Gazprom and the Chinese National Petroleum Corporation have come to an agreement on the framework of gas deliveries to China; issues related to pricing still remain.  Apparently Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin has said Russia could start gas deliveries to China in 2014-2015.  Russia has again raised the suggestion that member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization create an energy forum.  France's environmental minister, Chantal Jouanno, has initiated a probe to investigate the reports that nuclear waste from France has been occupying open air parking lots in Siberia.  Norway expects the average price of oil to increase next year as demand grows alongside economic growth.  A new gas extraction technique from the US used to tap into inaccessible reserves is about to hit Europe.  The EU Commissioner for External Relations and European Neighborhood, Benita Ferrero ...

Hillary Clinton has expressed hope that Boeing will win a $3 billion contract to supply planes to Russian airline Rosavia.  Sberbank president German Gref seems to be in the dark about the signing of the Opel deal after thanking reporters for informing him that it may take place this week.  Apparently no industrial partner has been chosen as of yet.  Chinese metals giant Chinalco apparently has its eye on Rusal facilities in Australia, but Deripaska's firm says it has no intention of selling.  The billionaire has suggested breaking RusHydro up into four companies and taking a stake in a large Siberian dam serving his aluminum plants.  Dmitry Medvedev has called upon Alfa Group chief Mikhail Fridman to lead a study of possible ways of seeing the country's economy out of the crisis.  Russian Standard Vodka's billionaire owner, ...

This week Russia is hosting the first summit of BRIC nations in Yekatrinberg, which is the third summit in a row in under a week - all of which do not include any participation of North American or Western European countries.  It appears that Russia living up to its promises to built a "new global architecture" of multilateralism.  We think that this is a positive trend, and that the world can only benefit from the foundation of greater rule-based international institutions, especially among non-traditional powers.  We also think that it would be even better if Russia and its new rising star partners had a clearer idea of what they wanted to accomplish, but the fact that these meetings are happening is indisputably important and noteworthy....

Asian markets extended losses Tuesday as commodities took a beating and worried investors looked for fresh signs of an economic recovery.  Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average declined 2.9%, its worst one-day percentage loss in more than two months, even as Bank of Japan noted that "Japan's economic conditions, after deteriorating significantly, have begun to stop worsening."  The bank left its overnight lending rate unchanged at 0.1%.  Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 1.8% and South Korea's Kospi fell 1%.  China's Shanghai Composite Index however outperformed regional markets and declined 0.5%.

Dollar prices were under pressure after Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, speaking at a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, said the world needs new reserve currencies.  Wall Street futures point to a flat opening.  

On Monday, US stocks registered their worst slide in a month with the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which ended last week in a positive territory

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TODAY: Russia plays host to SCO and BRIC meetings; sidestepping protests at home, Iranian President Ahmadinejad lands in 'welcoming' Russia; is the US re-start set to stall?; Kremlin vetoes UN mission in Georgia; Russia holds record for journalist deaths in EuropeRussia has welcomed controversially re-elected Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Yekaterinburg for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit at which the country has observer status.  Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov has called the violently-contested election: 'an internal affair of the Iranian people.'   The New York Times examines the difficulties awaiting Barack Obama in Moscow, particularly regarding hopes of Russian pressure on Iran.  Another article in the Times suggests that during the BRIC summit, Russia, the group's 'ideological provocateur', will be 'especially ...

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whose presidency is being hotly contested in Iran, will not be traveling to Yekaterinburg to meet with Dmitry Medvedev today on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit, according to the Iranian Embassy in Moscow.  The leaders were due to meet to discuss Iran's nuclear program amid last week's rumors that Russia could change its stance on economic sanctions against Iran, but current political turbulence is preventing Ahmadinejad from performing his diplomatic duties.  Russia was due to be his first scheduled foreign trip following the elections.  

SCO summit against a background of torture

Grigory Pasko, journalist

I recently visited Yekaterinburg. The city is literally flooded with police in reflective vests. The word «security» is heard time and again on the streets. On the television, all the news shows begin with a report about how the capital of Sverdlovsk Oblast is preparing for a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

Human rights advocates Sergey Beliayev and Vladimir Shakleyin told me about the preparation of a rally in defense of Alexey Sokolov (Vladimir Shakleyin, by the way, is the lawyer of Yelena Maglevannaya, who was successfully sued by the prison authorities of Volgograd Oblast for a 200,000 rubles because she published investigative articles about cases of torture and abuse within the

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A while back we wrote about the colossal diplomatic blunder Moscow was making when they thought that the Shanghai Cooperation Organization would be the ideal venue for them to drum up support for separatism and annexation in the Caucasus (having ignored a couple hundred years of Chinese history). Now it looks like Asia, led by Beijing, is pumping money into Tbilisi. Yes, that's about the exact opposite outcome the Kremlin was looking for... From the IHT: The Asian Development Bank, in which China plays a leading role, has extended a $40 million loan at the lowest possible rate to Georgia. The Shanghai Cooperation Organization - which includes China, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan as well as Russia - refused to countenance Russia's recognition of two breakaway regions of Georgia. The rebuff of Putin is all the more striking because - ...

TODAY: Medvedev seeks eastern support over Georgia; seven of G8 members issue strong condemnation of Russia’s actions in Georgia; extraordinary EU summit to be held next week. Russia warns Turkey over US ships, hints at “direct confrontation”. Russia fears being surrounded by Nato, says Rogozin. Interview with former KGB agent. Amid reports that Russia is looking to the east for support on its actions in Georgia, President Dmitry Medvedev will this week take part in a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and will hold bilateral talks with the president of Tajikistan. It is thought that the European Union will issue a condemnation of Russia's recognition of independence for South Ossetia and Abkhazia at an extraordinary summit to be held in Brussels next week, after seven of the world's leading G8 industrialized nations ...