This Week’s Highlights

• On Jan. 29, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a bill into law, which both chambers of the Russian parliament passed earlier in the week, to extend the New START treaty for five years. Putin submitted the bill after his phone conversation with U.S. President Joe Biden on Jan. 26. According to the White House readout of the conversation, the two presidents “agreed to explore strategic stability discussions on a range of arms control and emerging security issues.”  Biden also “raised other matters of concern, including the SolarWinds hack, reports of Russia placing bounties on United States soldiers in Afghanistan, interference in the 2020 United States election and the poisoning of Alexei Navalny.” According to the Kremlin’s readout of the conversation, “the U.S.’s unilateral withdrawal from the Open Skies Treaty, the problem of preserving the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on the Iranian nuclear program [and] the domestic settlement in Ukraine and the Russian initiative to hold a summit of the permanent members of the U.N. Security Council” were also discussed. 
• Russia is set to launch in-depth talks on the future of arms control and a new security equation with the United States within the next five years, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Jan. 27, Interfax reports.
• Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov stressed that major differences between Moscow and Washington remained after the conversation between Putin and Biden. "Of course so far there are no conditions for a reset," Peskov said, according to The Moscow Times. Peskov emphasized that Russia has some “red lines” which no one may cross, singling out American whistleblower Edward Snowden and revolution in Ukraine as examples. Peskov has also accused the U.S. of interfering in Russian domestic affairs after U.S. officials in Washington and Moscow criticized the police crackdown on protesters backing Navalny, The Moscow Times reports.
• The U.S. Navy sent three warships to the Black Sea, including two destroyers, increasing the U.S.’s naval presence in that sea to its highest level in three years, RFE/RL reports. The Russian Navy’s Black Sea fleet responded by dispatching the Admiral Makarov guided missile frigate to perform air defense and combat-readiness exercises, according to The Moscow Times.
• Moscow police warned Russians supporting jailed Kremlin critic Navalny against staging protests on Jan. 31. Tens of thousands of people across Russia rallied on Jan. 23 in support of Navalny and more than 4,000 people were detained, The Moscow Times reports. Key allies of Navalny were placed under house arrest ahead of new rallies while a Moscow court has upheld Navalny’s 30-day pretrial detention on charges of violating probation terms from a previous conviction he says was politically motivated.
• Russia’s population totaled 146.24 million as of Jan. 1, 2021, down from 146.75 million the previous year. The 510,000-person decline is the largest since 2005, according to The Moscow Times.

I. U.S. and Russian priorities for the bilateral agenda

Nuclear security:

• The Tula Plant completed the development of the newest RKhM-9 nuclear, biological and chemical reconnaissance vehicle, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexey Krivoruchko said. (TASS, 01.29.21)

North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs:

• The U.S. will work with its Japanese and South Korean allies, but also with China and Russia to denuclearize North Korea, the appointee for U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield said Jan. 27. Thomas-Greenfield also largely agreed with senators on the need to address problems with Russia and to revamp U.N. institutions. (Yonhap, 01.28.21, Wall Street Journal, 01.27.21)

Iran and its nuclear program:

• Moscow has joined Tehran in calling on U.S. President Joe Biden to lift crippling economic sanctions on Iran if he wants to save a multination deal aimed at keeping the Middle Eastern country's nuclear program in check. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said at a meeting with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif Jan. 26 that the two nations "share the same position” on urging the U.S. to lift sanctions as a condition for Iran's return to compliance. (RFE/RL, 01.26.21)
• Russia does not support expanding the Iran nuclear deal to other issues like Tehran's regional influence should the U.S. decide to rejoin, Moscow's deputy envoy to the U.N. said Jan. 27. Last year, "we managed to save the deal, to keep it alive. We all hope that the new administration will make some practical moves in this regard," said Dmitry Polyanskiy. "But you shouldn't mix it up with a regional framework which exists," the Russian diplomat said. (AFP, 01.28.21)
• Iran's parliament speaker says the country has produced 17 kilograms of 20 percent-enriched uranium within a month, as Iranian officials continue to dismiss international calls for Tehran to return to full compliance with the 2015 nuclear agreement. In separate comments, the spokesman of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, Behruz Kalamvandi, confirmed the numbers. (RFE/RL, 01,28.21)
• On Jan. 27, newly installed U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the Biden administration was willing to return to commitments under JCPOA, but only if Iran returned to full compliance. In response, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif reiterated Tehran's view that the United States should first lift its sanctions. (RFE/RL, 01,28.21)
• U.S. officials say Biden's new administration will name veteran diplomat Robert Malley as its special envoy for Iran. (RFE/RL, 01.29.21)

