The Imperial Family: The End of the Chapter

Church of the Saviour “on the Spilled Blood” (Spas na Krovi), Yekaterinburg

On the eve of the 90^th anniversary of the shooting of Nikolai II, his family, and his retainers, an exhibition recounting the last months of the life of the imperial family and its tragic fate opened at the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. Material evidence of one of the most horrific crimes in Russian history is on display.

One sees the last portraits of the Grand Princesses, the Tsarevich, and the imperial couple. It was what they left in Yekaterinburg. There are mementoes of their last days such as the food ration card of Nikolai Romanov, no. 54, stating that the family was to receive 5 poods (81.9 kilos/180.55 pounds) of fine flour and 7.5 poods (122.85 kilos/270.825 pounds) of sugar per month. (The figure for sugar is probably a typo, a figure 1/10 of that given would be closer to the truth: editor’s note)

There are 28 bullets taken from the bodies, and there are no doubts on this score, for all of the bullets were fired from the same type of weapon, a Browning. “The bullets fired and discovered at the burial site, and the bullets found at Ganina Yama, several rounds at each site, were fired from the same type of weapon. Forensic examination categorically confirms this fact. The events at these two sites had to be connected”, said Vladimir Solovyov, inspector of the independent major case investigating service of the RF Procurator’s Office.  

Entrance sign at the Monastery of the Holy Royal Martyrs at Ganina Yama

The investigation that Mr Solovyov has carried out into the shooting of the imperial family has already taken ten years. It was his decision to subject the bullets to ballistic examination. He was personally present at the last identification of the remains. Forensic specialists have finished investigating the so-called nuclear DNA, where relationship is established in the male line. The results of the study shall be announced shortly. “An official statement regarding the remains thought to be those of Aleksei and Maria shall be made in the middle of the month”, Mr Solovyov promised.

On exhibit is the bayonet-knife used by Pyotr Yermakov, the commander of the execution squad, to finish off the Tsarevich, Grand Princess Anastasia, and Maid Anna Demidova. Next to it is the note by Urals Military Commissar Voikov demanding 170 litres (37 Imperial gallons/45 US gallons) of sulphuric acid for the destruction of the bodies.

We know who carried out the shooting, for they left tracks that could be followed, but, as for who gave the order to murder the imperial family… history is silent. “There is no documentary evidence to prove that it was Lenin or Sverdlov, unfortunately, there is nothing to go on. There is documentary evidence of the decision of the Urals Soviet, but, we know that all too frequently the decisions of underlings were shaped by hints dropped by higher levels of authority”, noted Vladimir Mironenko, the director of the RF Public Archive.

Memorial Cross at the Monastery of the Holy Royal Martyrs at Ganina Yama

This exhibition also presents items from the entire life of the imperial family. Here is Nikolai II’s temperance edict. This decree commanded an end to the brewing of beer. Another photograph shows the tsar personally checking the comfort of a new pattern of military uniform, he marched for 10 kilometres (@6.2 miles) wearing it. There is a general plan of the city of Moscow made in 1900 that confirms that plans were drawn up for a Metro system, admittedly, not underground, but, on elevated tracks. However, the money available was insufficient for the completion of the project. “According to the plans, a metro station was going to be built on Red Square (and, by the way, a Metro station today is under Red Square), we know this because the archives preserves the plans of the metro and of the projected stations, which were to be at St Basil Cathedral and the Historical Museum”, said Sergei Balan, director of the showroom of the Federal Archives section of the RF Public Archive.

Ball dresses, hymns, the figures of the Grand Princesses… Tomorrow, Patriarch Aleksei II of Moscow and all Russia shall solemnly open the exhibition on the eve of the 90^th anniversary of the shooting of the imperial family.

1 July 2008

Alena Akinshina

Vesti (News)

Quoted in Interfax-Religion

http://www.interfax-religion.ru/?act=radio&div=896 (in Russian)

Photographs from the website of the Novo-Tikhvin Convent of Yekaterinburg

http://www.sestry.ru

Archbishop Nikon of Ufa shall celebrate the Funeral of Celebrated Film Actress Nonna Mordyukova

Nonna Mordyukova (1925-2008), Honoured Artist of Russia and People’s Artist of the USSR

Moscow, 8 July 2008 (Interfax):

