The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

[Armenian]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

Nikolic not ruling out Russian military base in Serbia

Tomislav Nikolic, the presidential candidate, who won the first round of the presidential elections in Serbia, would not object to the deployment of a Russian military base in their country, if this could consolidate its security. He said so in an interview with the Nikkei newspaper, the leading economic newspaper of Japan, which was published on Friday. “If the United States deploys its missiles in Europe for protecting their country against terrorism, Russia could in the same way create its stronghold in Serbia,” he continued. He even does not rule out a possibility of the deployment of Russian nuclear missiles in their country. “There is reason to hold talks on the problem, if this could make a contribution to ensuring Serbia’s security,” he said. Tomislav Nikolic, the leader of the Serb Radical Party, got 39.9 per cent of votes in the first round. His rival, President Boris Tadic, got 35.4 per cent. The second, the decisive round of voting will take place on February 3. Both presidential candidates are going to hold consultations in Moscow before the second round.

Source: http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2....4530&PageNum=0

[skhara]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

Here is an article from MSNBC about Serbia's election:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22758802/

Nikolic has sought to evoke Serbs' nationalist pride and has played on the growing frustration over U.S. and EU backing for Kosovo independence. A Milosevic ally, Nikolic ruled alongside the former president in the 1990s. His return to power likely would bury Serbia's EU aspirations and push the country back into isolation.

I gotta laugh at the biased nature of this wording. Exactly what benefits have the EU brought to Serbia? And how can they talk of "isolation", when Russia is slowly conquering the Balkans. It seems to me that Nikolic is not interested in "isolation" whatsoever -- he is interested in advancing the geostrategic interests of the Russian Federation in the Balkans, securing his nation from attacks, and deriving some Russian economic investment. If Russia gets Bulgaria, then Serbia is sitting very pretty.

[Armenian]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

I gotta laugh at the biased nature of this wording. Exactly what benefits have the EU brought to Serbia? And how can they talk of "isolation", when Russia is slowly conquering the Balkans. It seems to me that Nikolic is not interested in "isolation" whatsoever -- he is interested in advancing the geostrategic interests of the Russian Federation in the Balkans, securing his nation from attacks, and deriving some Russian economic investment. If Russia gets Bulgaria, then Serbia is sitting very pretty.

Forget the wording of the article, what else would one expect from it? Do you know what's really upsetting and sad? The fact that more-or-less half of the population in Serbia still believes western lies and still seems to fall for their trickery. The elections in Serbia should have been over a long time ago with a pro-Russian nationalist leader receiving 100% of the votes. Yet they have a political stalemate... After all that they went through in the 90s, after criminal bombing campaign of Serbia by NATO, after all that's been happening regarding Kosovo - what Serbian would still support western interests or believe in western promises? Just how stupid are the masses in this world? This boggles my mind. Comparatively speaking, Armenians even with all their egotism and political inexperience are able to reveal more political maturity.

Here is an attempt by the West to entice Serbs away from Russia:

Europe Offers Serbia Deal to Sway Vote

The European Union sent a clear signal to Serbia on Monday that its path to membership would be opened if it rejected a nationalist pro-Russian candidate in the presidential runoff next Sunday and apprehended war criminal suspects who remained at large from the Balkan conflicts of the 1990s. The signal emerged here from a meeting of European Union foreign ministers, who were looking for ways to give a political lift to the pro-Western liberal incumbent in Serbia, President Boris Tadic, who faces a close race with the pro-Russian nationalist challenger, Tomislav Nikolic. Originally the group had hoped to offer a generous package of far-reaching economic and political ties to Serbia and expedited membership. But they scaled it back to an offer of expanded cooperation in trade and visas. The Netherlands and Belgium had objected to the more generous agreement, saying that could not happen until Serbia made progress on handing over indicted war criminals, most notably Gen. Ratko Mladic, who is charged with masterminding the 1995 massacre of more than 7,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys in Srebrenica. Dimitrij Rupel, the foreign minister of Slovenia, which holds the European Union’s rotating presidency, hinted that if Serbia elected a moderate president, it could become a member within a few years. “It would be possible for this to happen relatively soon,” he said. Analysts said the European Union’s attempt to link the outcome of the Serbian elections with future membership could backfire by emboldening nationalists in Serbia. Mr. Nikolic has sought to exploit wounded national pride by playing on the disenchantment over American and European Union support for Kosovo, the breakaway province poised to declare independence next month.

