themoscowtimes--2020-12-31--2020: The People Russia Lost

2020: The People Russia Lost

Vsevolod Chaplin , the first Chairman of the Synodal Department for Church-Society Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate , and a member of the Patriarchal Council for Culture , died in Moscow on Jan. 26 at the age of 51 .
Born in Moscow in 1968 , he graduated from the Moscow Theological Seminary .
Chaplin worked within the church hierarchy for many years and was chairman of the Synodal Department for the Cooperation of Church and Society of the Moscow Patriarchate from 2009 to 2015 .
He held extremely conservative and nationalist views .
Dmitry Yazov , the last appointed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on Feb. 25 in Moscow after a long illness .
With a career extending from the Siege of Leningrad to the 1991 August Coup , Yazov was one of the most decorated and controversial Russian military figures of the twentieth century .
A dedicated communist and staunch conservative , Yazov disapproved of perestroika and was part of the “ Gang of Eight , ” a committee of high-ranking Soviet officials who fomented the 1991 coup against general secretary Mikhail Gorbachev .
He was imprisoned for 18 months before being granted amnesty by President @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was sentenced in absentia to 10 years imprisonment for war crimes relating to his involvement in the violent Soviet military offense against members of the 1991 Lithuainian pro-independence movement .
The last Marshal of the Soviet Union , he was buried in the Federal Military Memorial Cemetery .
Russian opposition activist Sergei Mokhnatkin , who alleged abuse during his years in prison , died on May 29 after a long illness at age 66 .
An engineer by profession , Mokhnatkin attempted to defend a woman being beaten by police during a protest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2009 .
Although he had not participated in the demonstration , he was twice sentenced for attacking police to jail terms totaling seven years .
In prison he alleged beatings by guards , which eventually led to his death , according to his widow .
At the age of 96 , Yury Orlov , a Soviet physicist , dissident and one of the founders of Russia ’ s oldest human rights organizations , died on Sept. 27 .
A prominent physicist and educator , Orlov was sentenced to a Gulag camp in 1977 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ He was freed in 1986 , stripped of Soviet citizenship and deported to the United States as part of a prisoner swap .
He was a senior scientist and professor of physics and government at Cornell University until his passing .
Orlov co-founded the Soviet branch of Amnesty International before founding the Moscow Helsinki Group with other dissidents in 1976 .
Teodor Shanin , a renowned scholar and president of the Moscow School for the Social and Economic Sciences — “ Shaninka ” — died on Feb.4 in Moscow at the age of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Poland ) in 1930 , Shanin was exiled to Siberia together with his mother in 1941 following the arrest of his father .
He would eventually study in Poland , France , Palestine , and the United Kingdom , where he completed a Ph.D. in 1970 .
He is considered the originator of peasant studies and an innovator in higher education in Russia .
Natalia Bonk , a renowned Russian linguist and author of the most popular English textbook in the Soviet Union , died at the age of 96 on Nov. 21 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ years at the Russian Foreign Trade Academy , she and her colleagues wrote a unique English textbook “ that helped millions of Soviet and then Russian people '' to master foreign language , the Gorky Literary Institute said in a statement .
In the 1990s , she created another iconic textbook `` English Step By Step , '' which is still the standard reference book for English-language learners .
Her books were so popular in the Soviet Union that people puts ads in local newspapers to barter valuables for copies of her textbooks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Russian literature into English , as well as a distinguished writer and art critic .
She was best known for her translations of novels by Tatyana Tolstaya and Vladimir Sorokin , as well as her complete translation of Marina Tsvetayeva 's “ Earthly Signs : Moscow Diaries , 1917-1922.
” She was one of translators and editors of A-Ya , the first journal covering underground Soviet art , and wrote and translated extensively about the topic .
At the end of her life she was an editor at Art in America .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wilder Prize for Translation of the American Academy of Arts and Letters .
She died on cancer on Feb. 15 at the age of 65 .
On March 17 , writer and political activist Eduard Limonov died in Moscow of cancer at age 77 .
Limonov was born Eduard Veniaminovich Savenko in 1943 in Dzerzhinsk .
After moving to Moscow in 1967 , he supported himself in a variety of manual jobs and self-published poetry and prose .
In 1974 , he emigrated to the U.S. , where he wrote the ground-breaking book @ @ @ @ @ @ @ !
” He was author of more than 15 works of fiction and hundreds of articles .
Upon his return to Russia in the early 1990s , Limonov became involved in politics , founding the right-wing , nationalist National Bolshevik Party and then , after it was disbanded by court order , the Other Russia party .
A polarizing figure , Limonov was on the side of Serbs , Abhazians , the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic ; he defended the Berkut officers who shot protesters on the Maidan in 2013 and supported @ @ @ @ @ @ @ war for separatism in the Donbass .
He was buried in a private ceremony in Moscow .
Viktor Chizhikov , the Russian illustrator behind the memorable Mishka bear mascot of the 1980 Moscow Olympics , died on July 20 at the age of 84 .
The publisher AST Deti announced his death on Facebook , calling him the `` brightest representative of the post-war generation of book illustrators . ''
Born in Moscow to architect parents , Chizhikov started out as a cartoonist whose work appeared in the satirical magazine Krokodil , aimed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ numerous children 's publications with print-runs of millions .
He illustrated a Soviet version of Hugh Lofting 's `` Doctor Dolittle '' as well as the Soviet versions of A.A. Milne 's “ Winnie the Pooh ” books .
Irina Antonova , head of the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts for 52 years , died at the age of 98 on Nov. 30 from complications caused by the coronavirus .
An expert in Renaissance art who graduated from the Moscow State University art history department , she joined the museum in 1945 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ museum from 1961 to 2013 , developing landmark cooperation with foreign museums , bringing modern art to Moscow , and exhibiting Russian avant-garde art that had been warehoused in the context of international movements .
She was a vocal opponent of restitution , and after first-hand experience with the Nazi destruction and looting of Russian art and architecture during the war , believed the museum had a right to whatever the Soviet army shipped to the Soviet Union at the end of the war .
This included the “ Schliemann gold , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1994 .
Antonova opened the museum to concerts and events , and she expanded it to include the Museum of American and European Art , the Museum of Private Collections , and a children 's art center .
She was buried in the Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow next to her husband and mother .
The acclaimed Russian conductor Alexander Vedernikov , chief conductor and music director of the St. Petersburg Mikhailovsky Theater and the Royal Danish Opera , died in Moscow on Oct. 29 due to the coronavirus .
He was 56 years @ @ @ @ @ @ @ singer Alexander Vedernikov and the pianist Natalia Gureeva , Vedernikov had an illustrious career .
He began the Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Musical Theater in 1988 , then conducted the Tchaikovsky Grand Symphony Orchestra before serving as the chief conductor and music director of the Bolshoi Theater from 2001 to 2009 .
For the next decade Vedernikov mostly conducted European orchestras and accepted the position at the Mikhailovsky Theater only last year .

