Andrew Meier has penned an epic, wide ranging profile of the second trial of Mikhail Khodorkovsky in The New York Times Magazine, which captures a sense of the courtroom, the personalities, and the historical context of the affair.  For readers of this blog it is unlikely to have new information, but it represents an important item of reference for those who want to learn about the case. Moscow would soon grow famous for operatic oligarchs and Byzantine intrigues, but Khodorkovsky never got caught in a compromising position -- never snared at an Alpine resort, a Moscow casino or on a Riviera yacht. Girls, power, even the money, seemed to hold no magic. Where others basked in pomp, he was shy and painfully soft-spoken; ...

The following is a translation of an article about the second trial of Mikhail Khodorkovsky published in the French weekly magazine, Le Nouvel Observateur.

The Convict who Frightens the Kremlin From our special correspondent in Moscow

Mikhail Khodorkovsky, former head of oil company Yukos, is serving eight years in prison in Siberia. He is again judged in a trial in which the arbitrary rivals absurdity. The Russian power in the hands of Putin, does not want to see out of prison the person who was formerly the richest man in the country...

It is in this tiny and outdated courtroom No. 7 on the second floor of the Khamovnitchesky District Court of

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Kafkaesque. The former Russian oil tycoon, who stood up to Putin, is back before his judges. Here is the story. [The following is a translation of an article published in the French publication Le Point.]

Le Point, October 15, 2009

Accused Khodorkovsky, Stand Up!

From our special envoy Marc Nexon

He stands up, opens his spiral notebook and pulls out 3 sheets of paper he has scribbled with his fine handwriting. He pats the microphone installed in his glass cage. "Can you hear me?" he asks, addressing the judge. Then he starts with a clear voice: "I know that in his eyes I embody absolute evil, but I would like to ask quietly a few questions to the witness of the prosecution..."

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A phone call in the middle of the night

Grigory Pasko, journalist

Recently, I received a phone call in the middle of the night from Andrei Volozhanin - a former zek in the Krasnokamensk colony, who was once assigned the unusual task of overseeing the work of the former billionaire Mikhail Khodorkovsky at a packaging plant in colony #10. And here is how this middle-of-the-night conversation went:

- Grisha, good morning! - Good night! - Sorry, I'd forgotten it's still night over where you are. I've got a question: they're saying that they've sentenced Khodorkovsky to 20 years... - I don't think so, I think I would have heard about this if they had. - Okay, I'll call back later and we'll talk some more. Or you call me.

Of course I'll

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The following is a translation from the website of Marieluise Beck, a German Member of Parliament who made herself available to attend hearings of the second trial of Mikhail Khodorkovsky as an observer.  This memo summarizes her impressions of the process.

Khodorkovsky on trial: Impressions of a show trial

Marieluise Beck (Member of Parliament, Bündnis 90/Die Grünen) travelled to Moscow to observe the second trial against Mikhail Khodorkovsky, former principal shareholder of the oil company Yukos, and his business partner Platon Lebedev. Each was sentenced to 8 years of imprisonment in 2005 in a trial that on no account complied with constitutional standards and was obviously politically motivated. The second trial is on the verge of taking a similar course, particularly because the charge has absurd proportions

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