Articles by Maxim Tovakaido
'Hundreds' of Undeclared Emergency Lights
30 March 10
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has allowed a large part of officialdom to use flashing lights on their cars. But there are hundreds more on the streets than are declared in public regulations, Vedomosti has discovered, with the help of its readers.
Kremlin Prepares to Unveil Its Silicon Valley
11 March 10
In 10 days, President Dmitry Medvedev will indicate where the future Russian Silicon Valley will be created, and one of the early favorites is the area near the business school Skolkovo.
Most Read
1.
Moscow Metro to Get Translated Signs, New Cars
Signs with English translations of station names will be installed in the Moscow metro as part of the city's effort to create an international financial center, a city transport official said Tuesday.
2.
Pro-Putin Song Is Web Hit
A schmaltzy music video hailing Prime Minister Vladimir Putin as Russia's savior became a hit on the Russian Internet on Tuesday, with many bloggers and YouTube users poking fun at the song's hyperbolic lyrics.
3.
Scientists Tap Ancient Lake
Russian scientists have breached an ice sheet that has sealed subglacial Lake Vostok in Antarctica for more than 20 million years at a depth of nearly 4,000 meters, reaching a critical stage in a decades-long drilling project.
4.
FSB Upgrades from iPads to Pricey Typewriters
The Federal Security Service paid over 2 million rubles ($67,000) for an order of nearly 100 typewriters, or about 22,000 rubles per machine.
5.
United Russia Pitches Anti-"Orange" Declaration
The head of United Russia's State Duma fraction Andrei Vorobyov proposed Tuesday that the other parties in the Duma sign a statement declaring the need to prevent an "orange scenario, revolutions and outside interference."
6.
Putin Stand-In Faces Zhirinovsky Fire
In Tuesday's second presidential debate of the campaign season, firebrand Vladimir Zhirinovsky harangued Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's levelheaded proxy over her patron's refusal to debate and alleged desire to rule for life.
7.
Campaign Mudslinging Taken to New Lows
If politics is a dirty business, then Russia is no exception.
8.
Alpha Dog Can't Save Russia
Every failed revolution is followed by a serious repercussion. Considering that the current "White Revolution" is bound to fail, turmoil awaits this country after Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is inaugurated as president in May. And it will be a powerful repercussion, like the one that followed the failed revolution of 1905.
9.
Realpolitik Without Realism
People have been asking me all week why the Kremlin is so stubbornly supportive of Syrian President Bashar Assad. "Is Russia's support based solely on weapons contracts with Syria," they wonder, "or the Kremlin's desire to maintain its naval base at the Tartus port?"
10.
Viacom to Launch Comedy Central in Russia
American television channel Comedy Central is set to make its debut in the Russian market in April.
1.
Feminist Punk Band Become Unlikely Putin Foil
Pussy Riot, a feminist punk collective from Moscow, creates protest through its dissident songs and unsanctioned performances, including a brief unauthorized concert in late January on Red Square.
2.
From Protest to Nausea
The history of successive authoritarian regimes in Russia reveals a recurring pattern: They do not die from external blows or domestic insurgencies.
3.
Putin Says He's Prepared for Runoff
Prime Minister and leading presidential candidate Vladimir Putin acknowledged for the first time Wednesday that he might face a runoff in the March election but warned that it might result in the "destabilization" of the country.
4.
Businessmen Cautious About Protest
As Moscow braces itself for this weekend's street demonstration against disputed December elections, Russian businessmen on Wednesday expressed their disquiet with the protest movement and the goals articulated by its leaders.
5.
14 Million New Migrants Flocked to Russia in 2011
Almost 14 million foreigners and stateless people legally arrived in Russia last year.
6.
McCain Taunts Putin Over Protests
U.S. Senator John McCain has again angered supporters of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin by describing Russia's nascent protest movement as an extension of the Arab Spring uprisings that have shaken and toppled governments across the Middle East.
7.
Malev Goes Bankrupt Owing $130M to VEB
Hungary's state airline Malev stopped flying after 66 years on Friday, citing bankruptcy, amid debts to creditors that include 100 million euros ($130 million) owed to VEB.
8.
Russia to Buy Icelandic Underwater Drones
The Defense Ministry plans to spend 729 million rubles ($24.5 million) on eight underwater drones made by Icelandic firm Teledyne Gavia.
9.
Syria Cyber War Opens New Front In Russia
The cyber front of Syria's year-old civil war spread to Russia this week as pro- and anti-government bots splashed criticism and expressions of gratitude across the Russian Internet, and Syrian hackers attempted to commandeer the website of a Russian embassy.
10.
Putin's Regime Stole My Apartment
One of Russia's largest fraud schemes over the past 10 years has affected 70,000 homebuyers who were cheated out of their investments after the developer vanished or declared bankruptcy.
1.
Election Webcam Installation Begins
In a city that was once the cradle of Russian democracy, an unprecedented new campaign kicked off over the weekend to install web cameras in every polling station around the country in an effort to prevent voting fraud.
2.
Feminist Punk Band Become Unlikely Putin Foil
Pussy Riot, a feminist punk collective from Moscow, creates protest through its dissident songs and unsanctioned performances, including a brief unauthorized concert in late January on Red Square.
3.
Russian Warships Pay Visit to Syrian Port
Two Russian warships arrived in Syria on Sunday, news agencies reported, a visit that will likely be seen as a show of force and a display of support for President Bashar Assad's government.
4.
Why Putin Will Never, Ever Give Up Power
If Putin gave up power at any age, he and dozens of his friends and colleagues who have become millionaires and billionaires over the past 10 years through their Kremlin-connected businesses could face serious corruption charges. This is why the best, and perhaps only, way for Putin to preserve immunity is to stay in power until death.
5.
Why North Koreans Cried
Can an entire people go mad? Sometimes it certainly seems so.
Images of hundreds of thousands of North Koreans howling with grief over Kim Jong Il's death suggest something very disturbing. Was this an exercise in mass delusion? A ritual of collective masochism?
Images of hundreds of thousands of North Koreans howling with grief over Kim Jong Il's death suggest something very disturbing. Was this an exercise in mass delusion? A ritual of collective masochism?
6.
Why Putin Is Mad at Me
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin got very angry last Wednesday when he met with the editors-in-chief of Russia's top media outlets.
7.
Russia Seeks Proof U.S. Zapped Failed Probe
A Russian state commission investigating the crash of the Fobos-Grunt Mars probe will conduct tests to see whether U.S. radar played a role in the spacecraft's failure.
8.
Putin Pledges to Fight Own Legacy
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.
9.
A U.S. Defense Strategy for Russia to Emulate
U.S. President Barack Obama caused considerable damage to the Kremlin during a visit to the Pentagon last week when he announced a decisive reduction in the military ambitions of the United States. This was a serious blow to Russia's propagandistic stereotype that Washington is still determined to dominate the world, with Russia being at the top of the U.S. list of targets.
10.
Recruiters Say Mother Russia Seeking Talent
Demographics make it a candidate’s market, but foreigners have to offer something unique to find their place.