In 2020 the number of deaths in Russia of prominent and beloved public figures was devastatingly high, many from the coronavirus, but some from other causes as well. The performing arts were particularly hard hit by Covid-19, since by the nature of the professions, people at work cannot be masked or socially distant. We honor the memories of the many people who passed away this year.
State and society
Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin Andrei Nikerichev / Moskva News Agency
Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin Vsevolod Chaplin, the first Chairman of the Synodal Department for Church-Society Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, and a member of the Patriarchal Council for Culture, died in Moscow on Jan. 26 at the age of 51. Born in Moscow in 1968, he graduated from the Moscow Theological Seminary. Chaplin worked within the church hierarchy for many years and was chairman of the Synodal Department for the Cooperation of Church and Society of the Moscow Patriarchate from 2009 to 2015. He held extremely conservative and nationalist views.
Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Yazov Kremlin.ru
Dmitry Yazov Dmitry Yazov, the last appointed Marshal of the Soviet Union, died on Feb. 25 in Moscow after a long illness. With a career extending from the Siege of Leningrad to the 1991 August Coup, Yazov was one of the most decorated and controversial Russian military figures of the twentieth century. A dedicated communist and staunch conservative, Yazov disapproved of perestroika and was part of the “Gang of Eight,” a committee of high-ranking Soviet officials who fomented the 1991 coup against general secretary Mikhail Gorbachev. He was imprisoned for 18 months before being granted amnesty by President Boris Yeltsin. In 2019, Yazov was sentenced in absentia to 10 years imprisonment for war crimes relating to his involvement in the violent Soviet military offense against members of the 1991 Lithuainian pro-independence movement. The last Marshal of the Soviet Union, he was buried in the Federal Military Memorial Cemetery.
Sergei Mokhnatkin Sergei Karpov / TASS
Sergei Mokhnatkin Russian opposition activist Sergei Mokhnatkin, who alleged abuse during his years in prison, died on May 29 after a long illness at age 66. An engineer by profession, Mokhnatkin attempted to defend a woman being beaten by police during a protest for the right to peaceful assembly in 2009. Although he had not participated in the demonstration, he was twice sentenced for attacking police to jail terms totaling seven years. In prison he alleged beatings by guards, which eventually led to his death, according to his widow.
Sergei Khrushchev Anton Novoderezhkin / TASS
Sergei Khrushchev Sergei Khrushchev, the son of former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, has died in the United States at age 84, his granddaughter told the RBC news website Thursday. His granddaughter Nina Khrushcheva told RBC that Khrushchev died in the city of Cranston, R.I., but did not disclose the cause of his death. A noted scientist and author who developed guidance systems for missiles, submarines, spacecraft and moon vehicles as a rocket engineer in Moscow, he is survived by his wife Valentina and son Sergei.
Yury Orlov Megan Dirks / Wikicommons
Yury Orlov At the age of 96, Yury Orlov, a Soviet physicist, dissident and one of the founders of Russia’s oldest human rights organizations, died on Sept. 27. A prominent physicist and educator, Orlov was sentenced to a Gulag camp in 1977 for “anti-Soviet agitation and propaganda.” He was freed in 1986, stripped of Soviet citizenship and deported to the United States as part of a prisoner swap. He was a senior scientist and professor of physics and government at Cornell University until his passing. Orlov co-founded the Soviet branch of Amnesty International before founding the Moscow Helsinki Group with other dissidents in 1976.
Yevgeny Shaposhnikov Dmitry Sokolov / TASS
Yevgeny Shaposhnikov On Dec. 8, Yevgeny Shaposhnikov, the last Defense Minister of the Soviet Union and a Marshal of Aviation, died at age 78 from Covid-19. After an illustrious career in the Soviet Air Force, Shaposhnikov spoke out against the State Emergency Committee and its coup attempt in 1991. He held a variety of posts in the Yeltsin and Putin administrations, including as a presidential assistant for space and aviation development. He also was an adviser and board member of civil aviation companies like Aeroflot and Sukhoi.
Boris Alexandrov Youtube
Boris Alexandrov Boris Alexandrov, founder and CEO of the Rosagrocomplex group – one of the biggest Russian dairy producers - died at the age of 73 from Covid on Nov. 30. Most famous for his very popular line of glazed sweet cheese souffles in packaging that harkened back to the pre-Revolutionary era, Alexandrov worked for two decades as a doctor before radically switching professions. He was, until his illness, a vocal Covid-denier.
Academia and sciences
Teodor Shanin hse.ru
Teodor Shanin Teodor Shanin, a renowned scholar and president of the Moscow School for the Social and Economic Sciences — “Shaninka” — died on Feb.4 in Moscow at the age of 89. Born in Vilnius (then Poland) in 1930, Shanin was exiled to Siberia together with his mother in 1941 following the arrest of his father. He would eventually study in Poland, France, Palestine, and the United Kingdom, where he completed a Ph.D. in 1970. He is considered the originator of peasant studies and an innovator in higher education in Russia.
Alexander Belayev Russian Planet
Alexander Belayev Russian TV personality and popular weather forecaster Alexander Belyaev died on July 20 in Moscow. Belyaev had reportedly been suffering from cancer since 2011. A specialist in hydrology, he worked in research institutes until the late 1980s, when he founded a company that produced weather infographics for the Russian media. Later he was invited to go on air for channel NTV, where he became the country’s most popular weatherman.
Natalia Bonk trud.ru
Natalia Bonk Natalia Bonk, a renowned Russian linguist and author of the most popular English textbook in the Soviet Union, died at the age of 96 on Nov. 21 in Moscow. After working for many years at the Russian Foreign Trade Academy, she and her colleagues wrote a unique English textbook “that helped millions of Soviet and then Russian people" to master foreign language, the Gorky Literary Institute said in a statement. In the 1990s, she created another iconic textbook "English Step By Step," which is still the standard reference book for English-language learners. Her books were so popular in the Soviet Union that people puts ads in local newspapers to barter valuables for copies of her textbooks.
Culture
Konstantin Bromberg imdb.com
Konstantin Bromberg Soviet and Russian filmmaker Konstantin Bromberg — director of the children’s cult movies “The Adventures of the Robot Electronic” and “Wizards” — died in the United States at the age of 80 on Jan. 10. This was announced by Mikhail Idov, Russian director and screenwriter. Bromberg was born on Oct. 17, 1939 in Kharkov, Ukraine and graduated from the screenwriting department of the State Film School in 1965. He worked as a journalist and television director.
Jamey Gambrell Facebook
Jamey Gambrell Jamey Gambrell was a renowned translator of Russian literature into English, as well as a distinguished writer and art critic. She was best known for her translations of novels by Tatyana Tolstaya and Vladimir Sorokin, as well as her complete translation of Marina Tsvetayeva's “Earthly Signs: Moscow Diaries, 1917-1922.” She was one of translators and editors of A-Ya, the first journal covering underground Soviet art, and wrote and translated extensively about the topic. At the end of her life she was an editor at Art in America. She was a winner of the Thornton Wilder Prize for Translation of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. She died on cancer on Feb. 15 at the age of 65.
