#RUSSIA: Lawmakers Set To Vote On Recognition Of Ukraine Breakaway Republics

[world politics news]

Russia's parliament will vote on Tuesday to decide whether to ask President Vladimir Putin to recognise two Russian-backed breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine as independent, the speaker of the Duma lower house said.

Vyacheslav Volodin said lawmakers would consider two alternative resolutions on recognition of the self-declared Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics, in the area known as the Donbass, where separatist forces have been fighting the Ukrainian army since 2014.

The vote is a reversal of sorts for the parliament, which last week said it would not immediately take up the matter.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#RUSSIA: Duma May Delay Vote To Recognize Breakaway Ukraine Provinces

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Russia’s lower house of parliament may seek guidance from the government on whether to call for the recognition of two breakaway Ukrainian regions as independent, its speaker said on Friday, implying that the step could be delayed.

The State Duma, Russia’s lower house, is due on Monday to set a date to vote on a group of lawmakers’ proposal to appeal to President Vladimir Putin to recognize the two self-proclaimed republics that are supported by Moscow.

Formal recognition of the east Ukrainian regions controlled by pro-Russian separatists since 2014 would further inflame tensions over a Russian troop buildup near Ukraine that has raised fears of an invasion. Moscow denies invasion plans.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#RUSSIA: Courts Fine Facebook, Twitter For "Banned Content"

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Russia has fined Facebook and Twitter for not deleting banned content, adding to a slew of penalties the government has imposed on foreign tech giants.

Russia has recently been tightening controls over U.S.-based tech companies and has accused them of interfering in parliamentary polls last month.

A court in Moscow slapped Facebook with five fines totaling 21 million rubles ($288,000), according to an official Telegram channel. The same court fined Twitter 5 million rubles.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#RUSSIA: Tens Of Thousands Protest Arrest Of Popular Far-East Regional Governor

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For the third weekend in a row, tens of thousands in Russia's furthest eastern regions have protested the arrest of popular regional governor Sergei Furgal. Their distrust of the Kremlin could have powerful consequences.

Protesters in the far eastern Russian city of Khabarovsk gathered this weekend to demonstrate against the arrest Furgal earlier this month on what some say are politically motivated murder charges.

The protests were also generally against the Kremlin's politics in the region and are becoming increasingly anti-Putin.

[FULL STORY HERE]

Photo via Alex Kokcharov, Twitter

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#RUSSIA: Parliament "Resets," Constitution To Allow Putin Two More Terms In Office

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Vladimir Putin officially solidified his grasp on power last week when the State Duma, Russia's lower legislative chamber, voted unanimously to pass a constitutional amendment modifying the structure of presidential term limits. Putin will be allowed to once again run for office in 2024, when his current term is set to expire, and stay in power for two consecutive six-year terms.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#RUSSIA: Obscure Tax Service Head Named New Prime Minister By Parliament

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The little-known head of Russia's tax service is taking over after the government's shock resignation. The overhaul fueled speculation about President Vladimir Putin's plans for maintaining power after his term ends.

Russian lawmakers approved Russian President Vladimir Putin's nomination for a new prime minister on Thursday, following a series of bombshell announcements including constitutional changes and the resignation of the government.

The State Duma, Russia's lower house of parliament, voted in favor of Mishustin with 383 votes out of the 424 cast. 41 members abstained.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#RUSSIA: PM And Gov't Resigns, Putin To Reorganize Gov't Structures To Hold Onto Power

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Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced a major restructuring of government four years ahead of the end of his current term in office. The proposed changes will face a national referendum.

The move to restructure government will be seen as a way for Putin to hold onto power after his term ends in 2024. He has held power in various positions in Russia since 1999.

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has announced that the entire government is resigning in a surprise statement released shortly after Putin delivered his annual state-of-the-nation address.

It is believed that Putin will accept the position a leader of the security council, which will have greatly expanded powers under the reforms he's proposing. Medvedev will serve as the council's deputy.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#RUSSIA: Parliament Votes To Allow Bloggers, Journalists, To Be Labeled "Foreign Agents"

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The lower house of Russia's parliament, the State Duma, has overwhelmingly passed legislation that would allow the government to label journalists, bloggers, and social media users as foreign agents.

The bill, which still needs approval from the Federation Council, the upper chamber, and President Vladimir Putin’s signature to become law, expands on existing “foreign agent” measures already targeting select foreign media and Russian Non-Governmental Organizations..

The laws have been criticized by human rights groups as highly restrictive but lauded by Kremlin loyalists as essential to protect Russian sovereignty.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#RUSSIA: Putin's Party Loses A Third Of Seats It Controlled On Moscow's City Council

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Pres. Vladimir Putin’s United Russia Party has sensationally lost a THIRD of its seats in Moscow in a local election bloodbath.

Sunday’s election was one of the most closely watched regional elections in years after many opposition candidates were excluded triggering the capital’s biggest protests in nearly a decade.

The vote was seen by outspoken opposition politician Alexei Navalny and his allies as an opportunity to make inroads against United Russia ahead of the 2021 national election.

