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Reflections


Crisis,” a series of essays on Rus- sia edited by Anders Aslund, Sergei Guriev and Kuchins. On the day his book was released, Russia Now caught up with Kuchins at the Center for Stra- tegic and International Studies and spoke with him about his views on the state of Russian- American relations and Presi- dent Dmitry Medvedev’s visit.


GREAT EXPECTATIONS L


Nora


FitzGerald RUSSIA NOW


ast week, Andrew C. Kuchins launched his new book, “Russia After the Global Economic


Tell us about “Russia After the Global Economic Crisis.” What did you want to achieve with it? This initiative goes back to my return to Washington after two years [as director] at Moscow’s Carnegie Center. Two things I saw when I got back : The dis- cussion about Russia had got- ten more polarized, and the Rus- sia they talked about didn’t resemble the place I had lived, or how economic changes were having an impact on people’s lives.


This is a three-year project


in cooperation with The Peter- son Institute for International Economics. The first book was an overview … a short book, very readable. This time, we wanted to involve Sergei Guriev, an old friend of Anders and myself. We thought it would be in- teresting in the second edition to get more voices from Rus- sia, the best and brightest of Russia today, talking about mil- itary reform, climate change, technology and innovation ... We were working on this dur- ing the nadir of the crisis and I made a prediction. I antici- pated that Russia would have emerged from the crisis [by the


time the book was released], and it has!


From your perspective, is there a general change in the rela- tionship between the United States and Russia? What does each side need to do to contin- ue on this path? The so-called reset of Russian- American relations has been quite successful, even more suc- cessful than I had expected. One area that is lagging is bilateral economic relations. President Medvedev's focus will be to help advance that agen- da—both the economic com- ponent and the bilateral rela- tionship. The efforts they are


promoting for modernization may be one of the biggest highlights, something analo- gous to Silicon Valley.


But this creation of a Russian Silicon Valley is not going to be easy. It sounds tough. For sure it’s going to be tough. Russians have been talking about diversification. So far there is not much evidence of success. But if Russians are able to come away with some sup- port from U.S. entrepeneurs, this would be something.


What are some signs of Russia moving forward with their in- novation agenda?


When Prime Minister Vladimir Putin announced a customs union with Kazakhstan and Be- larus, that completely under- mined the innovation agenda. There is not a reasonable econ- omist in the world that could justify that scenario. Over the past year, they have


walked this back and seem com- mitted to economic trade and this is a very important signal.


But you believe that relations will continue to improve? Some of your peers still talk about Russia in line with the four horses of the apoca- lypse. I have moved from being cau-


BIBLIOPHILE


tiously optimistic to unqualified optimism. When the Obama adminis-


tration came in, relations were at their lowest point in 25 years. In a deep freeze … after the war in Georgia it hit bottom. Obama's folks faced the great-


est challenges and came with a pragmatic mindset. Russia also took the position that because of a number of global challeng- es we face, we have to have a more constructive relationship. I had expected that obstacles would be mitigated. But the im- pact of the global crisis had a huge sobering effect. Russia had been dizzy with


success and they felt the Unit- ed States was on the wane. Then Russia was more subject to the crisis than they expect- ed. It put everyone in a prob- lem solving mode: The new START treaty was signed and U.N. sanctions were taken against Iran ... The momentum has accel-


DRAWING BY DMITRY DIVIN


erated in the past few months. Russia feels vindicated that the color revolutions were unsuc- cessful. Obama is more open to let forces in Ukraine [and Russia’s neighbors] play out. There is a dramatic contrast to what we are seeing now from the old narrative. There is a sense in Moscow that Ameri- cans are not going out of their way to thwart Russia.


We know what Medvedev’s hopes are for this visit. Does Obama have any expecta- tions? Or is he just receiving him politely? That’s a good question. This is more than receiving him po- litely … He wants to get some things done with Dmitry Med- vedev. Obama appreciates that there is nothing like success to help develop a relationship.


Andrew C. Kuchins is director and senior fellow of the CSIS Russia and Eurasia Program.


