Forget invasion: Putin is just four steps from victory in Ukraine February 27, 2014 AS ITS currency collapses, protests flare up in Crimea, and Russia flexes its muscles on the doorstep, those in the West claiming triumph in Ukraine should remember the story of King Pyrrhus of Epirus. In 279 BC, this scourge of the Romans managed to best them at the Battle of Asculum, but at tremendous cost. [...]
Deteriorating situation in Ukraine unnerves Asian markets February 27, 2014 Asian markets are reacting nervously to the deteriorating situation in Ukraine as investors look to safer prospects, such as US treasuries. The prospect of an escalation of the troubles in Ukraine would prove a damaging one for some emerging markets. Concerns have been heightened after Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed the military to perform drills [...]
Lenta price range narrows February 25, 2014 The Russian hypermarkets group led by the Dutch businessman Jan Dunning has narrowed the price range for new stock that will be issued in its imminent London listing. The price range for Lenta is now between $10 and $11 per global depositary receipt (GDR), compared to an earlier range of $9.50 and $11.50. Five GDRs [...]
Moscow gives new Kiev leaders chilly reception February 24, 2014 POLITICAL tensions worsened in the disordered aftermath of Ukraine’s change in government yesterday, as the Russian state balked at the new administration’s overtly pro-European stance. Ukrainian finance minister Yuriy Kolobov announced yesterday that the country was seeking about $35bn (£21.03bn) in financial assistance over the next two years. Following the recent violence in Kiev and [...]
Letters to the Editor – 25/02 – Intimidated Russia, Best of Twitter February 24, 2014 Intimidated Russia [Re: Russia must back down over Ukraine to avoid a catastrophe, yesterday] The situation with Russia is more complicated than generally appreciated. Suppose the communist system of the USSR had triumphed and that, one by one, European states had applied to join that Union, and were then invited to join the Warsaw Pact. [...]
Ukraine’s next government has 2 big challenges to face February 24, 2014 With Ukrainian presidential elections scheduled for May, the next government will have to return stability to an area that's seen mass protests since last November. The current government is unlikely to last beyond those elections. Former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko has ruled herself out of the running for the current government, after being released from [...]
Europe and Russia spar over Ukraine February 24, 2014 UKRAINE was at the heart of a diplomatic and financial battle between Europe and Russia last night, as the struggle for influence in the wake of the country’s revolution intensified. After absent President Viktor Yanukovich was ousted from his position and a key ally of former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko took his place, the EU [...]
Russia must back down over Ukraine to avoid a catastrophe February 24, 2014 VLADIMIR Ilyich Lenin was a monster. He was a central theorist of communism, a key player in the Bolshevik revolution, a commissar, a leading instigator of the Red Terror and other massacres, and the first leader of the Soviet Union. For decades, busts of Lenin adorned the communist empire; they were finally torn down in [...]
GB miss chance to bag farewell medal in Sochi February 23, 2014 TEAM GB pilot John Jackson hopes his four-man bobsleigh team did the nation proud yesterday, despite narrowly missing out on a medal as the curtain came down on the Winter Olympics in Sochi. Jackson’s crew finished fifth following yesterday’s fourth and final run, an agonising 0.11 seconds off a bronze medal, as Britain paid the [...]
Ukrainian protestors forge deal with President Yanukovich February 21, 2014 President Viktor Yanukovich and three opposition leaders have signed an agreement that is expected to end the lethal clashes of recent weeks. The deal should see early elections and other provisions to improve the democratic functioning of the country. Opposition forces and police have met on the streets of Ukraine's capital city, Kiev, seeing at least [...]