The Russian Presidential Election 2018

[Ca.]

Putin not considering third consecutive term as president
May 11, 13:08 UTC+3
Putin has not taken any decisions regarding future employment of ex-Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin yet

SOCHI, May 10. /TASS/.

The proposal for letting the same person lead the country for three presidential terms in a row is not on Vladimir Putin’s agenda, acting presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in the wake of a proposal to this effect made by the Chechen authorities.
"This question is not on the president’s agenda," Peskov told the media.

When asked about the possibility of increasing the tenure of office Putin replied, "I think that I told you yesterday I have never changed the Constitution, in particular, for the sake of my own interests. And I have no such plans today."

The Chechen parliament on Thursday unanimously voted for the proposal of putting forward a legislative initiative for prolonging the powers of the head of state to three terms in a row. Under the Russian Constitution the same person cannot take the position of Russia’s president for more than two terms running.

Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has not yet submitted to President Putin proposals on the structure of the executive branch.
"First, the head of the government is to propose the structure of the cabinet to the President. This has not been done yet," Peskov told reporters.

He was commenting on mass media reports that in the near future the Federal agency for scientific organizations will be liquidated and its functions will be given to the Ministry of Education and Sciences.

Dmitry Medvedev took the post of Prime Minister of Russia on May 8 after his candidacy was approved by the State Duma, lower house of parliament.

Putin has not taken any decisions regarding future employment of Chief of the Center for Strategic Research (CSR) and ex-Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin yet, he went on.

"President has not taken any decisions regarding the issue yet," he said.

As reported earlier lawmakers from the ruling United Russia party are currently discussing the candidacy of former finance minister to the post of the Russian Audit Chamber's head.

Russia’s FSB foiled terrorist attack on massive V-Day Immortal Regiment march in Moscow – official

Published time: 11 May, 2018 10:44
Russian security forces prevented a terrorist attack at the million-strong ‘Immortal Regiment’ march during Victory Day celebrations in Moscow, according to the country’s Deputy Foreign Minister Oleg Syromolotov.

“Several groups were detained that plotted to set off blasts during the ‘Immortal Regiment’ event in Moscow, and had prepared arms for it,” Syromolotov told TASS on Friday.

Все уже, кажется, написали. Вставлю свои 5 копеек и тему можно закрывать. Президент приехал на церемонию на новой машине. Теперь на отечественной. Мерседесам дали отставку.

Translation
All already, seems, wrote. I'll put my 5 cents and topic can be closed. The President came to the ceremony with a new car. Now on domestic. Mercedes was dismissed.

Kremlin: Putin to stick with new Russian-made Cortege limo
MOSCOW, May 8. /TASS/.

Russian President Vladimir Putin liked the new domestically-made Cortege limousine that brought him to the inauguration ceremony on Monday, acting Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday.

"Yes, he liked it," Peskov said, responding to a journalists’ question about the Russian president’s reaction to the new limousine.
"The president will further use precisely this automobile," the acting Kremlin spokesman said.

The Cortege limousine producers will start accepting orders in the fall of 2018 for all the automobiles of the Cortege project and commercial deliveries will begin in early 2019, Peskov said.

The Cortege automobiles will be produced under the Aurus brand. The sedan model is called Senate.

 

[Voyageur]

Well, they did it, the bridge from Russia to Crimea opened, and Putin is shown in video driving a truck across.

Must say, it looks like a nice piece of engineering and it will be a real boon for Crimea.

Congratulations, Crimea and Russia!

The rest of the story, from the Wests perspective, carries the usual people are not happy business. e.g. "Ukraine said the move showed cynical disregard for international law." Now, about 'Ukraine's' cynical disregard...

Putin drives truck over new controversial bridge linking Russia to Crimea peninsula | CBC News

 

[Palinurus]

Must say, it looks like a nice piece of engineering and it will be a real boon for Crimea.

Congratulations, Crimea and Russia!