IN MEMORY OF A POET


Dmitry Bykov


IZVESTIA V


oznesensky will be the hero of biographies and dissertations, and definitively join the


ranks of major 20th-century poets. He will sit not only with the great Russian poets, but also beside the likes of Lowell or Ginsberg. His poetry belongs to that future about which he thought and for which he wrote, and many more will speak of him. However, only his peers re- member the living Voznesensky, and it is their duty to openly ac- knowledge that he embodied the moral traditions of Russian literature with a rare purity and fullness; that the human com- ponent of his gift was no less than the poetic; that, simply speaking, he was a very good man. In his work, he managed to


rejoice and do good, to teach and not to stifle, and to stoical- ly endure the many torments that were his lot. These torments were not only


sector, President Dmitri Med- vedev has invested a tremen- dous amount of political capi- tal in pushing for the creation of a Russian high-tech sector based on the successful model of California’s Silicon Valley. Pres- ident Medvedev echoes the new wave in Russian economic thinking that high tech is the quickest path to economic equality with the United States. In advance of his trip to the


United States, Medvedev has successfully lobbied many of the country’s billionaire elites to become supportive of inno- vative industries. The stated goal is for Russia to attract bil- lions of dollars in foreign direct investment and new technolo- gies to improve and modern- ize the country’s antiquated in-


NEW SILICON VALLEY I


Ralph Winnie SPECIAL


TO RUSSIA NOW


n an effort to boost Russia’s venture capital infrastructure and shift the economy away from the oil and natural gas


frastructure and move away from a commodity-based sys- tem.


While several internationally renowned companies, like Cisco Systems and Nokia, plan to take part in Russia’s “Silicon Valley” and the U.S. private eq- uity fund Siguler Gruff has agreed to invest $250 million


The stated goal is for Russia to...improve and modernize the country’s antiquated infrastructure...


in this high-tech park, many corporations and private equi- ty firms, like Draper Fraser, have openly expressed concerns re- garding the age-old stereotypes confronting Russia. These in- clude bribery, corruption and the methods by which com- panies would be selected to benefit from the incentives pro- vided by this high-tech zone. One major challenge that


Medvedev will face selling the concept of Russia’s “Silicon Val- ley” to the United States is Rus- sia’s lack of an abundance of research universities to ensure the proper environment for start-up companies to grow and develop. The perception that the rule of law is lacking in Russia and the appearance of no effective and transparent legal framework for businesses and investors are also addition- al hurdles. The perception here is that the Russian Government will steal technology and na- tionalize a successful start-up company is omnipresent in the minds of many American busi- nessmen, corporations and pol- iticians alike. Medvedev must clearly make


the case in America that Rus- sia’s “Silicon Valley” will not be “overly hands on” and that the role of the Russian govern- ment in the tech park would be limited to infrastructure de- velopment and providing gen- erous tax breaks and various incentives, such as tax holidays and waiving of the corporate


PRESS REVIEW


VIEWS FROM RUSSIA ON THE GAZA STRIP


It wasn’t Israel’s attack on the naval convoy destined for the Gaza strip that shocked and surprised Russian pundits, who were mostly sympathetic to Israel in its reaction to not let the flotilla pass at all costs, even to the point of violence. On the contrary, they were surprised by the naivete of the Western media observers in the face of an overtly pro- Palestinian political operation in which Israel's reputation was further harmed.


FIND MORE at www.rbth.ru


THE MIDDLE EAST LOOP Fedor Lukyanov THE MOSCOW TIMES


Unquestionably, sympathy for the people of Gaza was not the only motive of the organizers of the Freedom Flotilla. Deliberate violation of the naval blockade was a political act that had nothing in common with a hu- manitarian mission. An impartial investigation could establish how many of those on board were human rights activists and how many were there to stage a political provocation. However, an investigation is unlikely to take place, because neither the Israeli nor the pro-Palestinian side is interested in it. The question, however, is not one of apportioning blame, but of who stands to lose in the longer term. The odds are this will be Israel. The outlook is bleak. Sensing waning international support,


Israel will likely take a more radi- cal, self-reliant stand in order to survive and will thus bring grist to the mill of the more con- servative opponents of President Obama in the United States. Meanwhile, the Arab side will no doubt increase pressure on Israel out of overt or covert sympathy for the Palestinians.