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/29/wo...html?ref=world

[Armenian]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

Implied Consent: Duma’s top man gives unofficial nod to Sargsyan

Russian State Duma Speaker Boris Gryzlov’s official visit to Armenia that began on Monday and his meeting with Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan may be viewed as Russia’s support for the presidential candidate’s election bid. As the leader of Russia’s pro-Kremlin United Russia party, which achieved a landslide victory in the December legislative elections in Russia, Gryzlov on Monday signed a cooperation deal with Armenia’s governing coalition members – the Sargsyan-led Republican Party of Armenia and the Prosperous Armenia Party. Thereby, the two countries’ ruling parties agree on “exchange of information, mutual visits of delegations, coordinated steps within the framework of international forums.”

During his meetings with officials in Armenia, including with President Robert Kocharyan and Parliament Speaker Tigran Torosyan, Gryzlov, whose party is the main support base of Russia’s outgoing President Vladimir Putin and his likely successor Dmitry Medvedev, did not speak overtly about preferences for the February 19 presidential election in Armenia. But MP and Prosperous Armenia Party member Naira Zohrabyan told ArmeniaNow that Gryzlov’s visit in the middle of the campaign and United Russia’s agreement with the Armenian coalition parties in itself implies that “Russia is eager to see the continuity of government in Armenia.” However, another member of the party, Aram Safaryan, told ArmeniaNow that the agreement is not connected with the presidential race in Armenia and that preparations for the document had been made for the past 10 months.

Armen Ashotyan, a member of parliament representing the Republican Party of Armenia, says that Gryzlov’s visit is “of an official nature.” “However, on the other hand, the timing of such visits is not accidental,” Ashotyan said in an ArmeniaNow interview. “It is possible to look for and find political subtexts implying Russia’s assistance to its [favored] candidate, in particular in the context of the signing of the agreement between United Russia and [Armenia’s] coalition parties.”

Speaking about the development of Armenian-Russian relations, Kocharyan expressed his satisfaction with the bilateral economic ties which, he said, have become “the motive force of Armenian-Russian cooperation, as a result of which Russian capital has been involved in numerous sectors of Armenia’s economy.” Kocharyan, in particular, emphasized the “dynamically developing” activities in such spheres as energy and transport. Gryzlov’s visit to Armenia is his first official visit to a foreign country in the capacity of Speaker of the newly elected State Duma. During one of his previous visits to Armenia in late 2004, Gryzlov stated, to controversial reaction, that “Armenia is Russia’s outpost in the South Caucasus”.

Source: http://armenianow.com/?action=viewAr...g=eng&IID=1170

Amount of Russian investments in Armenian economy grows

First, the Prime Minister congratulated Mr Gryzlov on the successful completion of Russia’s parliamentary elections of last December and wished the State Duma successful activity under the chairmanship of Mr. Gryzlov. Concerning the development of the Russian-Armenian partnership, Serzh Sargsyan stated that bilateral relations are on the upgrade currently, a significant growth is recorded in Russian investments into Armenia’s economy. Bilateral trade increased by about 60% in 2007. According to Serzh Sargsyan, our countries are cooperating actively on both governmental and parliamentary levels. Over 170 interstate, intergovernmental and interagency arrangements and agreements have been concluded between the Republic of Armenia and the Russian Federation over the past 15 years covering all spheres of mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries. Both sides have emphasized the importance of the frequently reciprocated contacts at various levels.

