Thousands in Kiev are protesting against U.S. support for Ukraine's bid to join NATO. Artyom Malgin from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations told RT why he thinks Ukrainians are against NATO membership.

Seven Doomsday cult members who left their underground bunker on Friday are trying to persuade the remaining ones to come out. Sergey Chapnin from the Church Herald newspaper spoke to RT about the situation.

Expert in religious groups and cults, Aleksandr Dvorkin, believes negotiating is the only effective way to get the doomsday cultists out of their bunker.

The British have always been early to invest in emerging markets, according to Stephen Lock, regional director for MMD Russia. He spoke to RT about the UK’s $US 26.3 BLN annual investment in Russia.

For a wrap of the week, RT spoke to Bob Sakharov, the president of Olma Investment Canada, for his analysis.

One of the co-ordinators of Poland's 'Stop The War' Initiative - Filip Ilkowski - shared his views on U.S. anti-missile shield plans in Europe with RT.

U.S. president George W Bush is to hold talks with President Putin in the Russian resort city of Sochi next week. Director of Program Management at the Hudson Institute Richard Weitz joined RT live from Washington to discuss the meeting.

Following Russia's 3-0 defeat to Romania, Krylya Sovetov's coach Leonid Slutsky gave his reaction.

Although Russia's national team was outclassed at times in Bucharest, head coach Guus Hiddink called on his players not to panic.

The renewal of the strategic agreement on AMD will be the best option for Russia and the U.S. Political analyst Aleksandr Nikitin says the current deal, signed after the 9/11 attacks, no longer responds to the needs of both countries.

The opera diva says she has lived a happy life. Having performed all major opera parts, Galina Vishnevskaya she is now happy seeing the success of her numerous students.

The British Foreign Office has included Russia on a list of 22 countries where human rights is a concern. Tom Porteous, London director of Human Rights Watch, spoke to RT about why Russia was included.

Washington will supply weapons to Kosovo to be used for law enforcement in the area. The U.S. is interested in the Albanians gaining strength in Kosovo, believes Arutyun Ulunyan, a political analyst from the Institute of World History.

The Chairman of Russia's VTB bank Andrey Kostin says the Russian government and the banking sector are likely to face a tough time in coping with the difficulties posed by the financial crisis.

Lord Peter Truscott, British academic, writer and a Labour Member of the House of Lords, spoke to RT about whether President-elect Dmitry Medvedev is capable of restoring close links with the UK.

It would be wrong to expect Medvedev to criticise current policies before his inauguration, says Aleksandr Pikaev from the Institute for World Economy and International Relations, speaking about Medvedev's first foreign interview as President-elect.

Russia's knowledge of past Egyptian projects will give it an advantage in bidding for construction of a new nuclear power plant, believes the press secretary of Russia’s nuclear energy agency Rosatom, Sergey Novikov.

Russian president-elect Dmitry Medvedev has chosen the Financial Times for his first foreign media interview. Neil Buckley, the Financial Times' Moscow Bureau Chief, spoke to RT about his impressions of Medvedev.

A U.S. journalist says Aleksandr Litvinenko may have accidentally poisoned himself while trying to smuggle polonium-210. Edward Epstein joined RT to comment on his article in the New York Sun.

According to an investigation by a New York Sun journalist, Aleksandr Litvinenko may have accidentally poisoned himself while trying to smuggle Polonium-210, Dmitry Babich of the Russia Profile magazine commented on the theory.

Russia has received written proposals from the U.S. on the planned missile shield in Eastern Europe. Speaking to RT, political analyst Steven Cohen said the only forces that can save America from itself are France and Germany.

The United States has invited Russia to monitor their actions involved in the proposed missile bases in Poland and the Czech Republic. Ivan Danilin, senior research fellow from the Russian Academy of Sciences commented on this proposal.

Sergey Lavrov's tour of the Middle East is set to result in the signing of a visa-free travel agreement between Russia and Israel. Evgeny Satanovsky, the Head of the Institute of Israel commented on the issue in our studio.

RT military analyst Yevgeny Khruschev says that now that the level of military operations in Iraq has rolled back to 2004-2005, the US is considering the federalisation of Iraq, partitioning it along sectarian lines of Sunnis, Shiites and Curds.

George W. Bush has again claimed the world is a better place because of the war in Iraq. James Phillips, a Research Fellow for Middle Eastern Affairs from the Heritage Foundation, has some sympathy with Bush’s view.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has begun a 3-day visit to the Middle East, which will take him to Syria, Israel and Palestine. The chief of the Russian-Arabic Friendship Society Vyacheslav Matuzov says the visit will have a big impact.

