... incomes now exists in the country, particularly in the larger cities. And this leads naturally to the third lesson of the last 20 years of reform — that economic growth eventually leads to a demand for political reforms. The dispute over the "modernization theory" first put forward more than 50 years ago by U.S. sociologist Seymour Lipset, has now ended — at least for Russia. It no longer matters who correct — those who argued that democracy must be introduced to end corruption...

The U.S. Energy Department won't follow through on a planned $730 million loan to the North American arm of one of Russia's largest steel companies to modernize its Detroit-area plant. DEARBORN, Michigan — The U.S. Energy Department won't follow through on a planned $730 million loan to the North American arm of one of Russia's largest steel companies to modernize its Detroit-area plant....

Magnit, the country's largest food retailer, reported a sharp jump in 2011 sales as it opened more than 1,000 stores across the country, taking advantage of a lack of modern shops. Magnit, the country's largest food retailer, reported a sharp jump in 2011 sales as it opened more than 1,000 stores across the country, taking advantage of a lack of modern shops. Sales rose 42 percent to 335.6 billion rubles ($10.63...

Moscow's Museum of Modern Art is currently hosting "Displacement," an exhibit by New York-based Italian photographer Giada Ripa that offers a glimpse of the diversity across the former Soviet Union and a narrative on travel...

... Chamber head Sergei Stepashin. Also during his rule, every one of Putin's fellow Ozero dacha community members has become a billionaire. Under Putin's rule, while the country earned more than $1.5 trillion from oil exports, it did not build a single modern highway. The Amur- Yakutsk highway — the only road connecting western and southern Russia — in many places looks like it hasn't been touched in 200 years. Even some sections of the cross-country road linking Moscow to Vladivostok have...

... business climate," Putin wrote, in what was his only mention of Medvedev. "But we have not yet seen any noticeable improvements." In previous articles published in Izvestia and Nezavisimaya Gazeta, Putin addressed the issue of ethnicity in modern Russia and political questions surrounding the December State Duma elections. Monday's sweeping piece covered the principal financial, commercial and political contours of Russian economic life. Putin did not shy away from criticizing the structure...

Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega is seeking as much as $600 million in Russian government investment to help the Central American country modernize and develop its oil and tourism industries. Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega is seeking as much as $600 million in Russian government investment to help the Central American country modernize and develop its oil and tourism industries...

... Kislovodsk, effectively guaranteeing that the bill would not become law before the end of Medvedev's term in May. The measure was the latest reform effort to crumble under Medvedev's watch, which began in 2008 with high hopes for the creation of a "modernized" Russia. No area of life was to go untouched: he would tackle corruption, modernize the economy, open up the political system, streamline the country's bloated bureaucracy and even get Russians to live healthier lives. Liberals hoped that...

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin proposed a radical rollback of his own social and fiscal policies in a draft of his presidential program, which touts economic modernization and strengthening rule of law. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin proposed a radical rollback of his own social and fiscal policies in a draft of his presidential program, which touts economic modernization and strengthening rule...

... hold on power still seems secure. In anticipation of a new six-year term as president, Putin has made forming a Eurasian Union by 2015 a foreign policy priority. He is promoting the union as necessary for Russia and its neighbors to compete in the modern global economy. His broader goal is to restore some of Moscow's economic and political clout across the former Soviet space and thus strengthen Russia's position in the world. If the poorer prospective members are clamoring for Putin's union so...

... company Frost & Sullivan said in November that the market for water and wastewater treatment was on the rise. It reached about $918 million in 2010. "Water supply and wastewater treatment facilities are in most cases outdated and require immediate modernization, replacement and introduction of modern treatment solutions," Frost & Sullivan research analyst Paulina Szyplinska said in the report. Anton Lipatov, chief of the Cleandex analytical portal on clean technology, highlighted industrial...