Boris Gryzlov stressed this was his first trip abroad after the parliamentary elections of Russia, which bore evidence of his country's keen interest in developing the cooperation with Armenia. He said to have maintained partnership ties with Serzh Sargsyan for many years now and wished him every success in the upcoming presidential election. In this context, the interlocutors have stressed that the need of holding free and fair elections in accordance with the international standards. The parties have also discussed questions relating to the furtherance of bilateral cooperation in the economic, transport and other fields. Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan briefed the guest on Armenia's current economic status and the development plans. The parties have indicated the importance of inter-party relationship. The head of Russia’s State Duma prioritized the establishment of cooperative ties between his Yedinaya Rossiya (United Russia) on the one hand, and the Republican Party of Armenia and the Prosperous Armenia Party, on the other hand, which form a majority in the National Assembly of Armenia. Relevant arrangements are due to be signed between these parties to that effect, the RA government’s press office reported.

Source: http://www.panarmenian.net/news/eng/?nid=24677

Boris Gryzlov: Russia-Armenia commodity turnover may reach $1 billion in 2008

Armenian President Robert Kocharian met Tuesday with Russian State Duma Chairman Boris Gryzlov. The President congratulated Mr Gryzlov on the victory in the December parliamentary elections. The top officials stressed the importance of the agreement signed by United Russia Party, the Republican Party of Armenia and Prosperous Armenia Party. They also referred to interparliamentary cooperation within international structures. President Kocharian noted that economic ties between the two states encourage bilateral cooperation and Russian investments in the Armenian economy. “According to experts, the commodity turnover between Armenia and Russia can reach $1 billion and will drive the relations to a new level,” Mr Gryzlov said, the RA leader’s press office said.

Source: http://www.panarmenian.net/news/eng/?nid=24676

[Merv]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

Armenian: in their defense, I think they think that if they just "submit," the West will finally leave them alone and the nightmare will end. The last 20 years for them have been one drawn out hell. The old enemies Germans/Austrians/Hungarians and the backstabbing French, British, and Americans smashed Yugoslavia to pieces, helped the Croats, Muslims, and Albanians kill/expell them out of their own homes, bombed them in 1995 and 1999, imposed economic and cultural sanctions, maligned them in the media, turned historical records about WWI and WWII upside down, dragged off their leaders to the Hague (some of whom died in custody due to "poor healthcare" (i.e. intentionally), such as Milosevic). So they're just hoping that if they do just *one more thing* like track down Mladic or sell their industries to the Germans, the EU will admit them as one of their own and stop abusing them. But for the EU/US it's never enough. It's really very much analogous to a battered woman (Serbia) and her child (Kosovo) who keeps going back to the abuser (West), hoping for "forgiveness" and "mercy" and hoping to not lose custody of said child - when what she really should be doing is grab the child, run away, and call the police (Russia).

[Armenian]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

Serb radical party leader Nikolic arrives in Moscow

Tomislav Nikolic, leader of Serbia's Radical Party, who is running in the second round of the country's presidential elections, arrives in Moscow Tuesday, a Serbian embassy spokesman said. During his two-day unofficial visit, Nikolic will discuss the situation surrounding the Serbian province of Kosovo, whose future independence is opposed by Belgrade. Nikolic is an ardent supporter of closer ties with Russia, including in the military sphere, and has expressed his appreciation for Moscow's consistent backing of Belgrade over the Kosovo issue. As a presidential contender, Nikolic's main rival is Serbian President Boris Tadic. Both politicians currently enjoy equal voter support in the run up to the February 3 elections. "The Kosovo problem could well push the Serbian electorate toward the radicals," said Konstantin Zatulin, director of the Institute for CIS Studies, adding that Russia was currently enjoying tremendous popularity among Serbians. Tadic held talks with Russia's leadership in Moscow last week. Russia's Gazprom Neft signed a deal on the purchase of a 51% stake in the Serbia state-owned oil monopoly Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS) during talks between the two countries' leaders on Friday. Russia and Serbia also signed an oil and natural gas cooperation agreement on the construction of the Serbian section of the South Stream gas pipeline system. Nikolic, seen as an anti-Western far-right figure, gained a five-point advantage in Sunday's first voting round, sparking concerns in the EU. Although the president's powers are limited in Serbia, the office has important symbolic significance.

