Word: russia
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...starting to seem as if the Olympic gods have it in for Russia. A month ago at the Vancouver Games, the Russian team had its worst showing ever at a Winter Olympics, leading the head of the country's Olympic Committee to resign in disgrace. Now Moscow's big chance to redeem itself - hosting the Winter Games in Sochi in 2014 - is shaping up to be an even bigger embarrassment. In the past few weeks, a number of problems have exposed the deep rot at the heart of Russia's Olympic foibles: a shortage of funds, mismanagement and widespread public...
...this costs money, and with a federal-budget deficit of more than 6% forecast for this year, Russia does not have a lot to spare. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has pledged an initial outlay of $12 billion from the budget to fund the construction projects, but that is not expected to be enough - and private investors have indicated that they may not be willing to make up the difference during the economic downturn. There are also signs that the initial cost estimates have been way off. Last July, the government said the total construction bill would run about $6.6 billion...
...International organizations and local activists say this is leading to severe neglect of the environment. In a March 16 report, the U.N. Environment Programme said the Olympic construction sites are causing irreversible damage to the region's ecosystem. Greenpeace Russia followed with a statement a day later, reporting that the Mzymta River valley running between the planned Olympic venues is being polluted with heavy metals and industrial waste, destroying the habitats of the local bear and bird populations. "So far, practically everything that we supposedly agreed to with the government and the contractors has in the best case remained only...
...Sergei Markov, a conservative parliamentarian from Putin's United Russia Party, says these escalations point to the conservative camp's main problem with the U.S.: a lack of trust. "There are people at the top who see Obama as just a temporary man who will soon be replaced by another," Markov tells TIME. "There are people at the top who say this reset is all just a trick, that if we go along with it, they will begin pushing for maximum limitations on Russia's influence." Conservatives also want something in return, he says. "What Russia wants...
...Clinton will deal with the growing tensions remains to be seen. But Obama's dream of wiping the slate clean and seeking real pragmatic ties with Russia has begun to look naive. And it's becoming increasingly clear which Kremlin faction is calling the shots...