Politics
Tuesday 7 February 2017
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![Ivan Yastreb]()
Ivan Yastreb
deputy chief, All-Russia People’s Front
“The index does not reflect an objective picture as it is based solely on surveys among experts and entrepreneurs.”
Read more...The Corruption Perceptions Index has limitations in scope, experts say. But Transparency International says it "captures corruption levels effectively." Other sources of information, including surveys of ordinary Russians, point to similar conclusions about Russia's levels of corruption. -
![Igor Dodon]()
Igor Dodon
President of Moldova
“This agreement [Association Agreement with EU] did not bring Moldova any advantages. We’ve lost the Russian market while our exports to the EU also fell. We’ve gained nothing from the signing of this agreement.”
Read more...Dodon’s claim, made during a recent visit to Moscow, is not backed by the data. Moldova, a small impoverished state sandwiched between Romania and Ukraine, has actually increased its exports to the EU since the Association Agreement was signed in 2014. Exports to Russia are down but that trend dates back to 2006 when Moscow slapped an import ban on Moldovan wine as bilateral ties soured. -
![Oleg Strochevoy]()
Oleg Strochevoy
Deputy Chief, Rosaviatsia
“There are no international requirements concerning such information (radar data) and the way it is recorded.”
Read more...The Russian state aviation agency says it turned over radar data to the Dutch-led investigation team looking into the downing of a Malaysian Airlines jet in eastern Ukraine in 2014. A German press report quotes investigators as saying Russia gave data that does not satisfy international requirements. But Russia says it has no obligation to do so. Who's right? -
![Sergei Lavrov]()
Sergei Lavrov
Russian Foreign Minister
"We are convinced that we acted correctly when we responded positively to the request of the lawful government of Syria, a UN member state, a country whose capital was two to three weeks away from being seized by the terrorists.”
Read more...The Assad regime was in trouble by the time Russia intervened in Syria in the early fall of 2015. But anti-Assad rebels were not focused on Damascus, nor were the extremist groups Islamic State or Al-Qaeda making inroads near the capital. -
![Russian Ministry of Defense]()
Russian Ministry of Defense
Press Release
“On January 22, 2017, the command center of the Air-Space Forces of Russia based in Hmeymim received from the American side, via a direct line from the headquarters of the international coalition, the coordinates of IS targets in the area near al-Bab, Aleppo province. After conducting reconnaissance...two planes of the Russian Air-Space forces and two planes of the international coalition forces conducted airstrikes against terrorist objectives.”
Read more...Russia’s Department of Defense appears to be stretching beyond the truth when it says Russia and the “international coalition” joined in a bombing mission in Syria against IS. Russian and Turkish media – and experts contacted by Polygraph.info - say recent air strikes on al-Bab were carried out by Russian and Turkish jets. While Turkey allows the U.S.-led coalition to use Incirlik air base, Turkish air strikes on Syria are not conducted under the coalition’s command. -
![Anro Khidirbegishvili]()
Anro Khidirbegishvili
Managing Editor of Saqinformi
“McCain flew to Georgia to demand from officials in Tbilisi that they immediately release from prison the former (and future) Mayor of Tbilisi Ugulava… And as always, he was not refused.”
Read more...The managing editor of a pro-Russian news agency in Georgia said that a U.S. Congressional Delegation including Senator John McCain demanded a prisoner release from Georgian officials at a meeting in the Georgian capital. The former mayor of Tbilisi, imprisoned for mismanagement of city funds, was released after McCain’s visit but not at the behest of the Senator, a Georgian official said. -
![Vitaly Churkin]()
Vitaly Churkin
Russia's permanent representative to the United Nations
“Russia actively promotes at the UN a positive human rights agenda. In the past year, our priorities were defense of the rights of children, the disabled, national, religious and language minorities and expansion of the rights and opportunities of women, as well as support of the family and recognition of its role in society.”
Read more...But Russia’s poor voting record on both country-specific and issue resolutions exposes this claim, with its vetoes of every resolution to condemn the bombing of civilians in Syria, or opposition to such measures as protecting peaceful demonstrators’ rights. -
![Major General Igor Konashenkov]()
Major General Igor Konashenkov
spokesman for Russian Defense Ministry
“Great Britain has not sent a gram of flour, not one single tablet and not one blanket to help the civilian population [of Aleppo] throughout all the years of the war in Syria.”
Read more...The United Kingdom is the second largest national contributor of humanitarian aid to Syria, second only to the United States. A source at the British Department for International Development told Polygraph.info that that UK-funded aid, including food, drinking water, shelters and medicine had indeed reached Aleppo during the war. -
![Sergey Lavrov]()
Sergey Lavrov
Foreign Minister, Russia
"But in fact in this case (the VOA Russian service reporter) was lying because by the time he made these statements…Mr. Peskov and Ms. Zakharova and representatives of the Foreign Affairs Committees had spoken."
Read more...Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zahkarova apologized to a VOA reporter for incorrect remarks made by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at a press conference on Tuesday, in which he misrepresented Voice of America reporting in a way that served to undermine the agency's credibility. -
![Dmitry Peskov]()
Dmitry Peskov
official Kremlin spokesman
"This is absolutely fake information, a fabrication and complete nonsense. The Kremlin does not engage in gathering compromising materials."
Read more...The Kremlin has a long history of releasing “compromising materials,” or “kompromat,” about politicians, journalists, and political opponents, both Russian and foreign. Not only that, the release of kompromat was a key factor in the rise of Vladimir Putin, and evidence suggests that the Putin administration has utilized the tactic heavily in advancing its goals. -
![Igor Konashenkov]()
Igor Konashenkov
Representative, Russian Ministry of Defense
“Amazingly, it was only oil extracting facilities already captured by IS that did not get hit by the U.S. and coalition bombardment."
Read more...Russia’s Ministry of Defense accuses the U.S. and its coalition partner of targeting “everything except IS oil facilities” in Syria. But documentation of coalition attacks prove the opposite. -
![Pavel Kolobkov]()
Pavel Kolobkov
Russian Minister of Sports
“We can say today with confidence that in Russia, a project with the most successful utilization of the Olympic heritage has been implemented. The games brought positive social and economic changes….”
Read more...The Russian opposition exposed the huge waste and graft in the Games and even officials provided conflicting reports of costs and conceded over budget. Most of the funding came from state coffers and guarantee of state bank loans which have still not been repaid –and have now been generously restructured.