Source: http://en.rian.ru/russia/20080129/97953542.html

Gryzlov, Nikolic discuss Kosovo, elections

Kosovo and the elections were central issues at Wednesday’s talks between State Duma speaker Boris Gryzlov and leader of the Serbian Radical Party Tomislav Nikolic, deputy speaker Alexander Babakov said. Babakov told journalists, “His position (Nikolic’s position) is that he will insist on expanding cooperation with Russia not only in the field of economy and culture but also in history.” “Russia is Serbia’s major partner,” Babakov quoted Nikolic as saying. “We’re very pleased that Mr. Nikolic represents those Serbians who respect Serbia’s sovereignty and don’t forget to maintain warm and close relations with Russia,” the Duma deputy speaker said. Nikolic, who was one of the leaders of the presidential race in Serbia after the first round of the elections, should return to Belgrade on Wednesday evening. He is expected to have debates with presidential candidate – incumbent Serbian President Boris Tadic.

Source: http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2....1874&PageNum=0

Foreign policy will change if I win: Serbia's Nikolic

With the second round of the Presidential election looming in Serbia, one of the candidates is in Moscow to meet Russia's political elite. Nationalist Tomislav Nikolic secured a win in the first round and he says he can repeat the success. Speaking to RT, Nikolic said if he is victorious, Serbia's foreign policy will be changed. "I have come to Moscow to thank Russia for its principled position on keeping Kosovo within Serbia and for the gas deal signed last week which will help Russian-Serbian friendship," he said. "In Serbia some think that this deal is proof of Russia's support of one candidate - the president. My visit is to refute this," Nikolic noted. "I think the results of the first round of the Presidential election will be repeated and I will win. In this case, we will change our foreign policy towards the European Union. There will be no more humiliation. We will demand Serbia be respected like any other country," he stressed. "As for Russia, Serbia has become its important strategic partner. We will expand and strengthen ties with Russia," Tomislav Nikolic said.

Source:

Serbian nationalist candidate in Moscow amid Kosovo wrangling

Serbia's nationalist presidential candidate, Tomislav Nikolic, held talks in Moscow Wednesday as a tug-of-war for influence in the Balkans intensified ahead of weekend run-off elections. Nikolic met President Vladimir Putin's likely successor, First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, as the head of a Serbian delegation that included Borislav Milosevic, brother of late Serbian nationalist leader Slobodan Milosevic. "We know you as a convinced supporter of developing friendly Russian-Serbian relations," said Medvedev, who has been declared by Putin as his choice to succeed him when Russians pick a new president at March 2 polls. "We've had a lot of good, positive news recently including on economic cooperation, on developing oil and gas cooperation," Medvedev said at the meeting, broadcast on Russian television. Nikolic thanked Medvedev and praised Borislav Milosevic, a former Yugoslav ambassador to Moscow, as a "symbol of the ties between Russia and Serbia," RIA Novosti reported. The visit reflected the prominent role played by Russia ahead of Serbia's run-off presidential election on Sunday between Nikolic and incumbent pro-European President Boris Tadic.

[...]

Source: http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5...9ECByd3Mg3ER7w

[Armenian]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

Russian army prepares for nuclear onslaught

Barely a month into the new year, the military have already attracted a lot of attention. Following a mild verbal skirmish over ABM components after the holidays, Russian and foreign generals have decided to talk in the open. In a move that mirrors recent discussion amongst Russia's own top brass, NATO's April summit in Bucharest is widely expected to discuss a report on a potential pre-emptive nuclear strike. According to The Daily Telegraph, the authors of the report are convinced there is a real risk that terrorists could lay their hands on weapons of mass destruction in the near or immediate future. To counter this, the alliance may consider suppressing the enemy with nuclear weapons.

Though the report is likely to cause controversy in NATO countries, the authors appear to be merely echoing an idea originally broached by Russian Chief of General Staff Yury Baluyevsky. Speaking at a meeting of the Academy of Military Sciences on January 19, Gen. Baluyevsky declared that force should be used not only in the course of hostilities, but also to demonstrate the readiness of leaders to uphold their national interests. "We are not going to attack anyone," he reassured his audience, "but we want all our partners to realize that Russia will use armed force to defend its own and its allies' sovereignty and territorial integrity. It may resort to a pre-emptive nuclear strike in cases specified by its doctrine."