Great Power rivalry/New Cold War/saber rattling:

• The U.S. Navy has sent a third warship into the Black Sea as it steps up its presence in the strategic region. The destroyer USS Porter entered the Black Sea on a routine patrol on Jan. 28, joining Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Donald Cook and replenishment oiler USNS Laramie, the U.S. Navy said in a statement. It is the largest U.S. Navy presence in the Black Sea in three years, according to Breaking Defense, and comes days after Biden spoke for the first time with Russian President Vladimir Putin. (RFE/RL, 01.29.21, Defense Blog, 01.23.21)
• A Russian warship has sailed out of its home berth in the Black Sea to confront U.S. destroyer Porter navigating the area, the Russian navy announced Jan. 29. The Admiral Makarov performed air defense and combat-readiness exercises “under combat training plans,” Interfax cited the Black Sea Fleet as saying. (The Moscow Times, 01.29.21)
• The coastal base for strategic unmanned underwater Poseidon craft will be ready in the summer of 2022. Trials of the first carrier are nearing completion. The Defense Ministry has not disclosed the deployment location of submarines armed with Poseidon. (TASS, 01.27.21)
• The U.S. military reportedly spirited a Russian-made Pantsir-S1 air defense system out of Libya in June 2020, after it was captured from forces aligned with rogue general Khalifa Haftar. While the fact that the U.S. military has obtained a Russian-made Pantsir-S1 air defense missile system is not good news as such, it will not have really negative consequences for Russia, Sergei Modestov, vice president of the Russian Academy of Military Sciences, said. (The Drive, 01.27.21, Interfax, 01.28.21)

NATO-Russia relations:

• No significant developments.

Missile defense:

• Pentagon missile defense costs could soar to a massive $176 billion between 2020 and 2029, a 40 percent increase, according to a new Congressional Budget Office report. (Arms Control Center, January 2021)

Nuclear arms control:

• Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed off on legislation extending a key nuclear pact between Russia and the United States by five years, the Kremlin said Jan. 29. "The current federal law enters force on the day of its official publication," the Kremlin statement said. Russia's parliament had backed the extension earlier this week. Putin had submitted the bill to both houses of parliament after the Russian leader and new U.S. President Joe Biden held their first phone call Jan. 26. In his speech at the virtual World Economic Forum on Jan. 27, Putin hailed his agreement with Biden as “a step in the right direction.” (The Moscow Times, 01.29.21, Financial Times, 01.27.21, The Moscow Times, 01.27.21, Politico, 01.29.21) See section “U.S.-Russian relations in general” for details of the conversation between Putin and Biden on Jan. 26.
• "This is a good timeframe, which will allow us to work well—if the political will exists—to either further extend it or (agree) a new text of the agreement," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. (The Moscow Times, 01.27.21)
• Russia hopes the extension of the last remaining U.S.-Russian arms-control treaty will give a new boost to restarting a strategic dialogue between Moscow and Washington, Russia's deputy U.N. Ambassador Dmitry Polyansky has said. (RFE/RL, 01.28.21)
• Russia is set to launch in-depth talks on the future of arms control and a new security equation with the U.S. within the next five years, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said. (Interfax, 01.27.21)
• Speaking at Russia’s State Duma, Ryabkov stated that Avangard—one of Russia’s latest and most advanced nuclear delivery systems—falls under the purview of the New START treaty. (The National Interest, 01.27.21)

Counter-terrorism:

• No significant developments.