As a side note, some recent news from the Netherlands:

Dutch companies suspected of dodging sanctions against Russia: AD - DutchNews.nl
Dutch companies suspected of helping build bridge between Russia, Crimea

Some older news as background references:

Dutch firms guard Crimea business despite Russia sanctions
Dutch companies investigated for supplying equipment for Russian bridge - DutchNews.nl

 

[angelburst29]

This incident is being ruled - a suicide?

May 16, 2018 - Member of United Russia’s Supreme Council found dead in Moscow
Member of United Russia’s Supreme Council found dead in Moscow

Suicide is considered as the main cause of his death, according to investigators.

Member of the United Russia Party’s Supreme Council Yuri Kotler has been found dead in a downtown Moscow apartment, a police source said.

"Yuri Kotler has been found with a gunshot wound to the head in a flat on Moscow’s Bolshaya Nikitskaya Street. According to preliminary reports, he committed a suicide," the source said.

According to Senior Assistant to the Head of the Russian Investigative Committee’s Main Moscow Department Yulia Ivanova, investigators are working at the scene. Suicide is considered as the main cause of the man’s death, she added, without giving his name.

Kotler, 50, was a graduate of the Journalism Faculty at Moscow State University. In the early 1990s, he was a correspondent with Russia’s RIA Novosti news agency, the Time magazine and the New York Times. He later worked at the Russian Federal Agency for State Property Management, the Federal Commission of Securities Market and the Centre for Strategic Research. In May 2012, Kotler was elected to the United Russia’s Supreme Council. On February 19, he was approved to be a member of the United Russia’s Expert Council.

 

[Ca.]

As a side note, some recent news from the Netherlands:

Dutch companies suspected of dodging sanctions against Russia: AD - DutchNews.nl
Dutch companies suspected of helping build bridge between Russia, Crimea

Some older news as background references:

Dutch firms guard Crimea business despite Russia sanctions
Dutch companies investigated for supplying equipment for Russian bridge - DutchNews.nl

Putin Drives Dump Truck Across $3.6 Billion Bridge He Built To Crimea
Tyler Durden Thu, 05/17/2018 - 02:45 Tweets, Pic's, Video
Russian President Vladimir Putin unveiled the auto section of a $3.6 billion (223 billion rouble) road-and-rail bridge over the Kersch Strait on Tuesday linking Russia to the Crimean peninsula - much to the consternation of Ukrainian officials who said the bridge showed "disregard for international law."
The bridge will be the longest dual-purpose span bridge in Europe, with the rail section expected to be completed at the end of 2019.

The road stretch of the bridge was due to be completed by the end of 2018, but the opening was moved up at Putin's request. He inspected the bridge in March ahead of the presidential election he won, saying it was important to have the link to the Black Sea peninsula open for the summer tourist season. -

CBC

"Putin initiated this project himself. Many didn't believe these plans were possible," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday before the ceremony, adding "This is an extremely important day from this point of view and in a practical sense and in symbolic terms."

https://twitter.com/x/status/996515475801567233

Putin drove the Russian-made KAMAZ dump truck in a convoy of vehicles across the 19-kilometre [11.8 mile] bridge over the Kerch Strait. Some Russians are calling it "Putin's bridge," designed to link Crimea into Russia's transport network. -CBC

Putin, dressed in blue jeans, was met by cheering workers on the Crimean side who he told "At last, thanks to your talent, this project, this miracle, has happened."

https://twitter.com/x/status/996359606371803136

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko slammed Putin's actions from Kiev.

"The illegal construction of the Kerch bridge is the latest evidence of the Kremlin's disregard for international law," Poroshenko said, adding "It is particularly cynical that its opening is happening on the eve of the latest anniversary of the deportation of the Crimean-Tatar people by the Stalin regime."