Archbishop Nikon of Ufa and Sterlitamak shall celebrate the funeral of Nonna Mordyukova, People’s Artist of the USSR and celebrated film actress, on Wednesday in the chapel of the Kuntsevsky Cemetery in Moscow. Three years ago, when Ms Mordyukova was gravely ill, Vladyki Nikon, who is a trained physician, read about her condition in one of the specialised medical journals and decided to help the beloved actress. He went to Moscow, gave Nonna Viktorovna spiritual succour, and he also purchased expensive medications for her, the newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda (Komsomol Truth) reported on Tuesday. Vladyki Nikon’s assistance so touched Ms Mordykova’s soul that she asked him to perform her funeral when her time came. “They rang us up from the Guild of Actors and passed on Nonna Viktorovna’s request”, said Maksim Stepanenko, the head of the missionary division of the Diocese of Ufa. Ms Mordyukova died Sunday evening at the age of 82 in a Moscow hospital. She shall be buried next to her son per the request in her will. The gravesite is in the old section of the cemetery.

In 1949, she received the State Prize for her role of Ulyana Gromova in the film Molodaya Gvardiya (The Young Guards), and 24 years later, she received the Brothers Vasiliev State Prize of the RFSFR for her roles in Zhuravushka and Predsedatel (The Chairman). The following year, she was awarded the title of People’s Artist of the USSR.  In 1992, she was honoured by the British publication “Who’s Who” by being listed as one of the ten most outstanding film actresses of the 20^th century, and in 2000, she was awarded the Order “For Services to the Motherland” for both her general and personal contributions to the development of the cinematographic art. Ms Mordyukova played over 60 roles in films. Amongst those most loved by the public are her appearances in the comedies Brilliantovaya Ruka (Diamond Hand), Vokzal v Dvoikh (Station for Two), Zhenitba Balzaminova (Marriage is Balzaminova), and Rodnya (The Relatives).

Interfax-Religion

http://www.interfax-religion.ru/?act=news&div=25348 (in English)

MP Concerned by the Anglican Decision to Ordain Women to the Episcopate

Canterbury Cathedral (Anglican, Church of England)

Moscow, 8 July 2008 (Interfax):

The Moscow Patriarchate expressed concern about the Anglican Synod’s decision yesterday to ordain women to the episcopate. “Undoubtedly, this decision is an utterly unhealthy step in the inter-Christian dialogue, as it further alienates the Anglican Communion from the Apostolic tradition”, Fr Igor Vyzhanov, head of the secretariat for Inter-Christian Relations of the MP Department for External Church Relations, stated to an Interfax-Religion correspondent on Tuesday. Fr Igor also said that the Anglican Synod’s decision to ordain women to the episcopate “is a very painful blow to the unity of the Anglican Communion, as it aggravates the division amongst Anglicans. Unfortunately, the decision was predictable because very liberal tendencies prevail in many Christian Churches today, particularly in the Anglican Communion”, he said.

In the late 19th to the early 20th centuries, the Orthodox saw the Anglican Church as “the closest to us amongst the western Christian Churches”, he said. “A very serious dialogue resulted, leading to hopes that good relations between the Orthodox and Anglicans would have good prospects”, Fr Igor said. “If we look at documents of that time, one simply cannot believe that it was the same church then, because, now, regretfully, we see how the Anglican Communion increasingly abandons the traditional understanding of church life”, he said.

In his opinion, the present decision of the Anglican Communion manifests “the tendency of secular European thought to follow everything through to its logical conclusion”. Fr Igor emphasised that church life and the sphere of religious faith “is not the place to apply the rational logic of secular society”. In this connection, he quoted the words of a well-known philosopher that said, “Any thought carried through to its logical conclusion becomes an absurdity”. “We see what absurd results flow from an application of liberal ideas to, for example, Christian moral standards”, Fr Igor said.

He noted that the MP shall attentively follow the developments at the Lambeth Conference, the largest meeting of representatives from all the Anglican churches, which is scheduled to begin on 16 July and run through 3 August. He mentioned that this conference shall discuss, amongst other things, questions of Anglican cooperation in the field of Christian moral theology; in particular, it shall examine the question of homosexuality, both the ordination of openly gay individuals and the blessing of homosexual unions.

Interfax-Religion

http://www.interfax-religion.ru/?act=news&div=25357 (in Russian)

President Medvedev Calls for New Global Economic Security System

President Dmitri Medvedev urged G8 leaders to develop a new global economic security system. He stated this at a news briefing in the city of Toyako on Hokkaido, where the G8 summit of leading industrialised countries is underway. Mr Medvedev said that the present structure has failed to satisfy almost all countries. There is a need to think about forming a structure for the future. All G8 countries, as well as other states, should move away from selfish national interests. They should not talk to one another as economic egoists. The situation where the dollar is weak and the euro is overvalued does not satisfy Russia’s partners. In fact, no one is satisfied by the current situation. Consequently, the countries involved should promote the idea put forward a week ago about converting the rouble into a reserve currency. 

