The SRAS Newsletter
A Resource for Students, Educators, and Anyone Curious about Eurasia  
Apply for Spring, 2015 by October 15, 2014!

SRAS's trip to a local artist's home was covered by a St. Petersburg TV station as innovative tourism. Learn more about all our study abroad experiences below!

Добро пожаловать!

This month, we focus on our students' accomplishments over the summer. Our programs section below links to student-produced materials highlighting what can be learned in various SRAS locations. You'll also find translated material discussing Russian artists and an original article on the cheburek, a Crimean food popular throughout the former USSR.

We have two free books up for grabs, this time on culture and politics.

You'll also find a list of articles covering the (many) important events that have happened over the last months – and from a variety of angles. Sanctions have been increased on Russia, Russia has banned imports of most agricultural products from the US and EU, America is sending a new ambassador to Moscow, and many other stories.

Watch for next month's newsletter as well – which is planned to contain our next issue of Vestnik, the Journal of Russian and Asian Studies – and material on the current state of study abroad in Russia and the former USSR.

Lastly, make sure to plan for Spring, 2015. Deadlines for all our diverse programs – from Kiev to Vladivostok and from St. Petersburg to Bishkek, are coming up October 15th!

Study Abroad in Eurasia!
Research Abroad in Eurasia!
Study Abroad in Russia!

In this month's newsletter:

- Programs     - Koroche!        - Books
- Ukraine         - Russia         - United States

Call for Papers: Vestnik - Deadline: December 30!
Students who submit papers for this edition of Vestnik will be eligible for a $200 Jury Award. Click here for details. Make your submissions by December 30, 2014.

Free Books!
Participate in our latest Facebook contest and win a free copy ofPutin as Celebrity and Cultural Icon orPoor but Sexy: Culture Clashes in Europe East and West. Deadline: This Friday!

- Programs - 

St. Petersburg: SRAS Students on Local TV
SRAS students in St. Pete took a trip to a local artist's home to see how the artist works - and lives. A film crew from a local TV station joined in to film the event. The video of the segment (in Russian) is available online in the link above. For all our St. Petersburg programs, click here.

Moscow: SRAS Students Learn of Nuclear Threats
SRAS students visited Bunker-42 for a facinating look at the Cold War from the Soviet perspective. SRAS Moscow programs focus largely on politics and international relations. To view all our Moscow programs, click here.

Bishkek: High Culture among the Mountains
SRAS student Lauren Bisio quickly learned that Bishkek offers outdoor adventures but also doesn't lack high culture. Study Central Asia with SRAS! Click here.

Former USSR: Top Ten Reasons to Travel
Miles Atkinson is a graduate of several SRAS programs, including those in Irkutsk, Vladivostok, Kiev, and has traveled extensively. He has now been published several times by the Huffington Post and created several videos for our YouTube page.

Policy and Conflict in the Post-Soviet Space
Visit Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, and Russia to discuss the conflicts in these states, both past and present, with local students, teachers, and experts. Find all our Kiev programs here.

- Funding for Study Abroad
- Psychologists Prove Positive Effects of Study Abroad
- 31 Things You Learn By Moving Across The World

- Kороче -

Top 5 Movies in Russia
Nashe Radio's Top 5
SRAS Recap of Russian TV News
SRAS Students Abroad: Food and Culture
Russian Art in US - This August!

- Language and Culture -

Russian Mini-Lesson: The Cold War - Холодная война
Boost your vocabulary and review a little history.

Cheburek
The чебурек is a juicy, fried, savory pastry. Many of our students fell in love with them while abroad — so here's how you can make them (easily!) at home.

David Dukhovny is Russian
David Dukhovny has caused a stir by starring in this patriotic Russian beer ad. In it, he speaks Russian and speaks fondly of Russian culture in the video.

The Russian Salvador Dali
Vladimir Kush’s works can be stared at endlessly and still never be completely understood in their depth of meaning.

10 Contemporary Russian Painters Worth a Look
Levitan, Shishkin, and Aivazovsky are names known to every well-educated person in Russia and abroad. Today, too, there is no shortage of talented Russian artists. Their names are just not yet so widely known.

- Tsaritsyno, a Modern Palace in Moscow
- Folk Festival in Bishkek
- Будь добр! (an extra Russian Mini-Lesson!)
- Things to Know before Teaching ESL
- Mitrokhin’s KGB Archive Opens to Public

Never Too Many Books!
The Last Empire: The Final Days of the Soviet Union	Cinema, State Socialism and Society	Poor but Sexy Win this Book!
Putin as Celebrity and Cultural Icon Win this Book!	Rockets and Revolution: A Cultural History of Early Spaceflight	Mayakovsky: A Biography

Study Abroad in Eurasia!