Meanwhile, US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert () says the United States condemns the construction and partial opening of the bridge, which it says was done "without the permission of the government of #Ukraine. Crimea is Ukraine."

https://twitter.com/x/status/996495093191401472

The United States condemns Russia’s construction and partial opening of the Kerch Strait Bridge between Russia and occupied Crimea, which was done without the permission of the government of Ukraine. Crimea is part of Ukraine. Russia’s construction of the bridge serves as a reminder of Russia’s ongoing willingness to flout international law.

​

The bridge represents not only an attempt by Russia to solidify its unlawful seizure and its occupation of Crimea, but also impedes navigation by limiting the size of ships that can transit the Kerch Strait, the only path to reach Ukraine’s territorial waters in the Sea of Azov. We call on Russia not to impede this shipping. -US Department of ​

State

The bridge also drew criticism from Europe, after the French foreign ministry said "France condemns the construction by Russia of the Kerch Bridge, which deprives Ukraine of full access and the use of its internationally recognized territorial waters." Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the European External Action Service said on Tuesday that the bridge was "another violation of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity."

"The European Union continues to condemn the illegal annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol by Russia and will not recognize this violation of international law," the spokesperson said.

Crimea broke away from Ukraine following a bloody US-sponsored coup, when in a March 2014 Crimean referendum 95% of participating voters were in favor of secession of the ethnically Russian region. Ukrainian officials disputed the vote, with then-acting President Oleksander Turchinov stating that "The authorities in Crimea are totally illegitimate, both the parliament and the government."

The State Department-backed fiasco led to the Obama administration imposing harsh sanctions on the Russian Federation, after Obama told Putin during a phone call that "Russia's actions were in violation of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity."

Putin pushed back, likening Crimea's self-determined referendum to Kosovo's breakaway from Serbia in 2008.

"Regarding the March 16 referendum in Crimea, Mr Putin said that the decision to hold the referendum was in line with international law and the U.N. Charter, and was also in line with the precedent set by Kosovo," the Kremlin said.

While the reaction on Twitter was mostly tepid, there were a few tweets of support for the bridge:

 

[Palinurus]

More on the Crimea Kerch bridge from the Moscow Times:

Russia's Grand Project to Build 'Putin's Bridge' to Crimea, in Photos

Russia Opens Terror Probe Into U.S. Journalist’s Call for Airstrikes on Crimea Bridge

Russia’s Investigative Committee has launched a criminal case against an American journalist who wrote an editorial calling on Ukraine to bomb Russia’s newly-opened bridge to the annexed Crimean peninsula.

Tom Rogan urged the Ukrainian government to “launch air strikes” and “destroy elements” of the bridge to Crimea in a Washington Examiner magazine op-ed published on Tuesday. Kiev, the United States and the European Union criticized the opening of the road-and-rail bridge and called it a violation of Ukraine’s territorial integrity.

“The investigation has detected signs of public incitement to terrorist activity in the territory of the Russian Federation,” the Investigative Committee said in an online statement on Thursday in reference to Tom Rogan’s article.

The publication’s editor will also be subject to a “pre-investigation probe” for publishing Rogan’s commentary, an Investigative Committee spokesperson said.

Earlier, the Russian Embassy in the U.S. said the piece was “outside the boundaries of journalist ethics,” while the Kremlin’s spokesperson called on law enforcement agencies to investigate the article, the RBC business portal reported.

Russia Defends Opening of Crimea Bridge Against U.S. Criticism

Dutch Firms Scrutinized for Allegedly Supplying Parts for Crimea's Kerch Bridge

 

[angelburst29]

Russia Opens Terror Probe Into U.S. Journalist’s Call for Airstrikes on Crimea Bridge

17.05.2018 - US Journalist Urges Ukraine to Blow Up Russia's Crimean Bridge, Shocks Twitter
US Journalist Urges Ukraine to Blow Up Russia's Crimean Bridge, Shocks Twitter

Social media networks were thrown into an uproar after an American journalist advised Ukraine to blow up a recently constructed bridge between the Crimean Peninsula and mainland Russia.

