 million cubic meters to about 325 million a day.

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Further increasing the tensions between Ukraine and Russia, Russia's company Gazprom is cutting gas supplies. They are cutting supplies to different parts of Europe up to 61 million cubic meters a day. Gazprom is also refusing to pay fee to Ukraine although Gazprom agrues that they have paid all the fees. The butting heads of these two companies will get them nowhere. It is only futhering the tensions between the two countries. With Gazproms supplies shrinking this could begin to hurt Russia's economy even more.

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Ukraine, free from Radars

Russia will no longer use Soviet-made radars in Ukraine due to its attempts to become NATO’s member. Russia’s lower House of Parliament voted to stop using the radars but extended deal that calls on the neighboring state to maintain Russia's intercontinental ballistic missiles.

The move reflects strong military industrial ties between the countries, the AP reported. Deputy Defense Minister Nikolai Pankov aid that Ukraine’s strong will to join NATO had made the military to reconsider the agreement.

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With Ukraine's constant push to become part of NATO, it is almost as if Russia just now recognized their "rights" as a country. This removing of satellites and radars that have monitoring Ukraine for many years now shows some progress for both countries. Russia has decided to trust Ukraine enough to remove their equipment, and Ukraine has gained enough attention to be recognized. For the most part I am unsure if the radars were doing much good seeing how they were left over from the Soviet Union. With inaccurate readings it was best they were removed before the "untrue" readings sparked unnecessary conflict between the countries. This proved as a major step for both countries, and will hopefully become a peaceful relation for both countries.

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Russia Criticises Iran

"We don't approve of Iran's permanent demonstration of its intentions to develop its rocket sector and continue to enrich uranium," Mr Lavrov said. Mr Lavrov said Iran should refrain from raising international tensions.

Iran has been trying to develop the nuclear fuel capabilities and earlier this month fired a rocket into space. "It's impossible to ignore the fact that problems with Iran's nuclear programme have arisen in recent years," Mr Lavrov was quoted by Russia's Interfax news agency as saying.

"While they haven't been resolved it would be better to refrain from actions that raise tensions and create the impression Iran is ignoring the international community," he said. Mr Lavrov was speaking as he travelled back from an EU-Russia meeting in Ljubljana, Slovenia.

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So Russia disagrees with Iran trying to "show off" their nuclear rockets. I find this entire situation extremely humorous. I don't know what Russia was thinking when THEY sold Iran Uranium. Of course I guess you could say they thought they were using it for peaceful purposes. However, either Russia is extremely blind, or they are trying to cover up for their mistakes.

This could be a way of mending some relations with the West, by appearing to care about Iran's nuclear problems. I seriously doubt it though. There is no way that Russia will get away with saying they knew nothing about Iran's missile program. This recent stance on the issue will not clear their name from creating the problem.

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Russia is against Kosovo Sanctions

But Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters secession would be a mistake and everything possible should be done to "prevent negative developments". Speaking after talks with EU officials, Mr Lavrov accused foreign powers of pushing Kosovo towards independence.

The breakaway Serbian province is expected to make a
declaration soon, possibly at the weekend. EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner said Kosovo needed stability. "We hope we will be able to convince Russia that the [current] situation is unsustainable," she said.

A civilian police and justice mission for Kosovo is expected to be given the go-ahead by EU member states by the end of the week. A senior official told the BBC's Oana Lungescu in Brussels that deployment of the 1,800 staff would be staggered over four months.

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Russian representatives has said that despite the increasing tensions over Kosovo's independence that they will not impose sanctions. Though Russia has said it will not impose sanctions, Kosovo's independence is sure to shake them up a bit. Kosovo is planning to annouce thier independence this weekend. Russia feels as though it is the push of the Western world rather than what Kosovo's people want. Whichever may be true, This will increase tensions between the Western world and Russia. This conflict has the momentum to tear Kosovo apart, and wrap major pieces of the world in it. A major power struggle could irrupt depending on how Kosovo's indepence is announced.


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Russia and China Make Space Arms Deal

At a disarmament conference in Geneva, Russian Foreign
Minister Sergei Lavrov said world security would suffer if an arms race in space was not stopped. The draft treaty would prohibit the deployment of weapons in space and the use or threat of force against satellites or other craft, he said.

The United States has long opposed being bound by such
an agreement. Correspondents say tensions have increased in recent years over US plans for a new generation of missile shields. In particular, Moscow is opposed of the country's plans to build part of its new system in Poland and the Czech
Republic.

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It appears that through this new agreement they are trying to limit the US from having any weapons in outer space. Any buildup un weapons in outer space would only make violence worse. It could also trigger a massive arms race across the western world and countries such as; Russia and North Korea. These conditions would put the world into an extreme lockdown state, since at any time weapons could fire on the US or any where else in the world at any moment. This would further strain relations and cause many intense "battles'.

Whether peace is Russia's real purpose for this agreement is unclear. However it is probably best not to have any significant weapons in space.

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Russia Limits Election Monitors

Four hundred observers will be able to monitor the vote, election commission head Vladimir Churov announced. The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, or OSCE, will be restricted to just 70 observers.

The OSCE (the largest European monitoring group) sent almost 400 observers last time. The issue of foreign observers has become a source of friction between Russia and the West after Russian authorities cut the numbers right down for the parliamentary election last month.

This, along with delays to visas and restrictions on what could be said publicly about the conduct of the election, led the OSCE to abandon its mission to Russia.

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Further cutting of the foriegn monitors will only increase Russia's headbutting with the Western world. Most foriegn monitors wonder if its even worth the hassel this time. There is not really a struggle in the elections. It is clear that Medvedev will win president and Putin will for Prime minister. So why go through all the trouble of Visa's and what not?

Other than the already known outcome, Only 70 foriegn monitors from OSCE can go. With Russia and the western world already exchanging harsh glances, I don't think Russia further limiting foriegn monitors would help relations. However since this is an election already won by Medvedev, then hopefully no serious hostile tension will be established over this.

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