Conflict in Syria:

• Turkey, Iran and Russia urged the Syrian Constitutional Committee on Jan. 28 to seek compromise and consensus among the sides to the decade-long civil war. Following consultations on the margins of the fifth meeting of the Constitutional Committee in Geneva, the three countries released a joint statement underlining their support for a sovereign, independent and united Syria. (Anadolu, 01.29.21)
• Lavrov has met with the Syrian opposition leaders of the so-called Moscow and Cairo platforms to discuss the situation in their country and the efforts to establish intra-Syrian dialogue, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. (Interfax, 01.21.21)
• Inoculation against the coronavirus has begun for servicemen of the Russian Armed Forces at the Khmeimim air base in Syria. (TASS, 01.25.21)

Cyber security:

• Investigators probing a massive hack of the U.S. government and businesses say they have found concrete evidence the suspected Russian espionage operation went far beyond the compromise of the small software vendor publicly linked to the attack. Approximately 30 percent of both the private-sector and government victims linked to the campaign had no direct connection to SolarWinds, Brandon Wales, acting director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, said. (Wall Street Journal, 01.29.21)

Elections interference:

• Ukraine has launched a criminal investigation into attempts to interfere in the November 2020 U.S. presidential election. The U.S. Treasury Department on Jan. 11 imposed sanctions on several Ukrainian individuals and entities, accusing them of U.S. election interference and associating with a pro-Russian Ukrainian lawmaker linked to efforts by then-U.S. President Donald Trump's allies to find compromising information on Biden and his son. (RFE/RL, 01,28.21)
• Kevin Clinesmith, the former FBI lawyer who admitted to doctoring an email that other officials relied upon to justify secret surveillance of former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page, was sentenced to probation on Jan. 29. Prosecutors had asked that Clinesmith spend several months in prison for his crime. The case against Clinesmith is the first and only criminal allegation to arise from prosecutor John Durham's review of the FBI's Russia case. (AP, 01.29.21, The Washington Post, 01.29.21)

Energy exports from CIS:

• The Russian Fortuna vessel tapped to finish the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline has begun work in Danish waters just days after the United States sanctioned its parent company. (RFE/RL, 01.25.21)

U.S.-Russian economic ties:

• Russia’s titanium corporation VSMPO-Avisma, the world’s largest titanium producer, and Boeing have entered into a long-term contract on supply of titanium products for production of civil aircraft. (TASS, 01.26.21)

U.S.-Russian relations in general:

• Biden and Putin talked by phone Jan. 26 for the first time since Biden’s inauguration: 
• The White House said:  
  • Biden and Putin “discussed both countries’ willingness to extend New START for five years, agreeing to have their teams work urgently to complete the extension by Feb. 5. (White House, 01.26.21) 
  • Biden and Putin “agreed to explore strategic stability discussions on a range of arms control and emerging security issues.” (New York Times, 01.26.21) 
  • Biden reaffirmed America's "strong support" for Ukraine's sovereignty. (White House, 01.26.21) 
  • Biden addressed concerns about Russian interference in the 2020 election. (Wall Street Journal, 01.26.21) 
  • Biden “raised other matters of concern, including the SolarWinds hack, reports of Russia placing bounties on United States soldiers in Afghanistan, interference in the 2020 United States election and the poisoning of Alexei Navalny.” Biden called on Putin to release Navalny during their phone call, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters Jan. 29. (White House, 01.26.21, Reuters, 01.29.21)
  • “The two presidents agreed to maintain transparent and consistent communication going forward.” (White House, 01.26.21) 
  • Biden, speaking at an event at the White House, when asked what Putin had to say, joked, “He sends his best!” (New York Times, 01.26.21) 
• The Kremlin said:
  • Putin and Biden “expressed satisfaction over today’s exchange of diplomatic notes on the agreement to extend the Strategic Arms Reduction.” (Kremlin.ru, 01.26.21) 
  • Putin and Biden “reviewed the U.S.’s unilateral withdrawal from the Open Skies Treaty, the problem of preserving the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on the Iranian nuclear program, the domestic settlement in Ukraine and the Russian initiative to hold a summit of the permanent members of the U.N. Security Council.” (Kremlin.ru, 01.26.21) 
  • Putin “noted that normalizing the relationship between Russia and the United States would be in the interest of both countries and—given their special responsibility for security and stability in the world—of the entire international community.” (New York Times, 01.26.21) 
  • The Kremlin’s description of the call did not mention Navalny. (New York Times, 01.26.21) 
• Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stressed on Jan. 27 that major differences between Moscow and Washington remained, indicating that a new reset was out of the question. "Of course so far there are no conditions for a reset," Peskov said. "It is enough that the presidents yesterday stressed the need to continue dialogue, having noted the existence of rather serious disagreements," he added. (The Moscow Times, 01.27.21)
• Russia is ready to show flexibility in relations with the U.S. but not ready for diktat or rudeness, Peskov said. Peskov has emphasized that to Russia, there are some “red lines,” which no one may cross. "Yet, these are just the red lines that may not be crossed," Peskov said in response to a remark that Russia could have been more flexible at some points in the past and, for example, extradite Edward Snowden to the U.S. or put up with a “coup” in Ukraine. (Interfax, 01.25.21)
• Russia has summoned the United States' ambassador to Moscow over a “demonstration alert” urging U.S. citizens to avoid protests in support of Navalny, a move that Moscow called interference in its affairs. Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov informed U.S. Ambassador John Sullivan that Moscow considers the safety alerts to be “direct interference in the internal affairs of our country,” Interfax reported. (The Moscow Times, 01.25.21)
• Peskov has accused the U.S. of interfering in Russian domestic affairs after U.S. officials in Washington and Moscow criticized the police crackdown on protesters backing Navalny. (RFE/RL, 01.25.21)
• U.S. Republican and Democratic lawmakers called for new sanctions against Moscow if the Kremlin moves to enforce stringent restrictions and punishing fines that threaten RFE/RL’s news operations in Russia. The letter, dated Jan. 22, also called on Biden’s administration to do more to bolster RFE/RL’s operations in Belarus, which has been roiled by months of anti-government protests following Alexander Lukashenko’s declaration of reelection in August. Opposition groups say that vote was rigged and many Western nations have refused to recognize Lukashenko’s declaration. (RFE/RL, 01.24.21)
• Russia's deputy U.N. ambassador said Dmitry Polyansky has said that Moscow recognized some people in the new U.S. administration's foreign-policy team who bring a "certain legacy with them," and this "explains why we are somewhat cautious." Polyansky did not name the people he referred to, but Biden's choice to serve as undersecretary for political affairs, Victoria Nuland, is known as a Russia hawk. (RFE/RL, 01.28.21)
• The KGB cultivated Donald Trump as an asset for 40 years, and he proved a highly valuable asset in repeating anti-Western Russian propaganda in the United States, a former KGB operative alleged. Yuri Shvets is a key source in "American Kompromat," a new book, which details the KGB's attempts in the 1980s to cultivate dozens of unwitting businesspeople in the United States as Russian assets. (The Guardian, 01.29.21, Business Insider, 01.29.21)
• The U.S. has sentenced West Virginia woman Elizabeth Jo Shirley to 11 years in federal prison for trying to sell classified information to Russia while attempting to kidnap her daughter from the girl’s custodial father to Mexico. (The Moscow Times, 01.26.21)

II. Russia’s domestic policies

Domestic politics, economy and energy:

• Russia confirmed 19,238 new coronavirus cases and 534 deaths on Jan. 29 compared to 19,138 cases and 575 deaths on Jan. 28. (The Moscow Times, 01.29.21, Interfax, 01.28.21) Here’s a link to RFE/RL’s interactive map of the virus’ spread around the world, including in Russia and the rest of post-Soviet Eurasia. For a comparison of the number and rate of change in new cases in the U.S. and Russia, visit this Russia Matters resource.
• The coronavirus pandemic pushed Russian living standards to their lowest level in a decade, new economic data published by the country’s statistics service Rosstat has shown. Real disposable incomes—a closely tracked indicator of Russian households’ financial wellbeing—dropped by 3.5 percent in 2020, Rosstat found. They now stand more than 10 percent below levels recorded in 2013, the last year of solid growth before Russia’s annexation of Crimea and a slump in world oil prices pushed the economy into recession. (The Moscow Times, 01.29.21)
• Russia’s population totaled 146.24 million as of Jan. 1, 2021, down from 146.75 million the previous year. The 510,000-person decline is the largest since 2005, when Russia’s population dropped by 564,500 from the previous year. (The Moscow Times, 01.28.21)
• Activists have scheduled a second round of nationwide protests in Russia on Jan. 31, demonstrating against government corruption and demanding the release of Navalny—while Russian police have stepped up a crackdown on supporters of the jailed opposition leader.​  Moscow police Jan. 28 warned Russians supporting jailed Kremlin critic Navalny against staging protests on Jan. 31, saying demonstrators could face criminal responsibility. Tens of thousands of people across Russia rallied last weekend in support of the opposition leader, who urged supporters to protest against Putin's 20-year rule. More than 4,000 people were detained, including 195 who were under 18, Jan. 23 at the nationwide rallies, which have sparked a series of criminal investigations. Police clashed with demonstrators in Moscow as tens of thousands took to the streets. A number of protesters were injured, including a woman in Saint Petersburg who was hospitalized with a head injury. (The Moscow Times, 01.24.21, RFE/RL, 01.29.21, AFP, 01.28.21, Financial Times, 01.25.21)
  • A Moscow court has upheld Navalny’s 30-day pretrial detention on charges of violating probation terms from a previous conviction he says was politically motivated. (The Moscow Times, 01.28.21)
  • Key allies of Navalny were placed under house arrest ahead of new rallies. Navalny's brother Oleg and the coordinator of Navalny's Moscow office, Oleg Stepanov, were placed under house arrest until March 23. Prominent activist Lyubov Sobol's lawyer said the freedom of the 33-year-old—who has a small child—could also be restricted. (AFP, 01.29.21)
  • Peskov Jan. 26 said there could be "no dialogue" with those who joined the "illegal" protests—Russia’s biggest anti-government demonstrations in years—and "took part in riots." (RFE/RL, 01.26.21)
• Putin has denied claims about a lavish palace allegedly built for his use on the Black Sea, which featured in Navalny’s latest investigation that drew over 100 million views on YouTube. Putin said he “did not have time” to watch the video, but claimed that “nothing listed there has ever belonged to me or my close relatives.” (Financial Times, 01.25.21)
  • Russia’s security forces only established a no-fly zone around Putin’s alleged palace due to increased intelligence collection activity by NATO members. (The Moscow Times, 01.27.21)
  • A Kremlin-loyal news outlet has gained access to the palace. Video published by the Mash Telegram channel Jan. 29 showed its chief editor being escorted inside the marble palace teeming with construction. (The Moscow Times, 01.29.21)
• Putin has ordered Russia’s lower-house speaker to draft a legal ban on comparisons between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany, according to a Kremlin statement published Jan. 23. (AFP, 01.26.21)
• Former Russian Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Prikhodko has died at the age of 64. (RFE/RL, 01.26.21)

Defense and aerospace:

• The Russian armed forces received over 6,600 new weapons in 2020, Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu disclosed Jan. 29. Those include, in particular, "four S-400 Triumf missile air defense regiment kits, two Buk-M3 missile air defense division kits, the Knyaz Vladimir nuclear submarine cruiser with Bulava ballistic missiles, the Admiral Kasatonov frigate, the Pyotr Morgunov landing ship, the Volkhov submarine, Gremyaschy and Aldar Tsydenzhapov corvettes," Shoigu noted. (TASS, 01.29.21)
• Russia’s main state-owned industrial conglomerate Rostec has confirmed the development of a next-generation long-range interceptor to replace an aging fleet of MiG-31 fighter jets. According to a press release issued Jan. 22 by Rostec, the new MiG-41 interceptor already entered the development stage. (Defense Blog, 01.25.21)
• Russian state space corporation Roscosmos carries on the talks with China and other international partners on the creation of a joint moon base, Roscosmos chief Dmitry Rogozin said on his Telegram channel. (TASS, 01.25.21)

Security, law-enforcement and justice:

• An elite Russian chemical weapons squad that tailed Navalny for years before allegedly poisoning him with Novichok was involved with at least three other killings, according to a joint investigation published Jan. 27. Bellingcat, The Insider and Der Spiegel said they have linked the FSB unit to the killings of journalist-activist Timur Kuashev, activist Ruslan Magomedragimov and politician Nikita Isayev. (The Moscow Times, 01.27.21)

III. Russia’s relations with other countries

Russia’s general foreign policy and relations with “far abroad” countries:

• In his speech at the virtual World Economic Forum on Jan. 27, Putin has warned that the world risks an “all against all” conflict if global development concerns are not addressed. “There is a chance to face a real setback in global development, which is fraught with a fight of all against all and attempts to resolve looming controversies through a search for internal and external enemies,” Putin said in a video conference speech to attendees. “The situation might develop unpredictably and uncontrollably. It definitely will if nothing is done to prevent this.” “Of course, I hope that such a hot global conflict is impossible in principle now. I really do hope so. It would mean the end to our civilization,” he said. He also questioned the power of technology giants, making a pointed reference to the role played by social media companies in the recent U.S. election and its aftermath. “These are no longer just economic giants. In some areas, they are already de facto competing with the state,” Putin said. (Financial Times, 01.27.21)
• Foreign ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) major industrial nations have condemned Russia for the "politically motivated" detention of Navalny and the "violent suppression" of protesters demanding his release. (RFE/RL, 01.26.21)
• Despite pressure from some EU countries on Jan. 25 to sanction Russia further after the arrest of Navalny and thousands of his supporters, the bloc's top foreign policy official will go ahead with a visit to Moscow early next month and meet with Russian officials first. The official, Josep Borrell Fontelles, will press the Russian government to release Navalny, according to diplomats in Brussels, and if not, new sanctions are possible. (New York Times, 01.26.21)
  • Asked whether the EU ministers had discussed new sanctions against Russia, Borrell said "there has not been any concrete proposal on the table," but added that the ministers are "ready to act, depending on the circumstances.” Borrell said he would visit Moscow next week for talks with Lavrov. (AP, 01.25.21)
• Russia could provide the European Union with 100 million doses of its Sputnik V coronavirus shot—enough to vaccinate 50 million people—in the second quarter of 2021. (Reuters, 01.29.21)
• Hungary is purchasing 2 million doses of the Sputnik V vaccine, enough to inoculate 1 million people. (bne IntelliNews, 01.24.21)
• Lavrov on Jan. 26 backed a Palestinian proposal for a Middle East peace conference, saying at the U.N. that it could be held at ministerial level in spring or summer. Participants would include Israel, the Palestinians, the four members of the so-called Middle East diplomatic quartet (Russia, the U.N., the U.S. and the EU), along with four Arab states—Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, Lavrov said. (AFP, 01.26.21)
• India is hopeful that it will be able to hold a BRICS summit in person in late 2021, Indian Ambassador to Russia Venkatesh Varma said. (TASS, 01.26.21)
• The president of the International Biathlon Union, Anders Besseberg, was accustomed to receiving gifts from his Russian hosts. And for decades, according to a report commissioned by biathlon's new leadership, Besseberg repaid the Russian favors by doing the country's bidding—defending its athletes, assailing its critics and even blocking efforts to root out doping by its teams. (New York Times, 01.28.21)

China-Russia: Allied or Aligned?