As Russia celebrated the opening of a massive 19-kilometer-long bridge across the Kerch Strait, which now allows traffic to flow, American journalist Tom Rogan suggested in his article published by Washington Examiner that Ukraine should blow the bridge up

According to the author, "Ukraine should now destroy elements of the bridge" because the structure is apparently "an outrageous affront to Ukraine's very credibility as a nation."

The journalist also insisted that the US should support Ukraine in this matter, promptly providing a link to another article of his titled "Don't Worry, the US Would Win a Nuclear War With Russia."

A large number of social media users, however, found Rogan’s vision shocking and wondered whether his proposal amounted to promoting terrorism.

The Russian Embassy in the United States also said in a statement that "freedom of speech cannot justify incitement to commit terrorist acts" and that Rogan’s article goes "way beyond the boundaries of journalist ethics."


16.05.2018 - "So Happy for the Crimean People": World Reacts to Opening of Crimean Bridge
'So Happy for the Crimean People': World Reacts to Opening of Crimean Bridge

The response to the long awaited completion of the road bridge connecting the Crimean peninsula to mainland Russia has been predictable, prompting a storm of angry comments from Kiev and Washington, and jubilation and relief among Crimea's residents and Russia as a whole. Sputnik dug through the comments to find the most colorful reactions.

Both in Russia and abroad, the undisputed highlight of Tuesday's opening ceremony was President Vladimir Putin's decision to jump into a KAMAZ dump truck and drive across the 19 km bridge with a column of trucks and construction machinery along with the bridge's builders.

Russia: Putin Drives Truck Across Newly-Opened Crimean Bridge

(1:05 min.)

Impressed by the images they saw, and the news that the bridge was completed on budget and six months ahead of schedule, most social media users seemed impressed, whatever their position on Russia or its president.


Guy Elster ✔ @guyelster

#Putin inaugurates the new bridge between Russia and #Crimea. He did it with a truck
8:07 AM - May 15, 2018


Paul Theron @paul_vestact

I'm no fan of Putin, but this is an impressive new (19 km long) bridge from Russia to the Crimea, I must say. http://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-europe-44134045/controversial-russia-crimea-bridge-opens …
7:28 AM - May 16, 2018


Stephen Forster @Stephen110166

From an engineering standpoint, on budget, ahead of schedule. Impressive.https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/may/15/putin-opens-bridge-between-crimea-and-russian-mainland …
1:24 PM - May 15, 2018

Not everyone was impressed. Julia Ioffe, The Atlantic author who was caught manipulating Julian Assange quotes to make him seem pro-Russian last year, complained that Putin broke the law while crossing the bridge, since he wasn't buckled up. Business Insider even made the seatbelt incident part of the headline to its story. The next day, presidential press secretary Dmitri Peskov was asked about it by journalists, saying he "didn't see" whether Putin had buckled up or not.

But the traffic safety rules jab was probably the most inoffensive criticism from the bridge's detractors. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko called the bridge's construction "illegal," and declared that the Russian "occupiers" would "necessarily need the bridge when they will urgently leave our Crimea."

Crimean Prime Minister Sergei Aksyonov dismantled Poroshenko's threats on Instagram, writing that in the four years since Crimea returned to Russia, the peninsula saw the construction and opening of "a unique bridge, a modern airport, an energy bridge, a gas pipeline, new schools and kindergartens…power stations, an autobahn, the modernization of industry, energy, agriculture and social infrastructure."

At the same time, Akysonov added, "in those same four years, the Ukrainian regime unleashed a civil war," lost the Donbass, "blocked water and electricity to Crimeans, organized a transport and food blockade of the peninsula, sent saboteurs and threatened us with war. So we have something to measure ourselves against."