Russia has received proposals from the U.S. as part of the efforts to reach a compromise on AMD plans in Europe. Bakhtiyar Tuzmukhamedov from the Russian Diplomatic Academy joined RT to talk about the possible outcome of the dispute.

There’ll be no serious breakthroughs in the Russia-U.S. dispute over the U.S. missile shield in Europe under the current administration, believes Fyodor Lukyanov, Editor-in-Chief of the Russia in Global Affairs journal.

Dmitry Danilov, a Professor at the Institute for European Studies, told RT why, in his opinion, the Russia-US talks on a planned U.S. AMD system in Europe ended without agreement.

Russian steel maker Evraz will borrow $US 2.1 billion to finance its recent acquisition of IPSCO's North American plate and pipe business. Evraz's VP Pavel Tatyanin said that despite its debt burden, the company could finance the acquisition by itself.

Moscow talks on a planned U.S. missile defence base in Europe ended on Tuesday without an agreement. To discuss this, Andrey Kortunov, a political analyst from the Eurasia Foundation, came to the RT studio.

The fact that Washington has sent the Secretaries of both State and Defense to Moscow is a sign that the lines of dialogue between the U.S. and Russia are open, says Charles Kupchan, Senior Fellow for Europe Studies at Georgetown University.

Ariel Cohen of the Washington's Heritage foundation gave his comments following the talks between the Russian and U.S. defence and foreign ministers.

Somali pirates have released a ship captured off the Horn of Africa on its way to Russia after a US$ 700,000 ransom was paid. Mikhail Voytenko, the Chief-Editor of the maritime bulletin Sovfracht, spoke about the case.

Condoleezza Rice and Robert Gates are in Moscow for talks over U.S missile defence shield in Europe. Viktor Kremenyuk from the Institute of the USA and Canada at the Russian Academy of Sciences joined RT to comment on the issue.

One of the most celebrated American horror film directors, George Romero, spoke exclusively to Russia Today about his new movie during a visit to Moscow.

With Iran’s parliamentary election now over, Professor Leonid Gusev of the Moscow State University of International Relations, gave his interpretation of Iran’s politics.

RT's military analyst Evgeny Khrushchev discusses the successes and failures of the US military strategy in Iraq.

Legendary U.S. news anchor Dan Rather has accused the United States of neglecting its relationship with Russia. He told RT that America's government and media still misunderstand Russia.

Alex Kotchoubey from Renaissance Capital Investment Management in Moscow joined RT to talk more about events on the markets.

A  Russian businessman who sexually abused a 14-year old Cambodian girl has been sentenced to 13 years in prison. Journalist Dmitry Kosyrev joined RT studio to comment about the case.

20 Russian real estate projects, valued at more than $US 40 billion, were showcased at the MIPIM forum in Cannes. RT spoke to the General Director of Russian real estate firm ST Tower, Shalva Chigirinsky.

Abkhazia does not need Kosovo as a precedent for its claim for independence, the Abkhazian president Sergey Bagapsh has said. The unrecognised republic "has had statehood both within the Russian Empire and later the Soviet Union".

Russia's lower house of parliament is about to consider recognising three breakaway republics. For more perspective on the appeal by the breakaway republics, political analyst Arutyun Ulunyan joined RT.

As the world waits for the Russian parliament’s decision  over three breakaway republics’ future indepedence, Professor Aslan Abashidze of the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia joined RT to give his insight.

The U.S. claims democracy and human rights regressed in Russia in 2007. Nataliya Narochnitskaya, Head of the European branch of the Democracy and Cooperation institute, joined RT to discuss the latest report.

The resignation of Admiral William Fallon, America's top commander in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars has been called "a loss for the country" by the U.S. Congress. RT’s military analyst Evgeny Khrushchev commented on the news.

Georgia wants compensation from Russia for what it calls the "economic annexation" of its breakaway republic of Abkhazia. Bakhtiyar Tuzmukhamedov, from the Russian Diplomatic Academy, commented on the issue.

Joining RT from Warsaw to share his views on U.S. anti-missile shield plans in Europe is Filip Ilkowski, one of the co-ordinators of Poland's 'Stop The War Initiative`.

Serbian nationalists may look to make use of the situation around Kosovo during the upcoming election. Arutyun Ulunyan from the Institute of World History mulls over the issue.

