It's been less than a week since valiant Russian human rights groups Memorial won Europe's llustrious human rights award, the Sakharov Prize, but it seems that Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov is determined to pull the plug on any celebrations. Kadyrov won a civil libel suit against the organization's Chairman Oleg Orlov earlier this month, regarding the activist's public affirmation that the Chechen leader was responsible for the murder of fellow Memorial representative Natalya Estemirova in July.  Kadyrov has now opened a criminal libel suit against Orlov, which carries a prison sentence of up to three or four years. This from the AP: The case stems from Orlov's statement in July that Chechen President ...

TODAY: Clinton turns attention to civil society and gives speech tackling human rights abuses; Walt Whitman statue unveiled; Putin advises against intimidating Iran; opposition politicians stage Duma walk out.  Memorial to appeal.  Putin turns pop svengali?'In an innovative society, people must be free to take unpopular positions, disagree with conventional wisdom, know they are safe to challenge abuses of authority': Hillary Clinton affirmed her support for dissidence and human rights protection in a speech at Moscow State University.  'That's why attacks on journalists and human rights activists are such a great concern, because it is a threat to progress', she is quoted as saying in the New York Times.  Click here for a video of Clinton ...

TODAY: US to modify or jettison missile defense plans? NATO chief to meet with Russian envoy; Lukaschenko sends out mixed messages.  South Ossetia denies book burning; think tank leader says Putin could be heading for Brehznev-style decades in power; Medvedev finds inspiration on blogosphere.The Wall Street Journal reports that the White House may abandon the Bush-era missile defense plans which have caused consternation in Russia.  AP sources quoted on the Washington Post suggest a compromise measure, tempered to Russian concerns.  RFE/RL has an entertaining list of the 'dissidents' President Medvedev might like to meet on his upcoming US trip.  NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen and Russian envoy to the alliance Dmitry Rogozin will hold an ...

TODAY: Medvedev meets Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and LAS in Cairo; supports idea of Middle East peace talks before year's end; Lavrov says Russian security idea is not anti-NATO; European report launches stinging attack on Russian justice systemMedvedev has announced that Moscow plans to hold a Middle East peace conference before the end of 2009, an idea supported by Egypt.  In a meeting with the League of Arab States, Medvedev commented that the peace process might result in an independent Palestine with the capital in East Jerusalem.  The BBC comments on the motivation for the trip: 'in terms of influence, Russia lags far behind China and the US - not just in Egypt but right ...