At the Reichenbach Falls, May 4, 1891 This is how the two greatest criminal minds of the 19th century came to grips, and set the course for the history of Russia in both the 20th and 21st centuries. Sherlock Holmes (right) met James Moriarty (left) in hand to hand combat, and the two of them […]

by John Helmer - Sunday, December 27th, 2009
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By John Helmer in Moscow In the business of boxing, a pugilist’s hands are not only his stock in trade, but weapons as potentially lethal for him to wield as a pistol is for a stickup man. If a boxer uses his fists outside the ring, he may have difficulty proving self-defence, while his adversary […]

by John Helmer - Tuesday, November 10th, 2009
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On October 6, Sergey Frank criticized John Helmer in testimony in the UK High Court, condemning, as he has done before, Helmer’s reporting of the affairs of the Sovcomflot shipping company, headed by Frank since 2004. On October 12, the Foreign Press Centre of the Foreign Ministry of the Russian Federation telephoned Helmer in Moscow […]

by John Helmer - Wednesday, October 14th, 2009
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by John Helmer - Friday, October 9th, 2009
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by John Helmer - Saturday, August 22nd, 2009
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by John Helmer - Sunday, August 2nd, 2009
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On July 27, Russia’s NTV network broadcast an interview with President Dmitry Medvedev (the Russian name means “bear”). The President was asked about the image of the bear in recent Russian history, and for the future. Here is what he replied: QUESTION: You know, the widespread image of Russia in the world is a certain […]

by John Helmer - Tuesday, July 28th, 2009
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By John Helmer in Moscow Time to remember the famous advertisement of Wendy’s, the American burger chain, which contrasted the substance of its product with the paltriness of its rivals. So now let’s ask the biggest unanswered question in Russian political economy — what happened to the stimulus funding the Russian government was supposed to […]

by John Helmer - Monday, July 27th, 2009
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By John Helmer in Moscow The St. Petersburg fight over port terminal andshipping assets has taken a muscular turn, as police raiders, acting at the behest of Bank St. Petersburg, appear to be grabbing assets worth more than a bank valuation allows, and despite a court order invalidating the seizure. Vitaly Arkhangelsky’s Oslo Marine Group […]

by John Helmer - Tuesday, July 21st, 2009
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By John Helmer in Moscow The reason for an unexpected Chinese advertisement for a billion-dollar iron-ore and steel complex in a remote part of Siberia became clear in Moscow today. It reveals that, starved for cash as most Russian metal and mining companies currently are, they aren’t yet prepared to let the Chinese build competing […]

by John Helmer - Tuesday, July 21st, 2009
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