Protests erupted in mid-July after the Central Election Commission refused to register a large number of opposition candidates, saying they had failed to collect enough signatures from genuine backers.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#RUSSIA: Putin's Candidates Running As "Independents" In Local Elections To Avoid Tarnished Party Brand

[world politics news]

Ahead of Sunday’s nationwide regional elections, Russia’s most prominent opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, is urging voters dissatisfied with the status quo to cast the ruling United Russia party out of power.

Anti-government anger is bearing results. Four of the ruling United Russia Party’s candidates lost gubernatorial elections last September. In order to avoid a repeat - and to capitalize on voter discontent - the party's candidates for Sunday's nationwide local and regional elections are running as independents, effectively camouflaging their party ID.

To combat this, Navalny has launched a website exposing the names of these United Russia candidates and also the names of true independents.


[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#RUSSIA: 1,400 Anti-Gov't Protesters Detained In Moscow

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Nearly 1,400 people were detained in a violent police crackdown on an opposition protest in Moscow, a Russian monitoring group said on Sunday, adding that was the largest number of detentions at a rally in the Russian capital this decade.

Opposition leader Alexei Navalny was arrested and sentenced on Wednesday to 30 days in jail for calling for Saturday’s protest against election authorities who barred some opposition candidates from running in the September 8 vote for Moscow city council.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#RUSSIA: Bill Advances Thru Duma That Would Let Gov't Isolate Internet From Rest Of The World

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Russian lawmakers have advanced a contentious draft bill that seeks to give the authorities the power to unplug the national internet network from the outside world.

Deputies of the Duma submitted the measures to tighten state control over the internet in December, citing the need to respond to an “aggressive” U.S. national cybersecurity strategy. Although Russia’s state media regulator and major tech firms backed the steps to unplug from foreign servers, experts criticized the bill as being too vague and impossible to implement.

Opponents are raising concerns about state interference into the online activities of citizens. Critics have also raised fears that it would lead Russia to follow China’s example in establishing an isolated internet landscape.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#RUSSIA: Putin's United Russia Party Adopts New Ethics Rules; Requires Public Response To Accusations

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The United Russia Party has adopted a new set of ethic rules for its members, requiring them to publicly respond to accusations of wrongdoing and immediately resign from the party if the allegations are proven to be true. While "most of the party’s members already stick to rules of ethics," Duma deputy Andrey Krasov said, the set of rules targets certain individuals who, "might tarnish the image of the whole United Russia party with their actions and statements."

The pro-Putin party is the largest party in Russia and as of 2018 it holds 335 (or 74.44%) of the 450 seats in the State Duma, the national legislature. The party's chairman is former President and Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#RUSSIA: Proposed Bill Would Fine, Jail, Organizers Of "Unauthorized" Protests That Include Children

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The lower chamber of the Russian parliament has passed a bill setting out punishment for people who involve minors in unauthorized protests, rallies, and demonstrations. In its third and final vote, the State Duma approved legislation under which organizers of unsanctioned public gatherings in which people under the age of 18 participate will face up to 15 days in jail and a fine of up to 50,000 rubles ($750.)

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#RUSSIA: For The First Time, Whistleblower Snowden Calls Russia's Gov't "Corrupt"

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For the first time, National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden has explicitly described his host, the Russian government, as being “corrupt." Some view his comments as putting his freedom at risk at a US-Russia summit in Helsinki on July 16, where Donald Trump may request Vladimir Putin to hand him over.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#RUSSIA: Politician Warns Women Against Making Babies With "Men Of Different Races" During Soccer World Cup

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The chairwoman of a Russian parliamentary committee has urged Russians to abstain from sex with foreign fans arriving for the World Cup. Tamara Pletnyova, who heads the Family, Women and Children Affairs committee in the lower house of parliament, told a radio station that such behavior was likely to lead to single parent families. "There will be girls who meet men, and then they will give birth. Maybe they will get married, maybe they won’t. But the kids will suffer, just like they suffered [after the 1980 Moscow Olympics]."

[FULL STORY HERE]

#RUSSIA: Thousands March In Moscow To Commemorate Assassination Of Opposition Leader

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Thousands marched through central Moscow on Sunday to commemorate murdered Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, calling for President Vladimir Putin to be ousted just three weeks before a presidential election. Nemtsov, one of Putin’s most vocal critics, was shot dead on Feb. 27, 2015 as he walked across a bridge near the Kremlin.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#RUSSIA: Opposition Ldr Alexei Navalny Barred From Running For President In 2018

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Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has been formally barred from competing in next year's presidential election. The Central Electoral Commission has said Navalny is ineligible because of a corruption conviction which he says is politically motivated. He has urged his supporters to boycott the March vote.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#RUSSIA: Pres. Putin Makes It Official: He's Seeking Re-Election In 2018

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Pres. Vladimir Putin says he will seek another term as president in next year's election. He made the announcement in a speech to workers at a car factory in the Volga city of Nizhny Novgorod. Putin has been in power since 2000, either as president or prime minister. If he wins the March election he will be eligible to serve until 2024.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#RUSSIA: Deputy PM Backs Concept Of A "Crypto-Ruble"

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For the first time, a senior Russian official has thrown his support behind a state-backed crypto-currency. In an interview with Russian broadcaster RBC, First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov said that he is in favor of a "crypto-ruble" – provided that certain measures are put in place on the security front.

[FULL STORY HERE]