The US reaction was also predictable, if muted, with State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert tweeting that the United States "condemns" the bridge's construction and opening, and particularly the fact that this was "done without the permission of the government of Ukraine." "Crimea is Ukraine," Nauert insisted. Moscow's response was measured. "As one could predict, Washington was not happy with [the bridge's dedication]. But Crimea is Russia. We shall not ask for anybody's permission to build transport infrastructure for the sake of the population of Russian regions," the Russian Embassy in Washington wrote on its Facebook page.

Perhaps the most odious response so far has come from the Washington Examiner, which featured an op-ed by contributor Tom Rogan, who penned a provocative piece titled "Ukraine should blow up Putin's Crimea bridge." The journalist called on Kiev to launch airstrikes against the bridge, even if doing so resulted in civilian deaths, to send a "message" to Putin.

Twitter users had their own "message" for Rogan, calling him a "warhawk" and asking if it "hurts to live without a brain."

In Crimea and the rest of Russia, the bridge's opening was met with jubilation, celebration, and of course selfies of people posing, and driving, along the newly opened road to the peninsula.

"27 months of work; 12 million tons of building material; 10,000 bridge builders; completed half a year ahead of schedule: the Crimean Bridge one hour before opening."

"Accepting the first cars. The most anticipated moment of the last three years!"

LET'S GO! - Putin Drives Kamaz Truck Across Newly-Opened Kerch Strait Bridge!

(18:49 min.)

 

[fabric]

I'm not sure if this was posted before, but there are some great photos of the bridge being constructed here. It was quite a massive project!

Мультимедиа | Крымский мост

 

[Palinurus]

No, I don't think so and thanks for finding and sharing them.

Those are aerial photographs from around the opening ceremony; the ones I posted (from Moscow Times) were from the construction project as it developed over time. No overlap found while checking.

 

[mrtn]

This video has a nice aerial view in the beginning:

and here is a drive along the bridge:

 

[Voyageur]

Have been watching for the nods between Putin and Medvedev of who will be in or out of the government; which is complicated in Russia. Between people, there seems to be leanings e.g. pro west, pro Medvedev and pro Putin (and much more) and it takes time to see who is who and where they align. It has taken time for the President and PM to hash out the final selections and noted is that John Helmer (JH) had written;

CONSPIRACY AND SILENCE — HAS DEFENCE MINISTER SHOIGU BEEN DISMISSED BY PRESIDENT PUTIN?

about the subject of contenders that reaches back further. As of his initial posting it was not decided, however, he quickly updated the same day with the President and PM's final selection, so it is done.

Here is what JH was originally considering as an example (and also what the people think from polls):

As civilian politicians Shoigu and Rogozin benefit from the high trust Russian voters show towards the military command of the country. This is almost as great as popular trust in the presidency; it far outstrips public trust in Medvedev as prime minister and his civilian ministers. In a nationwide poll measuring trust in the leadership institutions last November, the Levada Centre reported 75% full trust in Putin, 69% in the military. Compared to the same poll in 2015, trust in the military has risen, while trust in the president, the Church, the law enforcement authorities and Medvedev’s government has dwindled. In Levada surveys over several years, Shoigu has regularly polled half of Putin’s popularity but double that of Medvedev’s.

Last December, a Levada poll asked Russians across the country the open-ended question – which half-dozen politicians do they trust most? Shoigu came second to Putin; Medvedev came fifth. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov – he is still acting minister and unappointed like Shoigu — also beat Medvedev.

Рейтинг возможных кандидатов в президенты

Last October Levada compared voter ratings for Russian leaders over the past two years. Shoigu and Lavrov have gained steadily in approval; Medvedev has lost. This is the effect of the American war on Russia, reflecting the sentiment among Russians that the leaders who show fight towards the enemy are trusted; those who are perceived as weak and capitulationist are condemned.

On Tuesday Kommersant reported several of its official sources as claiming Shoigu will remain and be reappointed. The sources acknowledged there had been attempts to replace him, but did not explain the motives. The reported candidates for Shoigu’s job are men so close to Putin’s personal security staff that they are unacceptable to the military commanders, who dug in their heels against Putin and in support of Shoigu. The newspaper’s sources were reported as providing no explanation for Putin’s delay in confirming Shoigu in office.