Before the launch of Europe's 'Jules Verne', the only space ship able to take gear to the ISS was Russia’s 'Progress'. Christian Feichtinger of the European Space Agency in Russia, says now there's competition.

Mikhail Belozersky, a business partner of the so-called 'Merchant of Death', was arrested with Viktor Bout in Thailand. He says the way he was treated was ‘simply torture’.

Serbian Prime Minister Kostunica has resigned and called for a new election. Aleksey Kuzmin, Chairman of the Advisory Board for the National Prospect Foundation says it's not clear who would win the election.  

Angela Merkel's visit to Moscow is an expression of Germany's desire to serve as a link between Russia and the West, according to political analyst Aleksander Rahr.

The official results of the Russia's March 2 presidential vote have been announced. Matthew Maly, author of several books and articles on Russia's transition to democracy and market economy, commented on the Russian presidential elections to RT.

Russian businessman, Viktor Bout, faces up to ten years in a Thai prison if found guilty of supplying weapons to terrorists. Richard Chichakly, a friend of Victor Bout, came to our studio to give us his comments.

Venezuela claims Colombia committed a war crime making a cross-border raid into Ecuador. Boris Kagarlitskiy, head of the Institute for Globalisation and Social Movements discussed the chances of an armed conflict between the countries.

The U.S. has been critical of China's growing military expenditure. But its own defence budget for 2009, if approved, is said to surpass the WW2 budget when inflation adjusted. Military analyst Evgeny Khrushchev commented on the issue.

Some worry that Gazprom’s on-and-off gas rows with Ukraine could affect deliveries to Europe. Professor Paul Stevens, Senior Research Fellow from Chatham House joined RT from London to comment on the Ukraine-Russia gas dispute.

Europe watches with a sense of déjà vu as Gazprom once again cuts gas supplies to Ukraine. Kirill Koktysh, a political analyst from the Moscow State University of International Relations, joined RT to analyse the possible outcomes of this skirmish.

China will raise its defence spending by almost a fifth this year. RT’s military analyst Evgeny Khrushchev says that China’s military doctrine is based on prevention of a technologically superior adversary encroaching on China’s national interests.

Dmitry Medvedev will rule Russia from May 7 after hislandslide victory in the presidential election. An analyst from Moscow's Carnegie Centre, Nikolay Petrov, says the transition of power from Putin to Medvedev will be a slow step-by-step process.

Matthew Maly, author of books and articles on Russia's transition to democracy and market economy, joined RT to share his views on Russia's image in the West.

Venezuela and Ecuador have cut diplomatic ties with Colombia in a deepening crisis over a cross-border raid by Colombian troops. RT military analyst Evgeny Khrushchev commented on the situation.

Clashes between police and protesters have left at least eight people dead in the Armenian capital, Yerevan. The country’s Foreign Minister, Vardan Oskanyan, discussed the violence with RT.

Some think that the outgoing President Putin will continue playing a leading role in Russia’s politics. The Independent columnist Mary Dejevsky doesn’t share concerns that the centre of the power will move from the Kremlin to the White House under the new leader.

Sergey Khrushchev is Senior Fellow in International Relations at Brown University in the United States. He is also the son of Nikita Khrushchev, leader of the Soviet Union for nearly a decade during the Cold War. He joined RT to give his views on Sunday's presidential election, which, he says, was a ‘huge step towards democracy in Russia.’ 

Maria Sladkova, a post-graduate student of Russian State Humanitarian university, filled RT’s viewers in on education in Russia.

An actress and a student of one of Moscow’s Boris Schukin’s drama school Laura Keosayan spoke about the trials and tribulations of her trade in Russia and of course the Stanislavski Method.

Andrey Danilenko, the Head of Russian Farms Group and successful businessman told RT about the current state of things in Russian agriculture.

Andrey Chuzhakin, Professor of Linguistic University compared Russia’s past and present linguistic positions.

Dmitry Peskov is a press attaché to the Russian President, the main link between the Russian President and the media. He appeared on RT to discuss his career and the Russian President’s relations with the media.

Regional Director of MmD Russia, Stephen Lock, gives political advice to multinational companies. He says property development, retail and banking are all hot spots for foreign investors.

Political analyst Viktor Mizin said that new trends in Russia's foreign policy does not mean a new Cold War. He also speculated on America's next leader.

Election commission spokesperson Aleksey Gromov told RT that a record election turnout of 68% in St Petersburg is no surprise, as both Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev come from there.

Dmitry Bagrov, Senior VP of European Business at DataArt’s office in St. Petersburg believes cultural proximity with the West gives Russian producers an advantage compared to other popular software destinations. 