Eduard Limonov Anton Belitsky / TASS
Eduard Limonov On March 17, writer and political activist Eduard Limonov died in Moscow of cancer at age 77. Limonov was born Eduard Veniaminovich Savenko in 1943 in Dzerzhinsk. After moving to Moscow in 1967, he supported himself in a variety of manual jobs and self-published poetry and prose. In 1974, he emigrated to the U.S., where he wrote the ground-breaking book “It’s Me, Eddie!” He was author of more than 15 works of fiction and hundreds of articles. Upon his return to Russia in the early 1990s, Limonov became involved in politics, founding the right-wing, nationalist National Bolshevik Party and then, after it was disbanded by court order, the Other Russia party. A polarizing figure, Limonov was on the side of Serbs, Abhazians, the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic; he defended the Berkut officers who shot protesters on the Maidan in 2013 and supported both the annexation of Crimea and the war for separatism in the Donbass. He was buried in a private ceremony in Moscow.
Victor Chizhikov Wikicommons
Viktor Chizhikov Viktor Chizhikov, the Russian illustrator behind the memorable Mishka bear mascot of the 1980 Moscow Olympics, died on July 20 at the age of 84. The publisher AST Deti announced his death on Facebook, calling him the "brightest representative of the post-war generation of book illustrators." Born in Moscow to architect parents, Chizhikov started out as a cartoonist whose work appeared in the satirical magazine Krokodil, aimed at adults, as well as in numerous children's publications with print-runs of millions. He illustrated a Soviet version of Hugh Lofting's "Doctor Dolittle" as well as the Soviet versions of A.A. Milne's “Winnie the Pooh” books.
Alexei Mikheyev State TV, music and radiocompany
Alexei Mikheyev The prominent writer and literary critic Alexei Mikheev died on Oct. 20 in Moscow. He was the author of many books on a range of topics and in a variety of genres, including "Meaning and Categorization” and "Dictionary of Russia. For Tourists and Others." Mikheyev was a well-known presenter and discussant on the radio station Ekho Moskvy and other media and served as editor-in-chief of Foreign Literature magazine. From 2009 to 2019 he was the editor-in-chief of the online source "21st Century Dictionaries."
Irina Antonova Pavel Smertin / TASS
Irina Antonova Irina Antonova, head of the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts for 52 years, died at the age of 98 on Nov. 30 from complications caused by the coronavirus. An expert in Renaissance art who graduated from the Moscow State University art history department, she joined the museum in 1945 and never left. She headed the museum from 1961 to 2013, developing landmark cooperation with foreign museums, bringing modern art to Moscow, and exhibiting Russian avant-garde art that had been warehoused in the context of international movements. She was a vocal opponent of restitution, and after first-hand experience with the Nazi destruction and looting of Russian art and architecture during the war, believed the museum had a right to whatever the Soviet army shipped to the Soviet Union at the end of the war. This included the “Schliemann gold,” which the museum admitted having only in 1994. Antonova opened the museum to concerts and events, and she expanded it to include the Museum of American and European Art, the Museum of Private Collections, and a children's art center. She was buried in the Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow next to her husband and mother.
Performing arts
Irina Skobtseva Mosfilm
Irina Skobtseva Soviet and Russian actress Irina Skobtseva, wife of the famous Soviet actor and film director Sergei Bondarchuk, died at the age of 93 on Oct. 20. She made her screen debut in 1955 as Desdemona in Sergei Yutkevich's film “Othello.” She starred in almost 80 Soviet movies including such iconic films as "The Gadfly"; "Zigzag of Success"; "White Nights", "Ordinary Man", "Mary Poppins, Goodbye", "Velvet Season", and "War and Peace."
Alexander Vedernikov The acclaimed Russian conductor Alexander Vedernikov, chief conductor and music director of the St. Petersburg Mikhailovsky Theater and the Royal Danish Opera, died in Moscow on Oct. 29 due to the coronavirus. He was 56 years old. Son of the famous opera singer Alexander Vedernikov and the pianist Natalia Gureeva, Vedernikov had an illustrious career. He began the Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Musical Theater in 1988, then conducted the Tchaikovsky Grand Symphony Orchestra before serving as the chief conductor and music director of the Bolshoi Theater from 2001 to 2009. For the next decade Vedernikov mostly conducted European orchestras and accepted the position at the Mikhailovsky Theater only last year.
Mikhail Zhvanetsky Vyacheslav Prokofyev / TASS
Mikhail Zhvanetsky Beloved Soviet-era satirist Mikhail Zhvanetsky died from an unknown cause on Nov. 6 at age 86. Born in the Soviet Ukrainian city of Odessa on March 6, 1934, Zhvanetsky began performing monologues skewering everyday life in the Soviet Union in the 1960s. Zhvanetsky’s writing and performing career has earned him the honorary titles of People’s Artist of Russia and People’s Artist of Ukraine, in addition to numerous other awards and orders. He has retained popularity after the collapse of the Soviet Union with his caustic but light-hearted humor that stayed relevant in the modern age.
Armen Dzhigarkhanyan Andrei Lyubimov / Moskva News Agency
Armen Dzhigarkhanyan Soviet and Russian actor Dzhigarkhanyan died on Nov. 14 at the age of 85. Born in 1935 in Yerevan, Armenia he graduated from the Yerevan Art and Theater Institute before launching his illustrious career in theater and cinema. In film he was most famous for "Crane"; "Hello, It's Me!"; "The Meeting Place Cannot Be Changed"; and "Hello, I Am Your Aunt!" Dzhigarkhanyan was president and artistic director of the Moscow Drama Theater since 1996.
Roman Viktyuk TASS
Roman Viktyuk The renowned Russian theater director Roman Viktyuk passed away on Nov. 17 from coronavirus at the age of 84. He was the director of the Roman Viktyuk Theater in Moscow, which was famous for its vibrant, edgy, ebullient productions. Over his career he staged more than a hundred performances and several dozen TV films in many countries. He was buried in Lviv, Ukraine, where he was born.
Georgy Gavrilov ruskino.ru
Georgy Gavrilov The television producer, director and actor Georgii Gavrilov died on Nov. 24 from coronavirus. He was 60 years old. After working as an actor in his youth, Gavrilov went behind the camera to direct and produce many television projects for Discovery, MTV and HBO as well as for the Russian media. He also directed television projects for Russian media and nearly 200 music videos for Russian and foreign artists, including for Mariah Carey. He was buried in Moscow.
Valentin Gaft Sergei Savostyanov / TASS
Valentin Gaft Popular Soviet and Russian actor Valentin Gaft died on Dec. 12 at the age of 85 after suffering a long illness. Gaft was born in 1935 in Moscow and graduated from the Moscow Art Theater School in 1957. During his long and productive career, he worked at many Moscow theaters before joining Sovremennik in 1969, where he worked until 2019. He had roles in such iconic Soviet-era movies such as ”Centaurs” (1979); "The Sorceress" (1982); “Through Main Street with an Orchestra” (1986); "Put In a Word for the Poor Hussar" (1987). But he was most famous for playing Chairman Sidorkin in the iconic Eldar Ryazanov comedy “Garage” (1980). He was buried at the Troekurovskoe cemetery in Moscow.
Alexander Kurlyandsky Souzmultfilm, Alexei Kobelev / Wikicommons