Concerning energy security, President Medvedev voiced support for linking the interests of producing countries, consumer countries, and transit countries. Mr Medvedev said, “In view of this, there is a need for working out some new international resolutions and agreements. In any case, Russia is convinced that several international conventions, such as the Energy Charter have failed to work or work inefficiently. There is a reason for holding talks in order to coordinate these efforts in a new light”. Moreover, Mr Medvedev said, “Russia suggests that we should hold a ‘grain summit’ as a move to solve the food security issue”. 

Mr Medvedev said he put forward two proposals. “One is linked with the need for setting up a new format inside the G8 with the involvement of agriculture ministers from these countries. The proposal was supported. The second proposal was holding a special session to discuss reasons that led to the grain price hikes and possible ways to stabilise the situation in this area”, he said. 

Mr Medvedev believes that the possibility of holding informal talks on the sidelines of the summit is very important. In his opinion, such discussions are simple and productive. In this respect, this format is unique and useful, President Medvedev emphasised. 

8 July 2008

Vyacheslav Solovyov 

Voice of Russia World Service

http://www.ruvr.ru/main.php?lng=eng&q=29425&cid=57&p=08.07.2008 (in English)

G8 Summit: Africa Needs Help

The face of a continent: Dignity and Poise in the face of Adversity

Aid for Africa and whether enough was coming from the world’s major economic powers is in the spotlight of the informal Group of Eight summit now underway in Japan. During their meetings, the G8 leaders do not sign any formal agreements. Still, a G8 summit can be an extremely efficient vehicle for launching major initiatives and a place where global leaders make joint decisions and even start implementing these decisions. Just as they once did agreeing to a string of joint measures to finance the global war on terror.

The director of the Institute for Asian and African Studies in Moscow, Aleksei Vasilyev, told me that “the African leaders taking part in the summit realise full well the need for the Black Continents’ independent development. What they also realise however is that this will hardly be possible without outside help. The G8 countries account for a hefty 80 percent of all assistance African nations receive from abroad. Russia is giving a helping hand here as well; having written off around 16 billion dollars (376.443 billion roubles. 10.216 billion euros. 8.122 billion UK pounds) owed it by some African nations. Russia is also taking part in a number of UN peacekeeping operations in Africa”. 

Many politicians and analysts believe that the G8 will only become fully effective when it influences the opinions of the leading developing nations and such respectable international organisations as the UN, the World Bank, and the WTO. All signs are that the current G8 summit fully reflects this widely-accepted need for a more democratic way of doing things on the global stage. 

8 July 2008

Mikhail Kurakin 

Voice of Russia World Service

http://www.ruvr.ru/main.php?lng=eng&q=29379&cid=57&p=08.07.2008 (In English)

Russia Day at Expo-2008 in Spain

Konstantin Kinchev (1958- ), front-man of the hard rock band Alisa

Today is Russia Day at World Exhibition Expo-2008 in Saragossa, Spain. The exposition, called Water and Sustainable Development, brought together more than one hundred countries. Even though it has no direct relation to art, a cultural programme is a permanent feature of the expo with concerts by international performers. The Russian cultural programme started last night with a performance by the rock band Alisa, led by its front-man Konstantin Kinchev, which recently marked its 25th birthday and is seen as one of the icons of Russian rock. 

Russian artistic groups at Expo-2008 total more than 130 performers, including the lead dancers of the Bolshoi and Mariinsky Theatres who will perform fragments from popular ballets. The Pyatnitsky Choir will perform Soviet and Russian songs. Russia Day will come to a close with Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. Staged by the British director Declan Donnellan with a Russian cast, the comedy earned resounding success in more than 20 countries. In the tradition of the time of Shakespeare, all parts, including the female roles, are played by male actors. 

Expo-2008 opened on 14 June and will last until 14 September. More than six million people are expected to visit the show before then, and many are certain to carry home unforgettable impressions of the Russian cultural programme.

7 July 2008

Voice of Russia World Service

http://www.ruvr.ru/main.php?lng=eng&q=29352&cid=57&p=07.07.2008 (in English)

OPEC Blames High Oil Prices on the Weak Dollar

Now, that oil prices have reached 146 dollars (3,434 Russian roubles. 93.16 euros. 74.14 UK pounds) per barrel, a record high, both consumers and producers are deeply concerned over the issue. Most experts give pessimistic forecasts. In an interview with Algerian News, Shakib Khalil, the chairman of the OPEC session and Algerian Minister of Power and Mines, said the prices would not come down and blamed the situation on the weak US dollar and geopolitical factors. “We have to follow the US dollar. If there is even a 1 percent decrease in value, the oil price grows another 4 dollars (94.08 Russian roubles. 2.55 euros. 2.03 UK pounds) per barrel”, Mr Khalil said. 