 

The chairman of Russia's State Duma International Committee, Konstantin Kosachev, told RT that Putin is admired by most Russian voters.

Chris Weafer from Uralsib in Moscow told RT’s Business Today that Putin put order and structure into Russia's economy but diversification is now needed. 

Aleksandr Kotchoubey from Renaissance Capital gave RT the investment community's view on Dmitry Medvedev's election win.

Tatyana Malkina, Editor-In-Chief of the Otechestvennie Zapiski magazine, spoke to RT about how civil society is developing in the country.

Preliminary results show Dmitry Medvedev has won a landslide victory in Russia's presidential election. Russia's renowned TV-journalist and author on democracy, Vladimir Solovyov, joined RT to comment on the election outcome.

Fedor Lukyanov, Editor-in-Chief of the Russia in Global Affairs magazine, commented on RT about Russia’s foreign policy under Vladimir Putin.

Dmitry Surkov from the Moscow office of Fitch ratings agency came to talk about the results of election 2008 and what it means for the business community.

Sochi winning the Olympics in 2014 was one of the brightest moments for Russia in 2007. Dmitry Chernyshenko, CEO of the Sochi Bid Committee, believes its team philosophy was perfect.

Viktor Vakhstein, from the Golos Association, told RT that Medvedev had a clear advantage in the media.

Natalya Zamarayeva, Senior Scientific worker at the Oriental Studies Institute, discussed Russia's key leadership role in Central Asia.

“Russia is back’ – that was Putin’s main message to the international community, believes Andrey Kortunov from the New Eurasia foundation. The expert joined RT to discuss future developments in Russia’s foreign policy.

Matthew Maly, economic expert and author of a book called “Russia as it is”, came in to RT to mull over whether Russia is becoming a true democracy.

Egor Gavrilov, a political analyst from the Russian State University of International Relations, joined RT to share his views on Russia's political legacy and future.

Kirill Koktysh of the Moscow State University of International Relations, joined RT to discuss the development of Russia’s relations with the CIS countries, and Belarus in particular.

Aleksey Kuzmin, Chairman of the Expert Council of the National Prospects Foundation in Moscow, joined RT to speak in detail of the four presidential candidates.

Andrey Zolotov, Editor-in-Chief of Russia Profile magazine, said to RT that the next few months will be an interesting period in the country's political development.

Igor Chestin, the head of the Russian branch of the World Wildlife Fund, joined RT to talk about environmental matters. He says despite some positive changes, there’s a lot to be done to improve the situation in the country.

Richard Weitz from Hudson Institute, Washington DC, commented to RT on how Dmitry Medvedev is viewed in the United States.

Dmitry Suslov from the Council for Foreign and Defence Policy in Moscow, joined RT to speak on the probable reaction to the election result in the West and the possible changes in Russia’s foreign policy.

Yury Mamchur a director of Real Russia Project, an educational project of Discovery Institute aimed at being a credible source of information about Russia, spoke to RT. He commented on how America views the possibility of Dmitry Medvedev becoming the new president.

Viktor Linnik, political analyst and editor-in-chief of the Slovo weekly newspaper joined RT to discuss the latest results of the vote and the current political course.

Boris Kagarlitskiy, director of Institute of Globalization and Social Movements recalled for RT how he was jailed in late 1980s for ‘studying Marxism the wrong way’.

Tatyana Lokshina, Russia researcher at the Moscow Office of Human Rights Watch, said the situation in Chechnya is controversial today.

Aleksey Knizhnikov, oil and gas officer for the World Wide Fund for Nature in Russia, told RT about the environmental dangers connected with the country's energy growth.

Saint Petersburg has seen the biggest turnout since the crucial 1996 presidential election, but not all social groups are represented. Gay rights campaigner, Igant Fialkovsky, said that politicians ignored the gay community and all other minorities during the election campaign.

Leonid Ilyushin from Saint Petersburg’s Committee for Education told RT that people’s mentality is the most difficult thing to change and Russia's system of education has to deal with it.

Roman Poborchy, the head of the Intel Software Group Russia, appeared on RT to discuss software development.

Keith Luke, American studying at St Petersburg State University, gave a foreigner’s view on the poll in Russia.

Mark Barantan, a Moscow citizen and head of the logistics department at Jacque Dessange Moscow, spoke to RT about extremism and xenophobia.

Evgeny Schwarts from the World Wildlife Fund joined RT to talk environment. He believes Russia has a lot to offer the world in terms of biodiversity.