themoscowtimes--2020-12-31--Putin Business Ally Vows to Pursue Libel Claim Against Navalny

Prigozhin 's Concord catering company said in a statement it was seeking 840,000 euros ( $ 900,000 ) in damages as it looks to `` defend its honor , dignity and commercial reputation .
A company run by Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin , purportedly close to President Vladimir Putin , on Wednesday said he was pursuing a libel settlement against opposition leader Alexei Navalny .
`` The total claims amount to 77 million rubles ( more than 840,000 euros ) , '' Concord stated in response to a request for information from the Interfax news agency .
Prigozhin , 59 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ legal settlement against Navalny 's Anti-Corruption Foundation after it accused his catering firm of supplying sub-standard food to schools and not meeting sanitary standards .
Concord also provides catering services to the Kremlin , earning Prigozhin the nickname of `` Putin 's Chef . ''
A Moscow court in October ordered Navalny , currently in Germany where he was taken for treatment following an alleged poisoning in August while on an investigation in Siberia , to pay damages .
A thorn in the flesh of Putin and his government , Navalny has promised @ @ @ @ @ @ @ saw Russian authorities open a criminal probe into Navalny , alleging he used more than 356 million rubles ( $ 4.8 million ) of donations to his organizations for personal purposes including holidays abroad .
The Investigative Committee , which probes major crimes , said in a statement that the money was part of more than 588 million rubles Navalny had raised `` exclusively '' for his nonprofit organizations , including the Anti-Corruption Fund .
The charge carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison .

Prigozhin's Concord catering company said in a statement it was seeking 840,000 euros ($900,000) in damages as it looks to "defend its honor, dignity and commercial reputation.
A company run by Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin, purportedly close to President Vladimir Putin, on Wednesday said he was pursuing a libel settlement against opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
"The total claims amount to 77 million rubles (more than 840,000 euros)," Concord stated in response to a request for information from the Interfax news agency.
Prigozhin, 59, is demanding damages following an August legal settlement against Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation after it accused his catering firm of supplying sub-standard food to schools and not meeting sanitary standards.
Concord also provides catering services to the Kremlin, earning Prigozhin the nickname of "Putin's Chef."
A Moscow court in October ordered Navalny, currently in Germany where he was taken for treatment following an alleged poisoning in August while on an investigation in Siberia, to pay damages.
A thorn in the flesh of Putin and his government, Navalny has promised to return to his homeland.
Tuesday saw Russian authorities open a criminal probe into Navalny, alleging he used more than 356 million rubles ($4.8 million) of donations to his organizations for personal purposes including holidays abroad.
The Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, said in a statement that the money was part of more than 588 million rubles Navalny had raised "exclusively" for his nonprofit organizations, including the Anti-Corruption Fund.
The charge carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison.


themoscowtimes--2020-12-30--Outspoken Moscow Theologian Defrocked by Orthodox Church

Protodeacon Andrei Kuraev , a well-known radio and television personality whose views on homosexuality , blasphemy and Russia ’ s Orthodox hierarchy have made him one of the country ’ s best-known religious figures , had described Alexander Ageykin , the head of a Moscow cathedral who died of the coronavirus in April , as a “ dumb careerist ” on his LiveJournal blog .
The Russian Orthodox Church has defrocked one of the country ’ s most prominent theologians after he was found to have slandered a fellow priest who died from Covid-19 .
The Moscow Episcopal Court on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ changed his ways ” since receiving a warning in 2015 and concluded that his public statements accusing the Church hierarchy of “ organizing a schism ” were blasphemous .
The decision to defrock Kuraev — who described the move to The Insider news website as his “ canonical murder ” and “ a New Year ’ s present for Patriarch Kirill ” — must be approved by the Patriarch , the highest authority in the Russian Orthodox Church .
Kuraev has long been a polarizing figure in Russian Christianity .
In 2013 the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ gay lobby ” at the heart of the Orthodox Church , after which he was dismissed from his teaching position at the Moscow Theological Academy .
His public pronouncements — which have included criticism of Islam , legal restrictions on blasphemy and Russia ’ s 2014 annexation of Crimea — have made him one of the Orthodox ’ s Church ’ s internet-friendly figures , with over 70,000 Facebook followers .

Protodeacon Andrei Kuraev, a well-known radio and television personality whose views on homosexuality, blasphemy and Russia’s Orthodox hierarchy have made him one of the country’s best-known religious figures, had described Alexander Ageykin, the head of a Moscow cathedral who died of the coronavirus in April, as a “dumb careerist” on his LiveJournal blog.
The Russian Orthodox Church has defrocked one of the country’s most prominent theologians after he was found to have slandered a fellow priest who died from Covid-19.
The Moscow Episcopal Court on Tuesday found that Kuraev had not “changed his ways” since receiving a warning in 2015 and concluded that his public statements accusing the Church hierarchy of “organizing a schism” were blasphemous.
The decision to defrock Kuraev — who described the move to The Insider news website as his “canonical murder” and “a New Year’s present for Patriarch Kirill” — must be approved by the Patriarch, the highest authority in the Russian Orthodox Church.
Kuraev has long been a polarizing figure in Russian Christianity.
In 2013 the outspoken theologian alleged the existence of a “gay lobby” at the heart of the Orthodox Church, after which he was dismissed from his teaching position at the Moscow Theological Academy.
His public pronouncements — which have included criticism of Islam, legal restrictions on blasphemy and Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea — have made him one of the Orthodox’s Church’s internet-friendly figures, with over 70,000 Facebook followers.


themoscowtimes--2020-12-31--Putin Urges Unity in 2021 as Second Wave Batters Russia

Appearing in front of the Kremlin for an address to be broadcast just before midnight in each of Russia 's 11 time zones , Putin acknowledged that a second wave of infections is continuing to batter the country .
President Vladimir Putin in his New Year 's speech on Thursday urged Russians to unite in the face of the country 's battle with the coronavirus pandemic .
`` Unfortunately the epidemic has not yet been completely stopped .
The fight against it does not stop for a minute , '' he said on state-run channel Rossiya 1 , which broadcast @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Far East ( 12:00 p.m. GMT ) .
The president , who wore a black coat over a white shirt with a red tie , added that many medical workers would be `` on duty this festive night '' and called on everyone else `` not to retreat in the face of difficulties , to preserve our unity . ''
The longtime Russian leader said in his 17th New Year 's address he was convinced that together Russians could `` overcome everything '' and `` restore normal life . ''
Unlike many European @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of strict nationwide lockdown it introduced this spring in the hopes of supporting a struggling economy .
While some major cities have reduced in-office workers and obliged bars and restaurants to close early , most regions have limited restrictions to reducing mass gatherings and requiring mask-wearing in public places .
But many Russians flout social distancing guidelines and fatalities from Covid-19 have ticked up in recent weeks .
Moscow , one of the country 's epicenters , saw virus-related deaths rise from 1,569 in September to 3,573 in October to 4,542 in November @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the nationwide death toll from the virus is three times higher than previously reported .
But with approval ratings for Putin 's United Russia party waning ahead of key parliamentary elections next year , Russia hopes to avoid shutting down its economy .
Instead it has bet on a mass vaccination program using its homemade Sputnik V shot to reel in the outbreak .
But with Russians deeply sceptical of getting the jab , rollout has been slow .
In Moscow just 50,000 people have so far been inoculated , as several recent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Russians plan on getting the vaccine .

