Lawyers for Two Imprisoned Pussy Riot Members Quit Case

The lawyers for two jailed members of the punk band Pussy Riot, Maria Alyokhina and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova,  announced Monday that they would no longer be representing the women, saying they believed that their continued participation in the case could have negative consequences for their former defendants.  Nikolai Polozov, one of the three lawyers formerly representing the women, said they had decided the publicity they had helped produce around the case had "irritated" authorities and that they had agreed with their clients to remove themselves from the case if the convicted punk rockers were pressured.  Mark Feigin, another of the outgoing lawyers, expressed hope that Tolokonnikova and Alyokhina could be granted early release in late April after the change in legal representation.
The Pussy Riot case has become an international public relations headache for the Kremlin, the latest demonstrating coming on Friday, when German Chancellor Angela Merkel suggested during a panel discussion with President Vladimir Putin that the sentences given to the women were too harsh.


http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/pussy-riot-lawyers-quit-rockers-case/471666.html

U.S. House Passes Russian Trade Bill, with Human Rights Link

Despite warnings from Russian officials, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to drop Cold War-era trade restrictions, while taking a jab at the policies of President Vladimir Putin by publishing the names of Russians believed to be involved in the abuse and death of Sergei Magnitsky, a Russian anti-corruption lawyer who died in 2009 in a Russian jail.  The bill, which still needs Senate approval, would establish "permanent normal trade relations", thus ensuring that U.S. companies get the full benefits of Russia's recent entry into the World Trade Organization.  The bill would also require the Obama administration to deny visas and freeze the assets of any individual on the list, as well as other human rights violators in Russia on an ongoing basis. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said earlier on Friday that Russia has already prepared its next steps in response to the legislation, but gave no details. Other Russian officials have indicated that Moscow would retaliate by imposing sanctions on U.S. officials it accused of violating Russian citizens' rights.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/11/16/us-usa-russia-idUSBRE8AF13M20121116

Russia and China Pledge Work on Global Recovery at APEC Summit

At the APEC summit on Saturday Chinese and Russian leaders urged Asian-Pacific countries to protect themselves by forging deeper regional economic ties.  Spelling out plans to pump $157 billion into infrastructure investments in agriculture, energy, railways and roads, China's Hu said Beijing would do all it could to boost prospects of a global recovery by rebalancing its economy. Putin added that trade barriers must be smashed down. "The global economic recovery is faltering," he said.  Pledging that Russia would be a stable energy supplier and a gateway to Europe for Asian countries, he suggested that "[w]e can overcome the negative trends only by increasing the volume of trade in goods and services and enhancing the flow of capital." General discussions at the two-day APEC summit focused on food security and trade liberalization, and an agreement was reached before the summit to slash import duties on technologies that can promote economic growth without endangering the environment.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/08/us-apec-summit-idUSBRE88702W20120908

Russia Hopes Upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum Will Boost Foreign Trade, Particularly With Asia and U.S.

For the first time in its history, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum will take place in Russia, with a keynote speech by President Putin in Vladivostok on September 7th.  The Russian government expects the upcoming forum will help to attract more investment to Russia and remove doubts  about the country's efforts to invest abroad, First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov said Tuesday.  "The main result will be how much investment Russia will receive after the meeting and how the other economies will be ready to accept Russian investment," Shuvalov said at a news conference.  Shuvalov hopes the APEC forum will help Russia to achieve its goal of having at least 50 percent of its foreign trade come from Asian economies and/or the United States.  Noting that Russia has long had stronger trade ties with Europe, Shuvalov acknowledged that Russia will continue to seek a new trade agreement with the European Union, with the ultimate goal of establishing a free-trade zone.  Shuvalov also noted that Russia will apply as much effort to promote trade with the Asian economies, adding that he hopes that Putin would set up an agency to advance trade ties with Asia.
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/special/apec/2012/apec-summit-might-boost-investment.html

US Under Secretary for International Trade Suggests Trajectory for Russian Commercial Relations and Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Headed in the "Right Direction"

In an interview during a recent visit to Moscow, U.S. Under Secretary for International Trade, Francisco Sanchez, told Interfax that he thought the trajectory of U.S.-Russian commercial relations was headed in the right direction:  "Exports from the United States to Russia have increased 40% since 2009.  Exports from Russia to the United States have increased nearly 30% during the same time period. The numbers are moving in the rights direction. With Russian accession to the WTO, I think those number will increase."  On the issue of intellectual property rights, Sanchez cautioned that although Russia has strengthened many of its laws in this area,  "[the US] and our companies remain concerned in terms of enforcement and application of the IP laws, particularly in internet piracy for example."  He suggested that enforcement of IP rights would also become a concern for Russian companies as they continue to invest in innovation and seek to diversify, and he promised that the US would work with Russian officials and companies on enforcement and other intellectual property issues.

http://www.interfax.com/interview.asp?id=337755

Russia and China Reach Bilateral Deal on Investment, Energy and Technology

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao have signed pivotal investment, energy, innovation and technology cooperation agreements as the two leaders met during Putin’s three-day visit to China. The Chinese leader suggested that China and Russia expand their cooperation in investment, high technology, energy, large-scale projects and trans-border infrastructure as well as sub-national cooperation. Putin said Russia hopes to coordinate with China more closely to push ahead with key projects and improve bilateral cooperation, as well as continue to diversify bilateral trade, intensify mutual investment, initiate new programs on infrastructure and high technology, and increase exchanges between regions and enterprises. Among other things, Russia and China signed a cooperation agreement between the Skolkovo Foundation and the Beijing-based Z-Park. The agreement marks a transition to full-scale collaboration in high technologies between the two countries.
http://rt.com/business/news/china-russia-cement-deals-investment-046/