It is strange that many esteemed domestic military experts consider this statement simply a repetition of Russia's old military doctrine, which allowed it to use nuclear weapons first. Under the 2000 doctrine, Russia is ready to use nuclear weapons not only in retaliation against a nuclear attack, as was previously the case, but in response to "a large-scale conventional aggression in a situation critical for the national security of the Russian Federation and its allies." This certainly broadens the rules of engagement, but still does not envisage a pre-emptive nuclear strike without hostilities. Gen. Balulevsky's announcement appears to change this, in which case Russia will need a new military doctrine. This is not a new task. In early March last year, the Security Council press service released a statement saying that the Security Council would revise the 2000 military doctrine to account for new realities. The statement added that the new doctrine would be drafted by the Security Council in conjunction with interested government bodies and a number of scientific institutions.

Baluyevsky thus made his recent statement at an organization which is quite suitable for the drafting of the new doctrine. If the new doctrine endorses the General Staff's nuclear ideas, we will have new armed forces, with all the ensuing consequences. First, these forces will become strictly offensive because of the very nature of a pre-emptive strike. This will require totally different mobilization plans and a new approach to recruiting for the Army and Navy. Considering the number and geography of military-political conflicts in which Russia is in some way involved, this will require the deployment of mobilized troops on a territory stretching from the Baltic Sea to the Pacific.

It is not difficult to predict the economic consequences Russia would face in this case. But let's come back to the Armed Forces. Permanent readiness to resolve tasks militarily - by offensive operations in an indefinitely vast number of directions - implies the permanent enhanced combat readiness of all units, without exception. Otherwise the very idea of a pre-emptive strike will not work. For such a policy to be effective, Russia should be ready to deal this strike from a broad diversity of geographical locations on its own territory, neutral air space, and the world's oceans. If Baluyevsky's words are heeded, Russia will have to equip all services of the Armed Forces with permanently combat-ready nuclear weapons. Nobody can guess who will use them first. This only concerns tactical, rather than strategic, nuclear weapons. It is clearly impossible to counter terrorist threats in the South-East direction, or neutralize U.S. ABM deployment in Europe with intercontinental ballistic missiles or their submarine counterparts.

In other words, Russia will need a very broad range of non-strategic nuclear weapons. Such weapons are designed to destroy battlefield-targets, rather than entire cities, and could take the form of medium and shorter-range missiles launched from air, land or sea, as well as artillery ammunition and nuclear demolition charges. Considering that Russia has a huge advantage over the United States in tactical warheads, bilateral relations could become quite complicated if we start deploying our weapons on the ground, in the air and at sea. It would be natural to ask why Russia is choosing the offensive option, and whether there are alternatives to it. But that is a subject for another discussion.

Source: http://en.rian.ru/analysis/20080129/97936766.html

[Armenian]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

First is was Gary Kasparov, now its this Aleksanian character. What an embarrassment...

Russia's Khodorkovsky on Hunger Strike

Imprisoned Russian oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky launched a hunger strike Wednesday to protest authorities' refusal to give his jailed ex-lawyer AIDS medication. Khodorkovsky accused officials of trying to extract incriminating, false confessions from the former lawyer, Vasily Aleksanian, and denying him AIDS treatment until he cooperates. Aleksanian, who attended preliminary hearings Wednesday in his own trial on charges of embezzlement, money-laundering and tax evasion, has said authorities have refused him essential medicines. He also accused authorities of deliberately putting him in conditions that exacerbated his illness after he refused to sign false confessions against Khodorkovsky. Russia's Supreme Court last week rejected Aleksanian's plea for transferral to a civilian hospital. Khodorkovsky, in a letter posted on his supporters' Web site Wednesday, said Aleksanian's plight left him no choice but to launch a hunger strike. "I was put before an impossible moral choice: Confess to the crimes I never committed to save his life but break lives of others listed as my "accomplices," or defend my rights ... and become the cause of possible death of my lawyer Aleksanian," Khodorkovsky wrote in a letter to Russia's chief prosecutor. "I was long thinking about it and I can't make a choice. I'm forced to step outside the procedural frames and inform you about the start of my hunger strike," he said in the letter, which he handed to authorities Tuesday. Khodorkovsky's lawyer, Yuri Schmidt, said on Ekho Moskvy radio that Khodorkovsky was refusing to take both food and liquids. Khodorkovsky, once Russia's richest man, was arrested in 2003 on fraud and tax evasion charges that critics called Kremlin revenge for his criticism and apparent political ambitions. He was convicted in 2005 and sentenced to eight years in prison, and his Yukos oil company was eventually transferred to state hands.

