Brian Whitmore is the author of RFE/RL's popular Power Vertical blog, written especially for Russia wonks and obsessive Kremlin watchers, and the host of the weekly Power Vertical Podcast.
For Russia's political elite, keeping Putin in power has become a fixation. The latest plan is to grant the president an elevated mythological status as Russia's supreme ruler.
A new RFE/RL poll shows that an overwhelming majority of Russian voters don't expect the December 2 parliamentary elections to be free and fair. Nevertheless, most are optimistic about the future.
The mysterious poisoning deaths of two security officials in St. Petersburg has some observers wondering if a nasty turf war between rival Kremlin clans might be spinning out of control. Is the facade of unity, resolve, and confidence that has long characterized President Vladimir Putin's inner circle cracking?
Soviet propaganda was once the domain of dull, grey-suited bureaucrats. No more. Today's Kremlin PR machine is hip, smart, media-savvy -- and determined to make sure its carefully crafted message is heard loud and clear.
How should the United States deal with an increasingly audacious Russia? Some call for confrontation, while others push for engagement and patience. The emerging debate among senior officials, pundits, and academics will eventually provide a menu of choices for future policymakers.
October 22, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad arrives in Armenia today for a two-day visit. On the agenda is a natural-gas pipeline between the two countries and other energy issues. Federico Bordonaro, a senior analyst with the Rome-based Power and Interest News Report, spoke to RFE/RL about the geopolitical implications of the growing ties between Armenia and Iran.
October 15, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- Russians are suddenly getting a rare peek into the shadowy intrigues and high-stakes power struggles unfolding inside Vladimir Putin's Kremlin.
Vladimir Putin may be a strongman, but he doesn't rule alone. He's the public face of a collective leadership dominated by KGB veterans. They control the crown jewels of the economy. They have a lock on political power. And they have a plan.
The rise of new leaders in France and Germany is bringing changes to EU policy in the former Soviet Union. Rather than accommodating the Kremlin in an area Russia sees as its sphere of influence, Brussels is starting to push its weight in promoting democracy and human rights.
October 4, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- Migration policy, counterterrorism, and military cooperation will all be on the official agenda when the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) holds its summit on October 5-6 in the Tajik capital, Dushanbe. But the real action will be on the sidelines.
President Vladimir Putin's surprise announcement that he may become prime minister is seen as a clear signal that he intends to stay in power after his presidential term ends next year.
The prime minister is the defense minister's father-in-law. The energy minister is the health minister's husband. Nepotism is rampant in today's Russia, and the new government unveiled this week by President Vladimir Putin proves the point.
Observers are split on whether President Vladimir Putin's appointment of the obscure Viktor Zubkov as prime minister is an irrational decision, or a bold move with a hidden agenda.
The murky politics of Vladimir Putin's Kremlin became even more opaque today as the Russian president named an obscure official as prime minister, confounding conventional wisdom that Putin's choice for the post would reveal his chosen successor.
The creation of a new agency called the Investigative Committee may be intended to curtail the enormous power of the Prosecutor-General's Office.
Analysts say there is a question even more important than who is president after Vladimir Putin -- and that's what comes after him.
August 28, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- Russia's prosecutor-general says foreign-based enemies of the Kremlin were behind the murder of reporter Anna Politkovskaya, but her fellow journalists say the probe has been politicized.
For more than a year, the conventional wisdom has been that two candidates, Sergei Ivanov and Dmitry Medvedev, were vying to be Vladimir Putin's anointed successor as president.
Boris Yeltsin's handoff to Vladimir Putin established the rules of the game: outgoing presidents name their successors, and the Kremlin uses any means necessary to get its way.
Of the five candidates officially running for president, most observers say only one has any real chance of winning.
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