Appearing in front of the Kremlin for an address to be broadcast just before midnight in each of Russia's 11 time zones, Putin acknowledged that a second wave of infections is continuing to batter the country.
President Vladimir Putin in his New Year's speech on Thursday urged Russians to unite in the face of the country's battle with the coronavirus pandemic.
"Unfortunately the epidemic has not yet been completely stopped. The fight against it does not stop for a minute," he said on state-run channel Rossiya 1, which broadcast the speech at midnight in Russia's Far East (12:00 p.m. GMT).
The president, who wore a black coat over a white shirt with a red tie, added that many medical workers would be "on duty this festive night" and called on everyone else "not to retreat in the face of difficulties, to preserve our unity."
The longtime Russian leader said in his 17th New Year's address he was convinced that together Russians could "overcome everything" and "restore normal life."
Unlike many European countries, Russia avoided reimposing the kind of strict nationwide lockdown it introduced this spring in the hopes of supporting a struggling economy.
While some major cities have reduced in-office workers and obliged bars and restaurants to close early, most regions have limited restrictions to reducing mass gatherings and requiring mask-wearing in public places.
But many Russians flout social distancing guidelines and fatalities from Covid-19 have ticked up in recent weeks.
Moscow, one of the country's epicenters, saw virus-related deaths rise from 1,569 in September to 3,573 in October to 4,542 in November.
Officials this week also confirmed that the nationwide death toll from the virus is three times higher than previously reported.
But with approval ratings for Putin's United Russia party waning ahead of key parliamentary elections next year, Russia hopes to avoid shutting down its economy.
Instead it has bet on a mass vaccination program using its homemade Sputnik V shot to reel in the outbreak.
But with Russians deeply sceptical of getting the jab, rollout has been slow.
In Moscow just 50,000 people have so far been inoculated, as several recent polls showed that only 38% of Russians plan on getting the vaccine.


themoscowtimes--2020-01-30--Coronavirus Forces McDonald’s to Cancel Moscow Birthday Plans

McDonald ’ s has been forced to cancel plans for a bargain Big Mac promotion celebrating 30 years since the @ @ @ @ @ in Russia due to coronavirus fears .
The U.S. fast food chain had been planning @ @ @ @ @ the symbolic price of 3 rubles ( $ 0.05 ) all day Friday at its @ @ @ @ @ Square in central Moscow .
Three rubles represents the price of a Big Mac when @ @ @ @ @ Jan. 31 , 1990 — around half a day ’ s wages for the average @ @ @ @ @ .
However , McDonald ’ s said it was canceling the plans for cut-price Big @ @ @ @ @ Russian government that large public events posed a risk of the virus spreading .

McDonald’s has been forced to cancel plans for a bargain Big Mac promotion celebrating 30 years since the opening of its first restaurant in Russia due to coronavirus fears.
The U.S. fast food chain had been planning to sell Big Macs for the symbolic price of 3 rubles ($0.05) all day Friday at its first Russian restaurant on Pushkin Square in central Moscow. Three rubles represents the price of a Big Mac when the restaurant first opened on Jan. 31, 1990 — around half a day’s wages for the average Soviet worker at the time.
However, McDonald’s said it was canceling the plans for cut-price Big Macs on advice from the Russian government that large public events posed a risk of the virus spreading.


themoscowtimes--2020-01-30--Russia Seeks Fugitive Billionaire Boris Mints’ Arrest

Mints and his three sons left Russia for Britain in 2018 amid court disputes over bank dealings .
In 2019 , the High Court in London blocked $ 572 million worth of assets belonging to Mints and his three sons .
Russian authorities have issued an arrest warrant on embezzlement charges for Boris Mints , the billionaire businessman who now lives in London , the state-run TASS news agency reported Thursday .
Russia has put out an arrest warrant for Mints and sons Alexander and Dmitry Mints , who are also accused of embezzlement , a court spokeswoman told TASS @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up to 10 years in prison .
The three men are accused of embezzling 30 billion rubles ( $ 474 million ) , the RBC news website reported , citing Mints ' lawyer Fedor Kupriyanov .
Moscow ’ s Basmanny district court will consider the investigators ’ request to arrest Mints on Friday , TASS reported .
Forbes estimated Mints ’ nets worth at $ 1.3 billion in 2017 before he dropped off its ranking of billionaires in 2018 .
Mints co-founded Otkritie Bank , which was once Russia 's largest privately owned @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Russian Impressionism in Moscow .

Mints and his three sons left Russia for Britain in 2018 amid court disputes over bank dealings. In 2019, the High Court in London blocked $572 million worth of assets belonging to Mints and his three sons.
Russian authorities are seeking the arrest on embezzlement charges for Boris Mints, the billionaire businessman who now lives in London, the state-run TASS news agency reported Thursday.
Russia has put out an arrest warrant for Mints' sons Alexander and Dmitry Mints, who are also accused of embezzlement, Interfax reported Friday. The criminal offense is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
The three men are accused of embezzling 34 billion rubles ($533 million), Interfax reported.
Moscow’s Basmanny district court will consider the investigators’ request to arrest Mints on Feb. 3.
“The charges that have purportedly been brought in Russia against Mr. Mints and his sons Alexander and Dmitry are utterly baseless, suspiciously timed, and they dispute them in full,” a spokesperson for Mints said.
Forbes estimated Mints’ nets worth at $1.3 billion in 2017 before he dropped off its ranking of billionaires in 2018.
Mints co-founded Otkritie Bank, which was once Russia's largest privately owned bank, and founded the Museum of Russian Impressionism in Moscow.


themoscowtimes--2020-01-30--Russia Closes Far East Border Over Coronavirus

Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin has ordered the closure of the country 's Far East border to prevent the spread of the deadly coronavirus , the state-run TASS news agency reported Thursday .
“ The order was signed today and has taken effect , ” Mishustin said as quoted by TASS .
“ We ’ ll inform everyone today about the border-closure measures in the Far East region and other activities taken by the Russian government [ on coronavirus prevention ] , ” he said .
Sixteen out of the 25 crossings along the Russian-Chinese border will be closed as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
Russia has also suspended the issuing of electronic visas to Chinese nationals , the Foreign Ministry said Thursday .
Russia hasn ’ t registered any cases , despite numerous scares , of the rapidly spreading epidemic that has killed 170 people .
Earlier this week , Russia blocked tourist groups from China from entering the country .
Countries began isolating hundreds of citizens evacuated from the Chinese city of Wuhan on Thursday to stop the epidemic ’ s spread .
Moscow has been in talks with Beijing about evacuating its nationals @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have been reported in at least 16 other countries , but no deaths have occurred outside China .
Some airlines have suspended flights to China , including British Airways , Lufthansa , Air Canada and American Airlines .
This story is being updated .

Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin has ordered the closure of the country's Far East border to prevent the spread of the deadly coronavirus, the state-run TASS news agency reported Thursday. “The order was signed today and has taken effect,” Mishustin said as quoted by TASS.
“We’ll inform everyone today about the border-closure measures in the Far East region and other activities taken by the Russian government [on coronavirus prevention],” he said. Sixteen out of the 25 crossings along the Russian-Chinese border will be closed as of midnight Jan. 31, the decree said. Russia has also suspended the issuing of electronic visas to Chinese nationals, the Foreign Ministry said Thursday. Russia hasn’t registered any cases, despite numerous scares, of the rapidly spreading epidemic that has killed 170 people. Earlier this week, Russia blocked tourist groups from China from entering the country.


themoscowtimes--2020-01-30--Russian Officers Charged With Framing Investigative Journalist Golunov

Golunov , an investigative journalist for Meduza , was arrested in June on fabricated drug charges and released days later after an unprecedented public outcry .
Police dropped all charges against him , fired the officers involved in his arrest and opened a criminal case into the falsified charges .
Five former Moscow police officers have been criminally charged with framing anti-corruption journalist Ivan Golunov , Russia 's Investigative Committee said Thursday .
Moscow 's Basmanny district court has charged Denis Konovalov , Akbar Sergaliev , Roman Feofanov , Maxim Umetbayev and Igor Lyakhovets with abuse of power , falsification @ @ @ @ @ @ @ officers for Moscow 's anti-drug-trafficking department , the five men had all been directly involved with Golunov 's arrest and were fired after the case against him was closed .
They did not plead guilty during questioning , Interfax reported .
The Investigative Committee said that the drugs planted on Golunov last June had been illegally acquired , stored and transported by the police .
“ The criminal case that I have been seeking for so long with the support of the media and the public has happened , and this is very @ @ @ @ @ @ @ case will go to court , '' Golunov had told the RBC news website Wednesday after the five men were detained .
President Vladimir Putin last month announced criminal charges against the five officers who had arrested Golunov but didn ’ t specify which charges they were .

Golunov, an investigative journalist for Meduza, was arrested in June on fabricated drug charges and released days later after an unprecedented public outcry. Police dropped all charges against him, fired the officers involved in his arrest and opened a criminal case into the falsified charges.
Five former Moscow police officers have been criminally charged with framing anti-corruption journalist Ivan Golunov, Russia's Investigative Committee said Thursday.
Moscow's Basmanny district court has charged Denis Konovalov, Akbar Sergaliev, Roman Feofanov, Maxim Umetbayev and Igor Lyakhovets with abuse of power, falsification of evidence and drug trafficking.
As officers for Moscow's anti-drug-trafficking department, the five men had all been directly involved with Golunov's arrest and were fired after the case against him was closed. They did not plead guilty during questioning, Interfax reported.
The Investigative Committee said that the drugs planted on Golunov last June had been illegally acquired, stored and transported by the police.
“The criminal case that I have been seeking for so long with the support of the media and the public has happened, and this is very good. Let's hope that the case will go to court," Golunov had told the RBC news website Wednesday after the five men were detained.
President Vladimir Putin last month announced criminal charges against the five officers who had arrested Golunov but didn’t specify which charges they were.


themoscowtimes--2020-01-30--U.S. Issues Fresh Sanctions Over Russian-Annexed Crimea

The United States on Wednesday issued a fresh round of sanctions related to Russia 's annexation of Crimea , targeting @ @ @ @ @ railway company , the U.S. Treasury Department said .
The United States has imposed a @ @ @ @ @ to Russia 's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 .
Moscow has since built @ @ @ @ @ peninsula .
The latest move comes a day before a visit to Ukraine by U.S. @ @ @ @ @ .
The officials blacklisted on Wednesday include Yuri Gotsanyuk , named prime minister of Crimea @ @ @ @ @ the 2019 election , and six others , a Treasury statement said .

The United States on Wednesday issued a fresh round of sanctions related to Russia's annexation of Crimea, targeting eight individuals and a Moscow-based railway company, the U.S. Treasury Department said.
The United States has imposed a series of sanctions in response to Russia's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014. Moscow has since built up military infrastructure on the peninsula.
The latest move comes a day before a visit to Ukraine by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
The officials blacklisted on Wednesday include Yuri Gotsanyuk, named prime minister of Crimea's pro-Russian regional government after the 2019 election, and six others, a Treasury statement said.


themoscowtimes--2020-01-30--Russia Frees U.S.-Israeli Woman From Jail After Putin Pardon

Naama Issachar was released ahead of talks in Moscow between Putin and Netanyahu , who had flown in from Washington to pass on details of a U.S. peace plan for the Middle East .
Russia freed a U.S.-Israeli woman on Thursday who had been jailed on drugs charges , after President Vladimir Putin granted her a pardon following a high profile lobbying campaign championed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu .
Netanyahu thanked Putin for what he said was a `` swift '' decision to pardon Issachar .
The prime minister later met Issachar in Moscow .
Footage showed them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ see you .
Now we go back home , '' he told Issachar , according to a statement from his office .
She was expected to fly to Israel later on Thursday aboard Netanyahu 's plane .
The release of the New Jersey-born 26-year-old is seen as a boost for Netanyahu and as confirmation in both countries that Israeli-Russian ties remain strong .
The Kremlin , before the meeting , said it was analysing the U.S. peace plan , which Palestinians have denounced as an Israeli wishlist .
Netanyahu , under criminal corruption @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2 and has campaigned on his ability to protect Israel 's interests abroad .
Israeli media have suggested that the pardon deal may have been eased by promises made by the Israeli government over the ownership of a building in Jerusalem which is important to the Russian Orthodox Church .
The Alexander Courtyard , situated in Jerusalem 's Old City , has been contested for years and an Israeli court recently ruled in Russia 's favor .
TASS news agency reported earlier this month that Israel had told Russia it had begun the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the Russian Orthodox Church .
Issachar was jailed for seven-and-a-half years after being arrested last April when police found nine grams of cannabis in her bags during a stopover at a Moscow airport on her way from India to Israel .
Her family called her treatment disproportionate and the case caused rare tensions between Russia and Israel .
`` It has been a long journey that I would not wish upon anyone , '' Yaffa Issachar , Naama 's mother , was quoted as saying by the Jerusalem Post , having travelled @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
`` Now , all I want is to hug my daughter Naama . ''