... is put into motion. Subbotina gives the play a contemporary feel even as she references its historical past. Andrei's extravagant sausage-making machine looks both ancient and futuristic at once, rather like something out of Charlie Chaplin's "Modern Times." The sausages it creates are portrayed comically by long, red balloons. Characters open up computers or pull out smart phones to check facts on the Internet. Those attending the football match — including the spectators —...

... young protesters of Cairo's Tahrir Square were fully representative of Egyptian society. They were not. Rural Egypt, like rural Russia, is much more conservative than the young elites who seize the world's imagination with their protests and embrace of modern social media. Furthermore, Mubarak was old and sick and no longer enjoyed the trust of his people. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, by contrast, exudes energy and health and may still reassure many segments of Russian society whose main concern is...

... ultimately answers for his or her own fate. That is surely what it means when the saddened Negina gives the stage a light push to send the devoted Petya on his way. At nearly four hours running time, this show is a gauntlet flung at the speed-addicted modern world. Actors take their time speaking, listening, watching and reacting. Nemolyayeva's charming and deceptively whimsical Domna Pantelevna repeatedly stops to ask if someone wants a cup of tea. The show pauses to savor everything — joy,...

... Party leader Gennady Zyuganov. But while Zyuganov still remains Putin's most serious opponent in the March election, analysts said he wouldn't be able to use the same anti-Communist rhetoric. "Zyuganov might be an old guy, but he is surrounded by modern people who understand modern realities," said Mark Feigin, a political commentator and member of the Solidarnost opposition movement. Feigin said the Russian middle class "has grown fat enough" in the past few years and is ready...

... companies over the coming six years, according to a schedule distributed by the Economic Development Ministry. The plans, presented by Economic Development Minister Elvira Nabiullina at this week’s meeting of President Dmitry Medvedev’s modernization council, are an update of an original draft released in the summer of 2010. Volatile market conditions have delayed plans to sell several stakes, originally aimed at raising $200 billion for the state budget as well as improving corporate...

... together. The country has paid the price. The use of traditional forms of realpolitik often simply means the pursuit of short-term gain at the expense of healthy long-term development. Peter the Great may have won the Great Northern War, but his impatient modernization strategy polarized the country at a cultural level in a way that was never fully resolved under the tsars. Likewise, the expansion of the Russian state under Catherine the Great may have added to Russia's European reputation, but —...

... powerful Governor Eduard Rossel also threatened to create a Urals republic. Putin has stated previously that he saw the notion of’ “Soviet nationality” and the uniting of different republics under one umbrella as a positive model for modern Russia. In 2010, he even publicly clashed with President Dmitry Medvedev who said the peaceful coexistence during Soviet times was only maintained through “tough” methods. But opposition leader and political columnist Mark Feigin...

... from the early 1900s to the1980s, to Feb. 27. Located at 1/2 Red Square. M. Ploshchad Revolyutsii. Ticket office open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sun. 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., closed Tues. and the first Mon. of the month. 692-4019/5660, www.shm.ru Moscow Museum of Modern Art on Tverskoi: New Juan Hernandez Pijuan (1931-2005): retrospective of works, to March 11. Located at 9 Tverskoi Bulvar. M. Tverskaya. Noon to 8 p.m. 694-6660, www.mmoma.ru Moscow Museum of Modern Art on Yermolayevsky: Totart: multimedia installation...

... 692-4019/5660, www.shm.ru Manezh Exhibition Hall: Silver Camera 2011: photographs by award nominees in this competition, Sun. Located at 1 Manezh Square. M. Okhotny Ryad, Alexandrovsky Sad. 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., closed Mon. 698-1660. Moscow Museum of Modern Art on Tverskoi: New Juan Hernandez Pijuan (1931-2005): retrospective of works, opens Feb. 2. Located at 9 Tverskoi Bulvar. M. Tverskaya. Noon to 8 p.m. 694-6660, www.mmoma.ru Moscow Museum of Modern Art on Yermolayevsky: Totart: multimedia installation...