Source: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5i...sSytQD8UG62PO0

[Armenian]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

Russian Bear bombers join final drills in N. Atlantic

Russia’s naval task force exercises in the Atlantic. Video: http://en.rian.ru/video/20080128/97826161.html

Six Tu-95MS Bear strategic bombers joined on Tuesday a Russian naval task force in the Atlantic to take part in the final stage of the current naval exercise, an Air Force spokesman said. During the exercises, from January 28 to February 2, Russian pilots will practice reconnaissance, missile and bomb strikes on mock adversary naval force, and will fly simulated air combat and air patrolling missions. "Six Tu-95MS, eight Tu-22M3 Backfire C strategic bombers and two A-50 Mainstay airborne early warning aircraft have flown today to join the final phase of the current naval exercises [in the Atlantic]," Colonel Alexander Drobyshevsky said. A total of 40 aircraft, including Tu-160 Blackjacks, Il-78 Midas aerial tankers, MiG-31 Foxhound long-range interceptors and Su-27 Flanker frontline fighter aircraft will participate in the drills, he said. The aircraft are expected to fly at least 40 training sorties during the exercise. Drobyshevsky reiterated that all flights by Russian aircraft would be performed in strict compliance with international rules on the use of air space over neutral waters, without violating the borders of other states. Russia's naval task force, comprising the Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier, the Udaloy-Class destroyers Admiral Levchenko and Admiral Chabanenko, as well as auxiliary vessels, is currently on a two-month tour of duty in the Mediterranean Sea and the North Atlantic. The flagship of Russia's Black Sea Fleet, the Moskva guided missile cruiser, joined up with Russian naval warships in the Mediterranean on January 18 to participate in the current maneuvers. The current operation is the first large-scale Russian Navy exercise in the Atlantic in 15 years. All combat ships and aircraft involved carry full combat ammunition loads. Commander of Russia's Northern Fleet Vice-Admiral Nikolai Maksimov, who is heading the task force, earlier said that the current tour of duty in the Mediterranean, which started on December 5, was aimed at ensuring Russia's naval presence "in key operational areas of the world's oceans" and establishing conditions for secure Russian maritime navigation.

Source: http://en.rian.ru/russia/20080129/97956369.html

Over 40 Russian planes to take part in naval drills in Atlantic

Over 40 aircraft of Russia's Air Force will take part in the final stage of a naval exercise in the Atlantic starting on Monday, an aide to the Air Force commander said. "During the exercises, from January 28 to February 2, Russian pilots will practice reconnaissance, missile and bomb strikes on the [theoretical] enemy's naval task force, and will conduct air fights and air patrolling," Colonel Alexander Drobyshevsky said. He said two A-50 Mainstay airborne early warning aircraft and four Tu-22M3 Backfire C strategic bombers have already flown to the Atlantic to join the naval exercises. Tu-160 Blackjacks, Tu-95MS Bears, Il-78 Midas aerial tankers, MiG-31 Foxhound long-range interceptors and Su-27 Flanker frontline fighter aircraft will also participate in the drills, he said. Drobyshevsky said all flights by Russian aircraft would be performed in strict compliance with international rules for the use of air space over neutral waters, without violating the borders of other states. Russia's naval task force, comprising the Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier, the Udaloy-Class destroyers Admiral Levchenko and Admiral Chabanenko, as well as auxiliary vessels, is currently on a two-month tour of duty in the Mediterranean Sea and the North Atlantic. The flagship of Russia's Black Sea Fleet, the Moskva guided missile cruiser, joined up with Russian naval warships in the Mediterranean on January 18 to participate in the current maneuvers. The current operation is the first large-scale Russian Navy exercise in the Atlantic in 15 years. All combat ships and aircraft involved carry full combat ammunition loads. Commander of Russia's Northern Fleet Vice-Admiral Nikolai Maksimov, who is heading the task force, earlier said that the current tour of duty to the Mediterranean, which started on December 5, was aimed at ensuring Russia's naval presence "in key operational areas of the world's oceans" and establishing conditions for secure Russian maritime navigation.