Naama Issachar was released ahead of talks in Moscow between Putin and Netanyahu, who had flown in from Washington to pass on details of a U.S. peace plan for the Middle East.
Russia freed a U.S.-Israeli woman on Thursday who had been jailed on drugs charges, after President Vladimir Putin granted her a pardon following a high profile lobbying campaign championed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Netanyahu thanked Putin for what he said was a "swift" decision to pardon Issachar. The prime minister later met Issachar in Moscow. Footage showed them hugging.
"We're excited to see you. Now we go back home," he told Issachar, according to a statement from his office. She was expected to fly to Israel later on Thursday aboard Netanyahu's plane.
The release of the New Jersey-born 26-year-old is seen as a boost for Netanyahu and as confirmation in both countries that Israeli-Russian ties remain strong. The Kremlin, before the meeting, said it was analysing the U.S. peace plan, which Palestinians have denounced as an Israeli wishlist.
Netanyahu, under criminal corruption indictment, faces an election on March 2 and has campaigned on his ability to protect Israel's interests abroad.
Israeli media have suggested that the pardon deal may have been eased by promises made by the Israeli government over the ownership of a building in Jerusalem which is important to the Russian Orthodox Church. The Alexander Courtyard, situated in Jerusalem's Old City, has been contested for years and an Israeli court recently ruled in Russia's favor.
TASS news agency reported earlier this month that Israel had told Russia it had begun the legal process of handing over the building to the Russian Orthodox Church.
Issachar was jailed for seven-and-a-half years after being arrested last April when police found nine grams of cannabis in her bags during a stopover at a Moscow airport on her way from India to Israel.
Her family called her treatment disproportionate and the case caused rare tensions between Russia and Israel.
"It has been a long journey that I would not wish upon anyone," Yaffa Issachar, Naama's mother, was quoted as saying by the Jerusalem Post, having travelled to Moscow for her daughter's release. "Now, all I want is to hug my daughter Naama."


themoscowtimes--2020-01-31--Russia Reports First Coronavirus Infections

Russia has registered its first two cases of coronavirus infection , Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova said Thursday .
The @ @ @ @ @ citizens , Golikova said , adding that they have been isolated .
Golikova added that @ @ @ @ @ evacuating Russian nationals from China .
This story is being updated .

The two cases were discovered in different parts of the country, one in Tyumen region in west Siberia, the other in Russia's Far East, Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova said.
Russia reported its first two cases of coronavirus on Friday and said the infected people were Chinese citizens who had been quarantined.
"They are under strict supervision, isolated and are receiving the necessary treatment. Both are Chinese citizens," she told a news conference.
The two people are in a stable condition, Anna Popova, the head of Russia's consumer safety watchdog Rospotrebnadzor, told the same briefing.
Golikova said all Russian airlines, with the exception of national airline Aeroflot, will stop flying to China from midnight on Friday. Four Chinese airlines will continue flying to Moscow, she added.
Russia has already closed its 4,300-kilometer (2,670 mile) land border with China to pedestrians and vehicles in an effort to protect its population. Russia said on Friday it would begin moving its citizens out of China via its Far Eastern region on Feb. 1
Golikova said Russia had no plans to limit freight traffic with China but would restrict Chinese citizens traveling to Russia from Mongolia, in addition to restrictions already announced.
She expressed confidence that the measures taken so far would prevent the virus spreading further in Russia, adding that everyone who had come into contact with the two patients had been examined and hospitalized where necessary.
However, Chinese authorities have struggled to control the spread of the disease despite draconian measures. The virus has killed 213 people to date, all in China, and prompted the World Health Organization to declare a global health emergency.
Many countries, including the United States, have imposed travel curbs and businesses say they are facing supply problems because of the outbreak.


themoscowtimes--2020-01-31--2 Russian Jehovah’s Witnesses Charged With ‘Extremism’

At least 14 people were detained in the town of Pechora during Tuesday ’ s raids across 10 addresses , the severrealii.org news website reported .
It named Gennady Skutelts , 43 , and Gennady Polyakevich , 60 , among the four people held in detention for more than 24 hours .
Two Jehovah ’ s Witnesses in northern Russia have been charged with extremism , law enforcement authorities said Thursday amid the crackdown on the Christian denomination that Russia banned in 2017 .
Russia ’ s Investigative Committee in the republic of Komi said it accused an unidentified 60-year-old @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s illegal activities in 2018-2019 ” despite the ban .
“ The 43-year-old defendant and other unidentified persons took part in the activities of the aforementioned extremist organization , ” it said in a statement .
If found guilty , the two face up to 12 years in prison .
The republic of Komi is the 52nd region where authorities have opened criminal cases against local Jehovah ’ s Witnesses , according to the religious organization ’ s database .
It estimates that 313 people have been charged or convicted since the Supreme @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as an “ extremist ” organization in 2017 .
The April 2017 ban forced 395 branches across Russia to shut down and at least 5,000 worshippers to flee the country , according to media reports .
The Jehovah ’ s Witnesses group estimates that it has about 170,000 followers in Russia .
Rights groups have condemned the crackdown against the Christian denomination as a violation of religious freedom .
Russian authorities ramped up the persecution of Jehovah ’ s Witnesses in 2019 , Human Rights Watch said earlier this month .

At least 14 people were detained in the town of Pechora during Tuesday’s raids across 10 addresses, the severrealii.org news website reported . It named Gennady Skutelts, 43, and Gennady Polyakevich, 60, among the four people held in detention for more than 24 hours.
Two Jehovah’s Witnesses in northern Russia have been charged with extremism, law enforcement authorities said Thursday amid the crackdown on the Christian denomination that Russia banned in 2017.
Russia’s Investigative Committee in the republic of Komi said it accused an unidentified 60-year-old worshipper of “continuing the organization’s illegal activities in 2018-2019” despite the ban.
“The 43-year-old defendant and other unidentified persons took part in the activities of the aforementioned extremist organization,” it said in a statement.
If found guilty, the two face up to 12 years in prison.
The republic of Komi is the 52nd region where authorities have opened criminal cases against local Jehovah’s Witnesses, according to the religious organization’s database. It estimates that 313 people have been charged or convicted since the Supreme Court banned the Jehovah’s Witnesses as an “extremist” organization in 2017.
The April 2017 ban forced 395 branches across Russia to shut down and at least 5,000 worshippers to flee the country, according to media reports. The Jehovah’s Witnesses group estimates that it has about 170,000 followers in Russia.
Rights groups have condemned the crackdown against the Christian denomination as a violation of religious freedom.
Russian authorities ramped up the persecution of Jehovah’s Witnesses in 2019, Human Rights Watch said earlier this month.


themoscowtimes--2020-01-31--Russia Steps into Oil-Free Future With New Arctic Research Station

