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A man and a child walk through an almost empty Red Square in Moscow, umbrella in hand, snow on the ground. It looks extremely cold - a good day to be inside eating lunch with your family. As dramatic music plays, the advert cuts to close-up shots of the pair - a troubled-looking man in a black overcoat and cap, and his smiling granddaughter. Within seconds they reach their destination: a Pizza Hut restaurant located directly in Red Square - the central plaza where so much of Soviet and Russian history is reflected. But why, 24 years on, is this...

Mikhail Gorbachev accuses the United States of drawing Russia into a new Cold War saying he fears hostilities could escalate into armed conflict. The last Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev has accused the United States of drawing Russia into a new Cold War and said he feared hostilities could escalate into armed conflict. The United States "has already drawn us into a new Cold War, trying openly to achieve its main idea of triumphalism," Mr Gorbachev said in an interview with the Interfax news agency. "Where will that lead all of us? A Cold War is already being waged openly. What's...

Tensions between the major powers have pushed the world closer to a new Cold War, former Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev said Saturday. The 83-year-old accused the West, particularly the United States, of giving in to “triumphalism” after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the dissolution of the communist bloc a quarter century ago. The result, he said, could partly be seen in the inability of global powers to prevent or resolve conflicts in Yugoslavia, the Middle East and most recently Ukraine. “The world is on the brink of a new Cold War. Some are even saying that it’s...

MOSCOW (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama has held talks with Mikhail Gorbachev, a spokesman for the former Soviet leader said on Monday, in the latest sign of Washington's efforts to "press the reset button" on ties with Russia. Spokesman Konstantin Petrenko said Gorbachev met Obama and Vice President Joe Biden -- who coined the 'reset' phrase last month -- in Washington last Friday. He did not give any details of the

THE acute phase of the crisis provoked by the Georgian forces’ assault on Tskhinvali, the capital of South Ossetia, is now behind us. But how can one erase from memory the horrifying scenes of the nighttime rocket attack on a peaceful town, the razing of entire city blocks, the deaths of people taking cover in basements, the destruction of ancient monuments and ancestral graves? Russia did not want this crisis. The Russian leadership is in a strong enough position domestically; it did not need a little victorious war. Russia was dragged into the fray by the recklessness of the Georgian...

Stalin and Tsar Nicholas II neck and neck for title of greatest Russian Tony Halpin He sent millions to their deaths in the gulag, but that has not deterred Russians from voting en masse for Josef Stalin as the face of their nation. The Soviet tyrant and Second World War leader is battling Tsar Nicholas II for first place in The Name of Russia, a domestic version of the BBC series Great Britons. Stalin had been well ahead in the online vote until the show's producer appealed to members of a popular Russian social networking site to back Nicholas II....

New, sensational documents concerning the attempt against the late pope, John Paul II, have been revealed in a new book by John O. Kohler, an American journalist and writer. The book, entitled "It's About the Pope. Spies in the Vatican", will be released in Poland on Monday, April 28, 2008 by ZNAK Publishing House, known for its publications about the late pope. The author reached a Kremlin document, which listed Soviet Politbureau members, who had signed an "informal death sentence" on the Polish pope. "Use all available possibilities to prevent a new political trend, initiated by the Polish pope, and...

AGENDA 21 is one of five documents agreed during the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992(1). Signed by 179 Heads of Government, it is a blueprint for sustainable development in the 21st century, aimed at providing a high quality environment and healthy economy for all the peoples of the world. Commentators point to two major features of this agreement: a) No longer can social, economic and environmental development be seen as separate issues, their interdependence has become clearly established. b) It was formulated in negotiations involving an unprecedented number of people...

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev warned Russians on Wednesday of the risk of a rebirth of Stalinism, saying their country was in danger of forgetting its tragic past. "We should remember those who suffered, because this a lesson for all of us," Gorbachev told a conference marking 70 years since the start of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin's Great Terror. "We must squeeze Stalinism out of ourselves, not in single drops but by the glass or bucket," Gorbachev added. "There are those saying Stalin's rule was the Golden Age, while (Nikita) Khrushchev's thaw was sheer utopia and (Leonid)...

MOSCOW - Former President Mikhail Gorbachev said Friday that the fall of the Soviet Union, which he helped bring about, ushered in an era of U.S. imperialism responsible for many of the world's gravest problems. Gorbachev is lauded in the West for ushering in democratic reforms but widely despised in Russia for paving the way to the economic free-for-all of the 1990s, which brought fabulous wealth for a well-connected few while plunging much of the country into humiliating poverty. He has since became a supporter of President Vladimir Putin's assertive foreign policy and resistance to American power — calling occasional...