tax. Medvedev must also stress the fact that Russia has a strong history of excellence in the sci- entific arena. He can point out that many of the high-tech CEOs who have come to the United States and become very successful in Silicon Valley were trained in Russian universities. Moscow State University is


Medvedev can point out the successful achievements of the Moscow State University faculty.


known worldwide for its ex- cellence in math and science and has been referred to as the Harvard of Eastern Eu- rope. In response to criticisms that


Russia has not developed a na- tionwide network of technical universities, Medvedev can point out the successful achieve- ments of the Moscow State University (MGU) faculty and


THE BATTLE AT SEA Vladimir Beider KOMMERSANT OGONYOK


In reality, there were no options. Just as Israel could not stop the Flotilla, it cannot lift the block- ade of Gaza, which was the pur- pose of the whole exercise. What next? The scenario is not really new. The first wave of international condemnation of Israel’s actions will be followed by a second round. The U.N. Hu-


man Rights Committee is calling for a commission to investigate “Israel’s aggressive actions against a peaceful humanitarian convoy.” The situation for the Jewish state has a massive ele- ment of déjà vu. Five years ago, after Israel’s total withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, Hamas set up training camps for militants and rocket launchers in place of the dismantled Jewish settlements and started shelling Israeli communities. Israel re- sponded by launching Operation Cast Lead. Hamas followed the favorite terrorist principle of delivering attacks using civilians as human shields. Rights activists accused Israel of deliberately killing civil- ians and destroying civilian fa- cilities, so the U.N. Human Rights Committee set up a commission to investigate these “atrocities.” In the Peace Flotilla inci- dent, militants also used peace- keepers as a cover to provoke a military clash. Now there is a new commission looking into Is- raeli crimes. Its findings are easy to predict.


Khrushchev’s bitter abuse, which he suffered in his youth simply for his brilliance, but also his de- parture from this world, which was long and difficult. He was very sick for five years, surviving stroke after stroke, losing his voice. His vitality and success seemed for a time to offer him a special resistance to persecu- tion and illness. While this makes living life easier, it makes leav- ing it harder. Voznesensky never lost his gift or his memory and managed to speak ironically of himself and to go on compos- ing poems; I have rarely known a man so courageous. I remember his last Paris read- ing: He arrived in a wheelchair,


successful efforts to integrate the scientific and technical ex- pertise of MGU graduates. It would be wise for Medve-


dev to point out the advantage of central planning in the high- tech zone, which would make it easier for start-up companies in Russia to receive zoning, fi- nancing and tax breaks. Hav- ing the full support of the Rus- sian government definitely goes a long way in ensuring the de- velopment and creation of the next Russian entrepreneur. The advent of a new high-


tech park in Russia’s “Silicon Valley” presents opportunities and challenges for President Medvedev. If the United States decides to embrace the con- cept of a Russian high-tech park, it could allow Russia to emerge as a significant eco- nomic player in the world com- munity with the advent of the next generation of Russian en- trepreneurs.


Ralph E. Winnie, Jr., is the director of the Eurasian Business Coali- tion’s China Program.


EXPAT FILES


DOWN WITH DACHAS!


Jennifer


Eremeeva SPECIAL


TO RUSSIA NOW


chas, so I thought, as a public service message it was time to blow that all right out of the water. In its most basic incarnation,


I


WOULD MY FLOTILLA BE SHOT? Julia Latynina THE MOSCOW TIMES


The goal of the activists was not to deliver aid to the people of Gaza but to rack up dead bodies. From the standpoint of the organizers, the ideal ending would have been if the Israeli navy had sunk the entire flotilla. There is a very good reason why Israel is blockading Gaza. The territory is governed by Hamas, which has the professed goal of destroying Israel and is recognized by some Western governments as a terrorist or- ganization. In a world where terrorists de- stroy the World Trade Center and bomb the London metro— and where Hamas is dead-set on destroying Israel—it is amaz- ing how many gullible people can be found who are ready to defend anyone.