There is more her in background, yet it is moot with Fridays meetings and release update (check the 'published' link below for a full account of who and where):

NOTE: several hours after this story had been published on Friday morning, after light lunch at the President's residence in Sochi, Putin received Medvedev and they confirmed the ministers in the new government, including the reappointments of Shoigu as Defence Minister and Lavrov as Foreign Minister. "Mr. Medvedev, you and I have had a preliminary discussion of virtually all candidacies submitted by you," Putin is quoted as saying on the Kremlin website, "and we have debated some of them this morning." That was at 1345 on the Kremlin website. "I agree," Putin said, "and I will sign all the executive orders on their appointment today." At 1500 the presidential decree finalizing the appointments was published. Among those removed two names are notable: Sergei Prikhodko, the chief of staff at the prime ministry who had been compromised by Oleg Deripaska, was replaced by Konstantin Chuichenko, a longtime Kremlin staff man responsible for control operations. Also removed was Mikhail Abyzov, one of the financiers of Medvedev's presidential campaigns, who was appointed by him to be Minister for Open Government. Abyzov has substantial assets and family in the US. The portfolio has also been abolished. Igor Shuvalov, the London resident deputy prime minister, has been removed as deputy prime minister, as already reported. So, too, Arkady Dvorkovich. The faction of officials most supportive of the interests of the oligarchs and the capitulation to the US has been diminished.

 

[angelburst29]

NOTE: several hours after this story had been published on Friday morning, after light lunch at the President's residence in Sochi, Putin received Medvedev and they confirmed the ministers in the new government, including the reappointments of Shoigu as Defence Minister and Lavrov as Foreign Minister. "Mr. Medvedev, you and I have had a preliminary discussion of virtually all candidacies submitted by you," Putin is quoted as saying on the Kremlin website, "and we have debated some of them this morning." That was at 1345 on the Kremlin website. "I agree," Putin said, "and I will sign all the executive orders on their appointment today." At 1500 the presidential decree finalizing the appointments was published. Among those removed two names are notable: Sergei Prikhodko, the chief of staff at the prime ministry who had been compromised by Oleg Deripaska, was replaced by Konstantin Chuichenko, a longtime Kremlin staff man responsible for control operations. Also removed was Mikhail Abyzov, one of the financiers of Medvedev's presidential campaigns, who was appointed by him to be Minister for Open Government. Abyzov has substantial assets and family in the US. The portfolio has also been abolished. Igor Shuvalov, the London resident deputy prime minister, has been removed as deputy prime minister, as already reported. So, too, Arkady Dvorkovich. The faction of officials most supportive of the interests of the oligarchs and the capitulation to the US has been diminished.

I think, the confirmed reappointments for Shoigu and Lavrov were expected ... considering how both are proven experts in their respective fields and closely involved with developments now in Syria? From countless past reports, it's my understanding that Shoigu has been a close and trusted associate of Putin's for a long time and although some reports suggest that Lavrov is not part of "Putin's click", so to speak, Lavrov has proven his value in handling Foreign Affairs.

In forming a new Government, it's understandable Putin and Medvedev would weed out, those who have any personal or business associations with the US or left over oligarchs that are self serving and not in line with Putin's future plans for Russia. Trump would be in a better position to institute his own visions of making "America great again" if he only studied and took cues from Putin, in solidifying his own Government positions. At this point, I personally can't figure out what-the-HELL Trump is trying to do or accomplish, other than ... be led by the nose by the 5th column?

19.05.2018 - Lavrov's Visit to Argentina, Cuba Canceled over Agenda Changes in Russia's Gov't
Lavrov's Visit to Argentina, Cuba Canceled Over Agenda Changes in Russia's Gov't

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will not make trips to Argentina and Cuba as planned, because of engagements linked to the recently formed Russian government, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

"Because of a series of activities linked to the newly-formed government, the planned visits of the foreign minister to Argentina and Cuba will not take place on the scheduled days," the ministry said.