• The volume of trade in agricultural products between China and Russia in 2020 reached a new record amounting to $5.55 billion, the official representative of China’s Ministry of Commerce Gao Feng said Jan. 28. He said the Chinese authorities plan to intensify trade and economic cooperation with Russia in order to increase bilateral trade to $200 billion. (TASS, 01.28.21)
• “To put this threat into perspective, we have now reached the point where the FBI is opening a new China-related counterintelligence investigation about every 10 hours,” said Joseph R. Bonavolonta, the FBI’s Boston special agent in charge. (New York Times, 01.26.21)

Ukraine:

• Net foreign direct investment in Ukraine was the worst in 20 years in 2020. Last year’s remittances from Ukrainian workers abroad totaled $12 billion—almost five times the net direct foreign investment of $2.5 million. In 2018, net FDI added up to $2.4 billion. (Ukraine Business News, 01.25.21)
• Industrial production in Ukraine in 2020 decreased by 5.2 percent, but in December last year, for the first time since May 2019, its growth was recorded compared to the same period of the previous year—by 4.8 percent. (Interfax, 01.22.21)
• After the U.S., Ukraine was the world’s second largest grain exporter in the marketing year that ended June 30. Taras Kachka, Ukrainian Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Economy, said China has imported 6.9 million tons of grain from Ukraine—more than the 6.3 million tons imported during the 2019/2020 marketing year. (Ukraine Business News, 01.25.21)
• While Ukrainians were largely barred from visiting the EU for tourism in 2020, travel was permitted for work last year. Outbound crossings were: Poland—4 million; Hungary—1.6 million; Russia—1 million. (Ukraine Business News, 01.25.21)
• Ukraine’s parliament on Jan. 29 approved a bill intended to speed up the approval of COVID-19 vaccines, which also bans the approval of vaccines made in Russia. No vaccine has yet been approved in Ukraine but authorities have repeatedly said Kyiv will not approve or use vaccines from Russia. (Reuters, 01.29.21)
• To prevent corruption, a raft of reforms were put in place in Ukraine including a requirement that nearly all government contracts be made public, lest secret kickbacks slip into the pockets of high-ranking officials. But to secure vaccine supplies, Ukraine has been forced to largely abandon the rule—a move that the government says is not its choice as much as the demand of the pharmaceutical giants that control the supply. (New York Times, 01.23.21)
• "Against the background of Vladimir Putin’s increasingly obvious health problems and the noticeable difficulty for him to physically perform public functions of the head of state, a de facto period of transfer of power has begun in Russia," Ukraine’s foreign intelligence service claimed in its annual report. (Newsru.com, 01.26.21)

Russia's other post-Soviet neighbors:

• Kyrgyzstan’s new president Sadyr Japarov admitted “there are signs [it] is true” that China and Russia compete for assets and influence in Central Asian countries such as Kyrgyzstan, but said that rivalry “does not play a huge role.” (Financial Times, 01.29.21)
• A joint Turkish and Russian observation center to monitor a cease-fire deal between Azerbaijan and Armenia in Nagorno-Karabakh will become operational on Jan. 30, Turkey’s defense minister announced. (AP, 01.29.21)
• Armenian police have arrested at least 21 people during protests calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian over his handling of a six-week war with Azerbaijan. Several thousand demonstrators rallied outside the government's headquarters in Yerevan Jan. 28, with some clashing with police. (RFE/RL, 01.28.21)
• Former Armenian President Robert Kocharian, currently on trial on charges stemming from his alleged role in a 2008 crackdown on the opposition, says he will participate in early parliamentary elections if they are called. (RFE/RL, 01.28.21)