- Ukraine -

Ukrainian City Stocks up As Siege Looms
"It's more and more difficult to bring in fresh goods, but they're still coming in," said Vsevolodova, who had goods in storage before the conflict so can keep her shop open.

Civilians Caught in the Crossfire
For three straight days, rockets have bombarded the Donetsk neighborhood, reducing apartment blocks, supermarkets, vehicles, and a kindergarten to scorched rubble and killing at least six civilians.

Special Report: Where Ukraine's Separatists Get their Weapons
Anton Lavrov, an independent Russian military analyst said: “It would be stupid to deny that Russia supports the separatists. The main question is only the scale of this support.”

Refugee Numbers Soar as War Rages
The number of people fleeing the war in eastern Ukraine to other parts of the country has jumped from 2,600 to 102,600 inside two months, the UN says.

What do Ukraine Citizens Think about Secession?
A survey shows that the representation of separatism in Donbas by the Ukrainian and the Western Media as outsiders who lack popular backing is unfounded. At the same time, separatists are shown to be in the minority.

- Communist Party Ousted From Ukraine Parliament
- Saving Ukraine's Defense Industry
- My Captivity in Ukraine: Amateurs Succumb to Hatred
- Kiev Tells Ukrainians Not to Talk to Russian Reporters
- Ukrainian Soldiers Cross into Russia

- Russia -

Research Abroad in Eurasia!

UN Says 'No Hard Evidence' of Russia Supporting Ukraine Insurgency
The United Nations has not received any hard evidence that Russia supplied pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine with weapons, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said Thursday.

If Everyone is Telling the Truth, This is What Happened
The Russian and US intelligence versions of what preceded the destruction of Malaysian Airlines MH17 on July 17 have come close to agreement on the same set of facts. Their disagreements and conflicts of evidence are much smaller, by comparison.

Russian Consumers Prepared to Swallow Food Ban
Russia has banned most agricultural imports from the EU, US, and others in retaliation for sanctions leveled on Russia. 

Will Putinism Triumph?
The crucial elements of Putinism are nationalism, religion, social conservatism, state capitalism, and government domination of the media. Other world leaders are taking note and copying the system.

Blocked BBC Interview Highlights Authorities' Insecurities
Russia's state media watchdog briefly blocked access to a BBC Russian-language service interview about an upcoming piece of unsanctioned performance art that encourages greater autonomy for Siberia.

Putin’s Power: Why Russians Adore Their Bare-Chested Reagan
The history of strongmen leaders helps fuel a passion for capitalism—even if there's a cost.

- Moscow Challenges US "Proof" of Russian Shelling
- Over 60% of Russians Oppose Deployment in Ukraine
- Putin Changes Constitution to Strengthen Grip on Senators
- MH17: Majority of Russians Believe Ukraine Downed Plane
- Russia Solves Glitches, Launches Angara Rocket
- Russia Denies Plans to Reopen Listening Post on Cuba
- LGBT Ralley Left in Peace in St. Petersburg

Study Abroad in Russia!

-United States -

The "Stumbles" Doctrine: Containing and Confronting Russia
America stumbles into a bad policy choice.

Coordinated Sanctions Aim at Russia’s Ability to Tap Its Oil Reserves
The United States and Europe kicked off a joint effort intended to curb Russia’s long-term ability to develop new oil resources, taking aim at the Kremlin’s premier source of wealth and power in retaliation for its intervention in Ukraine.

US Intelligence No Closer to Pinning MH17 Downing on Russia
Five days after Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was shot down over eastern Ukraine, US intelligence officials are still not certain who fired the missile that felled the doomed airliner, nor have they conclusively linked the attack to Russian military forces, according to senior intelligence officials.

West Suspends Fighting Terrorism, Drugs With Russia Over Ukraine
The pause in NATO's collaboration with Russia in fighting terrorism and drug trafficking because of Moscow's position on the Ukrainian crisis "punishes" primarily the people of the involved territories and points out the shortsighted approach of a range of Western countries.

Nato "Unprepared' for Russia Threat, say MPs
Nato is poorly prepared for an attack on a member state from Russia, an influential group of MPs has warned.

US Senate Confirms John Tefft Will Be New Ambassador to Russia
The US Senate has unanimously approved President Barack Obama's choice of John Tefft to be the next American ambassador to Russia, filling a post that had been vacant since February.

- US Senate Hearing on "Russia and Developments in Ukraine"
- US says Russia Violated Nuclear Treaty
- Wall Street Struggles to Comply with New US Sanctions on Russia
- US Plans to Train, Arm Ukraine National Guard in 2015
- Ukraine-related Sanctions - Official List

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