a dacha is a mosquito-infested country shack, with no indoor plumbing, electricity, or com- fort, sitting on a postage-stamp plot of land. Traditionally, every available inch of the stamp is given over to the cultivation of root vegetables that form the basic subsistence for the dacha owners, a time-honored eco- nomic model dating back to the baptism of Prince Vladimir in 988 A.D. In the halcyon pre-perestroi-


ka days, a dacha, added to a Soviet-made car and two rooms in a Khrushchev slum, formed the Holy Trinity of “The Soviet Dream” come true. Although Russia is the largest country in the world, most dachas are in- explicably built in clumps, one on top of the other, creating an effect of housing developments rendered in Lego by a four year old. HRH, my “Handsome Rus- sian Husband” has patiently ex- plained to me that the utility lines are limited outside of major city areas, but how can that be, for a country that put the first man in space? True to Russian form, the


dacha is a lot more complicat- ed, and seriously less appealing than its obvious counterparts in South Hampton, Sussex or Aix- en-Provence. Country residenc- es of all kinds have sprung up like mushrooms with vigorous disregard for any consistency of style, size and, I fear, taste, re- sulting in exact replicas of King Ludwig’s Neushwansian bang-


t’s dacha season again, so of course, I am hiding under my bed. I’ve read a lot of lyrical commentary on da-


up against plywood Frank Lloyd Wright knock-offs. To be fair, a certain sophistication prevails in the more up-market com- pounds, called things like “Sher- wood Forest,” “Tivoli” or “Long- champs.” One of my HRH’s less appealing buddies took him off for a long liquid look at a new community called (and spelled) “Green-vitch.” Greenvitch’s glossy brochure offered a.) The Swiss Chalet, b.) The Anne Hath- away thatched cottage, c.) The Spanish Hacienda or d.) The Flo- rentine Villa. I offered The Con- tested Divorce as Option E. Dachniki (those who own and


use dachas) adhere to an ex- acting annual schedule. Over the May Day weekend, the fam- ily car is loaded with everything from barbecue spears to econ- omy-sized packets of nappies, and the man of the house fer- ries his wife and children out to the dacha for the opening of the season. Russian men, for it is only ever Russian men who do this, refer to this process as “I have sent my family out to the dacha,” accompanied by a mischievous grin and the brisk rubbing of hands. This is the opening salvo for


a season of unchecked urban hedonism. Witness the mind- boggling transformation: Bus drivers start to shave daily, cafes and bars extend their happy hours, restaurants offer aphro- disiac food festivals and hotels weeknight specials. My dacha- phobia, much like my prefer- ence for uncluttered surfaces and ice in my drink, baffles my Russian acquaintances. But the fact of the matter is, this dacha thing is a well-oiled vehicle to keep female servitude alive and well in the 21st century.


Jennifer Eremeeva is a long-time resident of Moscow; she blogs at www.rbth.ru/blogs/ and www. dividingmytime.typepad.com. She is currently working on her first book.


but then he got up and walked into the hall himself, leaning on the arms of friends. And even if this was for show, it was still magnificent. If only everyone, even out of vanity, comported themselves as he did! If he did have honest illusions


at various times, they were often more fruitful than just sour skep- ticism. He never wrote anything for money. He dragged into view, counseled and supported several hundred poets, some tal- ented, some not; his support could be too generous. He fear- lessly exposed himself, experi- mented, honestly confessed in times of crisis, which he saw as a sign of growth, and was not ashamed to change. He was one of the few people in our coun- try and in our time who behaved like a poet—and who under- stood that one must earn the right to that title every day. His verses now speak for themselves. Everyone has their favorites, but several of his qua- trains are known to every per- son in Russia. My Voznesensky selection consists mainly of poems from the 1970s, almost all of “Temptation,” and some from the last decade, from the additional volume to the five- volume work in which he col- lected all his bravest, merriest and craziest verses. When I re- cently reread “The Ditch,” I was astonished by the richness of material, especially against to- day’s anemic writings. I recall two verses from Voz- nesensky’s best period, and, truth be told, the only summing- up of any life. The first: “Inex- pressibly fine! But if one re- flects—it was awful!” And the second: “How divine to live, how absurd!”


Dmitry Bykov is a modern Rus- sian novelist and poet.


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