Source: http://en.rian.ru/russia/20080128/97846223.html

Russia to rearrange troops due to U.S. missile shield

Russia's Defense Ministry plans to change the configuration of troops in Kaliningrad in response to U.S. missile shield plans in Central Europe, a high-ranking army official said on Wednesday. "The General Staff and the main combat training department of the Russian Armed Forces are deciding how we will configure the troops," said Lt. Gen. Vladimir Shamanov, who heads the Armed Forces combat training directorate. The general did not indicate whether the troops in the Kaliningrad Region, Russia's Baltic exclave which borders on Poland, will be substantially reinforced. The United States is planning to deploy 10 missile interceptors in Poland and a radar in the Czech Republic to avert possible strikes from "rogue" states, such as Iran. Russia has fervently opposed Washington's plans, saying the European shield would destroy the strategic military balance and threaten Russia's national interests. Shamanov also said over 230 billion rubles ($9.4 billion) had been allocated for Armed Forces combat training in 2008.

Source: http://en.rian.ru/russia/20080130/98031412.html

Russia's new envoy to NATO presents Scheffer with tomahawk

Recently-appointed Russian envoy to NATO, Dmitry Rogozin, presented Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer with a special souvenir tomahawk on Monday. Rogozin began his work at the organization's HQ in Brussels on Monday. He gave Scheffer an official letter and during a meeting an inlaid war tomahawk, especially made in Russia. Rogozin said he hoped that the NATO secretary general would bury the hatchet as a sign of "putting an end to all conflicts between Russia and NATO." "He is holding the tomahawk and now we have to find a spade to bury this hatchet as deep as possible in the ground," Rogozin said. Russia and the Western military bloc have scaled down military cooperation, but still conduct anti-terrorism patrols in the Mediterranean, exchange intelligence data and information on each other's air movements, and cooperate in the missile defense sphere and in fighting drug trafficking from Afghanistan. The Russian official also said that his meeting with Scheffer lasted an hour instead of the planned 30 minutes. Last Sunday he reiterated that, "Russia and NATO should not exchange mutually unacceptable conditions, but focus on progress in areas that ensure positive results in military and non-military cooperation." He added that NATO had issues that could not be solved without Russia's participation, in particular the operation against Taliban forces in Afghanistan. "Our main goal is to respect each other's interests and make the world more predictable and secure," the Russian diplomat said. Rogozin, 44, who was appointed to the post by President Vladimir Putin on January 9, will attend a session of the Russia-NATO Council on January 30.

Source: http://en.rian.ru/world/20080128/97885149.html

[Armenian]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

Moscow region, Armenia sign cooperation agreement

The governments of Armenia and the Moscow region signed a cooperation agreement on Wednesday. The signing of the document was in the centre of Moscow region Governor Boris Gromov’s one-day visit to Yerevan. When receiving the Moscow region governor, Armenian President Robert Kocharyan said he was satisfied with the signed agreement. He is confident that the document will give an additional impetus to the development of Russian-Armenian cooperation. The Moscow region has a big potential and its authorities are ready to tap it in order to enhance Russian-Armenian relations, Gromov said. During his meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Serzh Sarkisyan, the governor discussed further development of bilateral interaction. The interlocutors pointed to the key role of contacts between the Russian and Armenian regions in that cooperation. The Moscow region and Armenia have traditionally good relations, Gromov said. The signed agreement envisages the setting up of working groups in various spheres and specific programs of cooperation, including agriculture, housing construction, and culture, the governor said. Our main task is to create favourable conditions for the development of business, economic, cultural and social contacts, Gromov said. In 2007, trade turnover between Armenia and the Moscow region had neared 40 million U.S. dollars, the governor reminded, adding, “There is no point in saying that this index is high.”

Source: http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2....4347&PageNum=0