Many independent experts also see the weak US dollar as the major cause of oil price hikes. It appears that the United States is responsible for the improvement of the situation. Its readiness and capacity to strengthen its national currency is of great importance to the global economy. Recently, US President George W. Bush and Japanese Premier Yasuo Fukuda held a joint press-conference in Toyako, where they announced their plans to take some steps to stop the oil price hike. 

According to Irina Platonova, the Deputy Chairman of the Department of International Relations and External Economic Relations of the Moscow State Institute of International Relations, there are some other aspects that predetermine oil prices. “Since oil is being traded, supply and demand has a natural impact on it. If the supply is gradually increasing, and the demand, in both developed and developing countries, keeps rising as well, the price follows the same trend”. 

Thus, the US has fewer means to influence global oil markets. The dollar is becoming less attractive. The Economic Ministry of the United Arab Emirates announced that it may no longer tie the dirham to the dollar.

7 July 2008

Voice of Russia World Service

http://www.ruvr.ru/main.php?lng=eng&q=29346&cid=57&p=07.07.2008 (in English)

Editor’s Note:

No one wishes to speak of the true reason for the dollar’s freefall on the foreign-exchange markets. It is because of George Bush’s deficit spending, caused by his military adventurism. Five years ago, the Canadian dollar was worth 0.71 US dollars. Today, it is worth 0.98 US dollars, nearly parity. That is to say, the loonie is 138 percent of its former value. It is not the only world currency to gain against the dollar. It makes all the wind about the strength of the American economy mere moonshine.

If there were to be a spike in oil prices impelled by an American or an Israeli strike on Iran, the American economy would be harpooned… by its own hand. It is, perhaps, why Admiral Mullen, the head of the Joint Chiefs, opposes such a strike and said so publicly. This took more guts and grit than facing bullets does. Michael Glenn Mullen put his career on the line for all of us. Thank you, sir. The truth needed to be spoken, and you did so, regardless of the cost. THAT is courage.    

Moscow Offers New European Security Treaty

Pannikhida at St Mark church in Belgrade in 2008 in honour of those killed in the 1999 US air raids against civilian targets. A new security treaty would forestall such NATO aggression.

Russia called on Europe, the United States, Canada, and other countries concerned to sign a legally binding European security treaty. President Medvedev made the offer in the course of bilateral meetings with US President George Bush, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and other members of the G-8 summit in Hokkaido. According to presidential aide Sergei Prikhodko, Mr Medvedev’s initiative earned neither approval nor disapproval so far, apparently, due to its audacity and scope. It will take time to assess. There is every sign that it bears a particular relevance now. 

The Helsinki Final Act, signed by 35 countries of Europe, the United States, and Canada in 1975, marked a breakthrough in those days, setting the status quo in relations between the East and the West, the two parties in the Cold War. Similarly, it called for respect of sovereignty, inviolability of borders, territorial integrity, and non-interference in the domestic affairs of the signatories. 

More than thirty years have passed since then. Germany is now reunited; Czechoslovakia, the Soviet Union, and Yugoslavia broke up. The United States and NATO dropped bombs on Serbia and launched aggression against Iraq. The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe proved powerless and ineffective in preventing the tragedies. Contrary to its promises, NATO has brought its military machine close to Russia’s borders. Now, there is talk of early deployment of a US missile defence system in Poland and the Czech Republic, and, possibly, in Lithuania. Under false pretences, the United States and NATO refuse to ratify the Conventional Armed Forces in Europe Treaty, forcing Russia to call a moratorium on the Treaty. 

The interests of Russia, as it follows a democratic path of development, are thus ignored. Moscow is reassured of friendly feelings and good dispositions, but, the words are not backed by action. Given the situation, President Medvedev’s initiative serves as a litmus test for sincerity of the partners. If implemented, it will help to build a legal foundation for new Europe and make it possible to create a modern security architecture that would not encroach on the interests of some countries at the expense of the others. Remembering that the Helsinki Act was signed in the years of fierce confrontation between the East and West, the conditions are much more favourable now. As long as we leave behind the bloc-style ideological stereotypes of the Cold War, the agenda proposed by the Russian president looks fairly realistic. 

