I have a new column up on Tech Central Station which examines President Putin's recent statement on Kyoto. The conclusion:

When I last wrote on Russia and Kyoto, I compared the issue to a game of chess. That analogy still appears appropriate. The EU and the Russian Federation appear to have exchanged Queens in the form of the WTO/Kyoto agreement, but don't bet against the Russian Queen reappearing on the board. There's a lot of chess left to be played in this particular end-game. EU trade supremo Pascal Lamy has said that Russia's accession to the WTO may not happen until 2006 at the earliest. The Kyoto protocol is due to be phased into effect starting in 2005.