According to the ministry, a deputy foreign minister will represent Russia at the upcoming G20 foreign ministers' meeting in Buenos Aires, scheduled to take place on May 20-21.

Earlier, Cuba's National Assembly of People's Power (parliament) elected Miguel Diaz-Canel as the new president of the country, who had previously held the post of first deputy chairman of the State Council of Cuba.

Miguel Diaz-Canel succeeded Raul Castro, the 86-year-old former head of the country's Council of State and Cabinet, who became the head of the Cuban state in 2008 after his older brother Fidel.

 

[Voyageur]

In forming a new Government, it's understandable Putin and Medvedev would weed out, those who have any personal or business associations with the US or left over oligarchs that are self serving and not in line with Putin's future plans for Russia. Trump would be in a better position to institute his own visions of making "America great again" if he only studied and took cues from Putin, in solidifying his own Government positions. At this point, I personally can't figure out what-the-HELL Trump is trying to do or accomplish, other than ... be led by the nose by the 5th column?

As for the former, it's my understanding that (like any government) there are difference of direction and people who align to things internal or external. So, Putin must ensure that these alignments meet the strategies envisioned (which are constantly in geopolitical flux), and at the same time he has to work with people like Medvedev, or others who he knows have other alignments. The military is a big consideration (very important) as are the oligarchs who are entrenched - ultimately, though, what is best for Russia and its people can't be lost and balances must be sought.

Putin and Medvedev each have there own circles (and one can see from the polls how Russian's think of Medvedev). It's ultimately a dance that the president must work through, go through the steps, and he knows what other presidents have done that had undermined Russia in the past (and likely in the present there are those who will try).

As for the latter, Trump, that dance is about as goofy as it gets, and like you, I'm perplexed, and at the same time prepared to wait and see as it is hard to stay on track with the maneuvers being constantly made - no crystal ball or guild-stone on this one, as what is in play involves the whole global field with a media that tries to shape it for a more select few.

On the last note, was reviewing older transcript sessions of Laura's, and taken as a whole, the depth of all of the going's on from within so many levels certainly can leave one in uncharted territory. So, really it seems exactly to try and watch the show, as has been stated often enough, and work on oneself and try and help people along the way. I'm grateful that there is a place here to be able to check the pulse of what seems to be this global fever of our times; what the remedy is will take its course, one way or the other, eventually.

 

[angelburst29]

Russia: Putin Drives Truck Across Newly-Opened Crimean Bridge
(1:05 min.)

Railway section of Crimean Bridge to be among Russia’s safest

© Crimean bridge information center

MOSCOW, July 24, 2019 - Special security measures will be in place for the railway section of the Crimean Bridge, connecting the peninsula with mainland Russia, the director general of the Russian Transport Ministry’s departmental security service, Alexey Kovyrshin, told TASS on Wednesday.

"At present, works are being carried out to equip the railway segment of the Crimean Bridge with the required engineering and technical equipment for transport security, as envisaged by the project. Given the unique nature of this facility, extensive measures of technical control to ensure transport security have been envisaged there," he said.

"For today, this facility will be among our country’s most protected transport infrastructure facilities," the official added.

According to the official, the car and the railway sections of the Crimean Bridge will be considered two separate objects, and the safety there will be ensured by different agencies - the car section will be guarded by the Transport Ministry’s departmental security service and the rail section - by the rail transport departmental security service. The overall security will be provided by officers of the Russian Guard, who will also patrol waters around the bridge.

The 19-kilometer long Crimean Bridge, the longest one in Russia, links the Taman Peninsula and the Kerch Peninsula. The bridge’s motorway section was inaugurated in May 2018, with President Vladimir Putin taking part in the opening ceremony. The railway section is expected to be unveiled by the end of 2019.