Aslan Abashidze from Moscow State University of International Relations shared his views on the future of the Russo-Georgian relations after the presidential election.

Luke Harding, Moscow Bureau Chief for the UK Guardian Newspaper came in to RT to speak on how the western public perceives election in Russia, and also to mull over the future developments in the UK-Russia relations.

Alexis Delaroff, the President of the French expatriate community in Moscow, spoke on the Russo-French relations under Putin and the way it will develop after the March 2 election.

Maria Ignatenko, student at the Moscow State Linguistic University, joined RT to share an insider’s view on higher education in Russia.

Jonathan Landman, deputy managing editor of New York Times joined RT to talk about Russia’s image in the West and how it’s changed over the last decade.  He said Russia’s become ‘less democratic’, which seems ‘a little frightening’ to some Americans.

Vasily Gatov from PromSvyazCapital joined RT at 11pm to comment on how the media business in Russia has been developing through the 1990s and the first eight years of this century.

Tina Kandelaki, Russia's well-known TV-anchor, shared with RT her views on Russia’s development as a country and as a society, and the popularity of TV in Russia.

Publisher Grigory Kunis commented to RT on the state of the publishing business in modern Russia and on the difference between the Russian and Western newspaper businesses.

Konstantin Kryukov, a young Russian actor who comes from a famous Bondarchuk cinema family, joined RT to discuss the modern Russian cinema industry and obstacles for actors.

Ali Nassor, spokesman for the African Unity St. Petersburg Group, joined RT to discuss racism in St. Petersburg, which is labelled by some as the hate crime capital of Russia.

Fred Weir, Moscow bureau chief for The Christian Science Monitor, told RT that Russia has had a remarkable transformation.

Bob van Ronkel, the man responsible for bringing Hollywood stars like Jim Carrey, Paris Hilton and Mickey Rourke to Russia, told RT that perceptions have changed.

Fujio Hosaka, Managing Director of Nissan Manufacturing Russia, told RT about how attractive the country, and St Petersburg in particular, is for car manufacturing.

Konstantin Khudoley, Dean of the International Relations faculty at the St. Petersburg State University, shared with RT his views on Russia’s role on the international scene.

Kira Plastinina, Russia's youngest professional fashion designer, joined RT to discuss her industry. But the first question was how she dealt with success at such a young age.

Vyacheslav Fetisov, head of Russia’s federal agency for sport and also a prominent ice-hockey player, joined RT to highlight the problems which the country’s sport is now facing.

Vladimir Polutin, director of HP Labs Russia, came in to RT to speak on Russia’s scientific engineering potential and the importance of developing innovative breakthrough technologies.

Canadian journalist Malcolm Grey from Mclean’s news magazine shared his view on how the presidential electoral campaign in Russia has been perceived in the West.

Swanee Hunt, former U.S. Ambassador to Austria and now Director of the women's programme at the Kennedy School of Government, spoke to RT about women in Russian and American politics.

Irina Rodnina, Russia's prominent Olympic figure skating champion and a State Duma deputy, spoke to RT about the revival of the country’s sports and future ways of its development.

Dmitry Babich from Russia Profile Magazine shared his views with RT about Russia's relations with the EU and CIS countries.

Ruslan Pukhov, Director of the Centre for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, joined RT to speak on Russia's relations with Latin America.

Ruslan Pukhov, Director of the Centre for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, joined RT at 8am to shed light on the Russian defence industry.

Professor Mikhail Shinkovsky from Vladivostok’s State University of Economics and Service spoke to RT about one of the biggest problems facing Russia’s Far Eastern region that has been raised repeatedly at both a local and federal level - the so-called ‘brain drain’.

Denis Boyle from the Vladivostok Office Director of American Councils for International Education, spoke to RT about problems of the region and what has to be done in order to solve them.

Natalia Loginova from ‘Success’ business centre spoke to RT about the situation with the unemployed in Primorsky region in Russia’s Far East.

Heidi Brown, a journalist from Forbes magazine commented to RT about the freedom of speech in Russia.

Alec Brook-Krasny, a New York State Assembly member who emigrated to the U.S. from the Soviet Union in 1989 jointed RT to talk about the stereotypes associated with Russia.

Diane Post from the American Bar Association office in Vladivostok in Russia’s Far East joined RT to talk about work and life in the region from the point of view of an American citizen.

Nina Khrushcheva, a political analyst and the great grand-daughter of former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, joined RT to talk about the role of Soviet legacy in modern Russia and recent developments in the country’s foreign policy.