8 July 2008

Viktor Yenikeyev 

Voice of Russia World Service

http://www.ruvr.ru/main.php?lng=eng&q=29411&cid=58&p=08.07.2008 (in English)

USA to Step up ABM Plans in Europe

The USA is making efforts to step up the realisation of its plans to install a missile defence system in Europe. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is going to visit Prague on 8 July, aiming to sign a treaty there on the deployment of a radar station, one of the missile defence system elements, in the Czech Republic. The Pentagon would like to transfer a radar station now located on Kwajalein Atoll in the western Pacific Ocean to a site near Prague in 2011. On the Czech side, the document would be signed by Foreign Minister Karel Schvarzenberg. In the meantime, he is not sure that this agreement will be approved before the end of this year, that is, under the Bush Administration. What makes the situation far more difficult is the Polish government’s stand. The point is that in exchange for agreement on missile defence system Poland’s government demands from the USA funds for the modernisation of its armed forces. Analysts mention Poland’s demand for 20 billion US dollars (470.794 billion roubles. 12.78 billion euros. 10.162 billion UK pounds), which Washington is visibly unwilling to satisfy.

Nadezhda Arbatova, the head of the Department on European Political Studies of the Institute of World Economy and International Relations of the Russian Academy of Sciences commented, “It should be mentioned here that there’s a strong opposition amongst the Czech population to the deployment of the US missile defence system. At the same time, the leadership of the Czech Republic is actually ready to sign such a treaty. However, the principled stand of public opinion in the Czech Republic should not be ignored. The majority of Czechs are strongly opposed to the radar station construction on their territory. They are fearful that this may affect the relations between the Czech Republic and Russia.

As regards Poland, I would say that its resistance is commercial because Poland gave immediate consent to the US proposal. Later differences emerged, though, because Poland’s request for money for the modernisation of its armed forces was for large sums, from Washington’s point of view. Therefore, the White House decided to politically intimidate Poland and to show them that there’re other countries that are ready to replace it in this deal. This is how the Lithuania project came into being. Of course, the deployment of the US missile defence system in Lithuania is a worse option for Russia than the plans for Poland and the Czech Republic because Lithuania is Russia’s neighbour. Poland is the politically-best variant for Americans though. It shall not complicate their relations with Russia any more than is necessary”. 

Meanwhile, President Dmitri Medvedev told his American counterpart George W. Bush today that deployment of US interceptor missiles in Lithuania is inadmissible. Russia is fearful that this system may pose a threat to its security.

7 July 2008

Voice of Russia World Service

http://www.ruvr.ru/main.php?lng=eng&q=29356&cid=58&p=07.07.2008 (in English)

Media Charity as a Standard Feature of Life

Peace and Happiness to all Children in the World! (Soviet-era poster for International Children’s Day)

The Third all-Russian Competition “Media Charity-2008” is getting underway in Moscow. It is designed to popularise charitable activity in Russia so that it becomes a standard feature of our public life. It also marks yet another attempt to boost the importance of the media in addressing the country’s social problems. The Voice of Russia Radio Broadcasting Company participates in numerous projects to help thousands of people in need. It played a crucial part in the success of a campaign to raise funds for 2-year-old Liza Seliverstova, who had a malignant brain tumour. When 540 kids from Kosovo arrived in Moscow in 2004, the Voice of Russia provided full informational support. News of the humanitarian action was broadcast in 32 languages to all continents. One of the latest initiatives is a charitable action for the “Nikita” Orphanage, which is open at St Nikita church in the Moscow oblast for children undergoing rehabilitation.

Yekaterina Yagunova, who is the head of the Voice of Russia press service, said, “Charitable actions of this sort inspire hope in orphaned kids that none of them will be left without support and that everyone of them will be able to become a full-fledged adult. The Voice of Russia delivered clothes, bed sheets, toys and sweets, and organised a concert by the Voice of Russia’s Large Children’s Choir led by Viktor Popov”.

The Voice of Russia initiates numerous events on International Children’s Day. In 2006, its Commonwealth Update edition sponsored a 6-hour live marathon to collect books for orphanages, boarding schools, and public libraries in the CIS and the Baltic countries. For its numerous charitable activities, the Voice of Russia was named the winner of the Angel of Peace Prize, which was established by the “Philanthropists of the Century” Foundation. Moscow and 9 other cities of Russia boast architectural and sculptural ensembles under the same title that bear plaques from the Voice of Russia. Among the Voice of Russia’s other awards for charitable activity is a gold medal and the diploma with the inscription “Voice of Russia: The Legacy of the Nation”.

8 July 2008  

Oksana Glubokovskaya 

Voice of Russia World Service

http://www.ruvr.ru/main.php?lng=eng&q=29410&cid=59&p=08.07.2008 (in English)