Russia is looking beyond oil as it builds the “ Snowflake station , ” a state-of-the-art climate research station in the Yamal-Nenets region of Siberia .
The Snowflake IAS will be a fully autonomous year-round diesel-free facility powered by renewable energy sources and hydrogen fuel , a project presentation says .
`` It is envisioned as a unique new platform for international cooperation between engineers , researchers , scientists , and students working on bold solutions that constitute a basis for life and work in the Arctic . ''
It will be `` a vehicle for supporting joint research on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , including that of the oceans . ''
The Yamal-Nenets autonomous district today produces about 80 % of Russia ’ s natural gas , as well as substantial volumes of oil .
Over the next three years , regional industrial production is expected to increase by more than 30 % .
`` This is not for us , '' regional governor Dmitry Artyukhov responded when asked about renewable energy in a conference last year .
Still , this is where the Snowflake research station will be built .
The station will be located @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Salekhard , project developers say .
With support from both regional and federal authorities , the station will be a welcome change for a country with one of the worst climate change policies , as well as growing public concern .
The 2,000-square-meter facility will be able to house a significant number of researchers from all over the world .
A total of nine cupola-shaped and interlinked buildings will provide comfortable living , labs and research premises for scientists .
It will be operational all year round and will be fully fueled by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the Moscow Physical-Technical Institute .
The project is supported by the Arctic Council and will be ready in the year 2022 , during Russia ’ s chairmanship in the Arctic club , Kudryavtsev makes clear .
It is projected to cost up to 12 million euros .
`` Researchers , engineers , students and youth can come for work visits and year-round tests and demonstrate technology that is already becoming part of our lives , '' he says .
The station is backed by the Physical-Technical Institute with support from the Education @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Ministry of the Far East and the Arctic , as well as by the governor of the Yamal-Nenets autonomous district .

Russia is looking beyond oil as it builds the “Snowflake station,” a state-of-the-art climate research station in the Yamal-Nenets region of Siberia. The Snowflake IAS will be a fully autonomous year-round diesel-free facility powered by renewable energy sources and hydrogen fuel, a project presentation says. "It is envisioned as a unique new platform for international cooperation between engineers, researchers, scientists, and students working on bold solutions that constitute a basis for life and work in the Arctic." It will be "a vehicle for supporting joint research on climate change, ecology and environmental pollution, including that of the oceans."
The Snowflake research station arctic-mipt.com
The Yamal-Nenets autonomous district today produces about 80% of Russia’s natural gas, as well as substantial volumes of oil. Over the next three years, regional industrial production is expected to increase by more than 30%. "This is not for us," regional governor Dmitry Artyukhov responded when asked about renewable energy in a conference last year. Still, this is where the Snowflake research station will be built. The station will be located on the tundra outside the regional capital Salekhard, project developers say. With support from both regional and federal authorities, the station will be a welcome change for a country with one of the worst climate change policies, as well as growing public concern.


themoscowtimes--2020-01-31--30 Years of Big Mac Prices Shine Light on Russia’s Economy

When McDonald ’ s came to Russia 30 years ago Friday , its first restaurant on Pushkin Square in central Moscow was one of the most expensive fast food joints in the world .
At 3 rubles and 75 kopecks , the average Soviet worker would have had to part with half a day ’ s wages for a Big Mac meal back in January 1990 .
The famous McDonald ’ s burger , in all its capitalist glory , had come to Communist Russia — and was more expensive here than anywhere else in the world .
Based on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the Big Mac cost the equivalent to $ 6.25 — far ahead of the world ’ s next priciest Big Mac , which came in at $ 3.99 in Denmark , data from the Economist ’ s Big Mac Index shows .
The index , established by the British newspaper in 1986 , tracks the prices of Big Macs around the world as an indicator of each country ’ s purchasing power , giving an idea of whether local currencies are under or overvalued compared to the U.S. dollar .
Today , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the world at 135 rubles ( $ 2.13 ) , compared to more than $ 5 in the U.S. , Scandinavia and Switzerland .
Only customers in Ukraine , Egypt and Malaysia pay less .
In the 2020 edition of the Index , The Economist said the huge price difference between Russian and American Big Macs “ suggests the Russian ruble is 61.2 % undervalued ” , with an “ implied exchange rate ” of 24 rubles to $ 1 .
The actual actual exchange rate is currently 62 rubles to $ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ prices in Russia is a snapshot of the country ’ s wider economic — and political — fortunes .
With the fall of the Soviet Union , prices tumbled , dropping almost 90 % in dollar terms from $ 5.75 to $ 0.59 between 1991 and 1992 .
Measured in rubles , prices then rose drastically through the 1990s as Russia struggled with runaway inflation and a weak currency .
A Big Mac which cost less than 4 rubles in 1990 , had jumped to 58 rubles in 1992 before soaring to 12,000 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of confidence in the Russian financial system pushed the government into currency reform that summer , swapping old rubles for new ones at a rate of 1,000-to-one .
Since then , Big Macs have set Russians back anywhere between 12 and 135 rubles .
Prices hit their highest in the post-Soviet era in 2011 , when they were equivalent to $ 3.08 in today ’ s dollars .
Just four years later they plummeted to $ 1.47 , as the ruble again fell , following Russia ’ s annexation of Crimea , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in oil prices which rocked the Russian economy .
The fast food chain had been planning to set a new record-low price for Big Macs — for one day only — of 3 rubles ( $ 0.05 ) Friday , to mark its 30th anniversary celebrations .
However , on coronavirus fears the offer had to be scrapped after Moscow authorities advised companies to avoid holding events which could draw large crowds , for fear of infection risk .

When McDonald’s came to Russia 30 years ago Friday, its first restaurant on Pushkin Square in central Moscow was one of the most expensive fast food joints in the world. At 3 rubles and 75 kopecks, the average Soviet worker would have had to part with half a day’s wages for a Big Mac meal back in January 1990. The famous McDonald’s burger, in all its capitalist glory, had come to Communist Russia — and was more expensive here than anywhere else in the world. Based on official Soviet exchange rates at the time, the Big Mac cost the equivalent of $6.25 — far ahead of the world’s next priciest Big Mac, which came in at $3.99 in Denmark, data from the Economist’s Big Mac Index shows.
The index, established by the British newspaper in 1986, tracks the prices of Big Macs around the world as an indicator of each country’s purchasing power, giving an idea of whether local currencies are under or overvalued compared to the U.S. dollar. Today, Russian Big Macs are among the cheapest in the world at 135 rubles ($2.13), compared to more than $5 in the U.S., Scandinavia and Switzerland. Only customers in Ukraine, Egypt and Malaysia pay less. In the 2020 edition of the Index, The Economist said the huge price difference between Russian and American Big Macs “suggests the Russian ruble is 61.2% undervalued”, with an “implied exchange rate” of 24 rubles to $1. The actual actual exchange rate is currently 62 rubles to $1. The history of Big Mac prices in Russia is a snapshot of the country’s wider economic — and political — fortunes.
With the fall of the Soviet Union, prices tumbled, dropping almost 90% in dollar terms from $5.75 to $0.59 between 1991 and 1992. Measured in rubles, prices then rose drastically through the 1990s as Russia struggled with runaway inflation and a weak currency. A Big Mac which cost less than 4 rubles in 1990, had jumped to 58 rubles in 1992 before soaring to 12,000 rubles in 1998. That rapid loss of confidence in the Russian financial system pushed the government into currency reform that summer, swapping old rubles for new ones at a rate of 1,000-to-one. Since then, Big Macs have set Russians back anywhere between 12 and 135 rubles.