Ronald Reagan Statue in Poland — What About Gorby? September 19, 2006 Vox Populi, Doug Powers It’s commonly said, especially among the intellectualoids, that the downfall of communism in Europe was due mainly to Mikhail Gorbachev. The Polish people aren’t buying it — at least not a group of them. From Newsmax: "Polish admirers of Ronald Reagan plan to raise a statue of the former U.S president in Warsaw, where he is revered for his role in the downfall of communism in Europe. The 3.5-metre (3.8-yard) stone-and-bronze statue will stand across from the U.S. Embassy, the head of the group...

FORMER Soviet president turned greenie Mikhail Gorbachev was considering establishing a branch of his environmental organisation in Brisbane. Mr Gorbachev founded Green Cross International in 1993, building on the work started by the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The organisation, which focuses on the link between environmental problems and international conflicts, has branches in 30 countries, but not Australia. Mr Gorbachev, in Brisbane to co-chair the three-day Earth Dialogues forum that started today, said it was "God's will" to make Brisbane the headquarters of Australia's Green Cross International. "I believe that we would have a very strong...

THE nation's (Australia) two main political leaders have snubbed a top international security, energy and environment summit headed by former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev. Mr Gorbachev will co-chair the Earth Dialogues conference in Brisbane next week. But Prime Minister John Howard and Opposition Leader Kim Beazley had both declined invitations from conference organisers to attend, a spokeswoman for Earth Dialogues said today. World experts in energy, security, climate change, water resource management and sustainable development will attend Earth Dialogues, which runs July 22-24 and is part of this year's Brisbane Festival. Queensland Premier Peter Beattie will co-chair the summit with...

PASADENA - Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev said the United States has an illusion of omnipotence - "the victory complex" - that's more dangerous than Russia's inferiority complex. "Both countries should overcome those feelings," he said, "and their leaders should reflect what the people want, and what the people want is dialogue." Gorbachev spoke through an interpreter Wednesday to a full house at the Distinguished Speaker Series at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium. He said the United States has a right to claim a leadership role in the world based on its military, cultural and economic power. "But partnerships rather than...

Washington, Apr 02: Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, who triggered the demise of the Soviet Union's Communist empire, said in an interview published today that the United States was "intoxicated" by its power and should not impose its will on others. "This talk of pre-emptive strikes, of ignoring the UN Security Council and international legal obligations -- all this is leading toward a dark night," Gorbachev told time magazine. "I think some people may be pushing President Bush in the wrong direction," he said of the us leader. "America is intoxicated by its position as the world's only superpower. It...

FORMER Soviet leader and Nobel peace prize laureate Mikhail Gorbachev has turned 75, bitter that the end of the Cold War has left the United States with what he called a "superiority complex". "It would be in everyone's interest if that big country America recovered from that disease," he said. Mr Gorbachev, who launched the democratic and economic reforms that ultimately led to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, described the end of the Cold War as a gift that the United States has squandered. He also denounced growing Russophobia, saying "some in the West would like to...

Gorbachev, Who Turns 75 Thursday, Says End of Cold War Only Strengthened U.S. 'Arrogance' MOSCOW - Mikhail Gorbachev's magnetic brown eyes shine as brightly as ever, and he speaks with the same passion about the collapse of the Soviet Union as he prepares to mark his 75th birthday on Thursday. The man who ended the Cold War and launched democratic reforms that broke the repressive Soviet regime continues to enjoy the limelight, globe-trotting on behalf of his political foundation and environmental group and taking part in charity projects. At a meeting with foreign reporters this week, Gorbachev blamed the United...

Praise fest for Gorby on CSPAN2. Clinton just finished speaking. Check CSPAN2 for rebroadcast. Clinton admitting to being in USSR in 1969 or 1970. Let's see if we can get transcripts published.

Former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev has warned the US about its approach of trying to pressure Iran not to develop nuclear weapons. "We must not dictate our terms. We must conduct responsible dialogue with Iran," the 1990 Nobel Peace Prize winner said during a visit to London to attend an International Leadership Summit conference. Speaking on BBC's Newsnight Tuesday, he said that he did not think there were great differences between Russia and the USA on nuclear programs. The Russian leadership were "truly committed" in preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons, Gobachev said, suggesting that the difference was in approach....

MOSCOW (AP) - Former President Mikhail Gorbachev warned the Kremlin against quickly burying the embalmed body of Soviet founder Vladimir Lenin, saying the nation isn't ready yet such a move, a news agency reported Tuesday. Gorbachev, the last president of the Soviet Union before its 1991 collapse, said that Lenin's body eventually should be laid to rest at a proper moment in line with his own will, but added that "this moment has not come yet," the ITAR-Tass news agency reported. In what appeared to be the Kremlin's attempt to gauge public reaction to the divisive issue, Georgy Poltavchenko, a...