“Свет мой, зеркальце, скажи…”, или штрихи к портрету

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CARTOON: Yelkin on Putin’s Return

via La Russophobe by larussophobe on 9/27/11

Source: Ellustrator.

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September 30, 2011 — Contents | La Russophobe

via larussophobe.wordpress.com on 10/1/11

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God Save Putin

via Sean's Russia Blog by Sean on 9/25/11

Putin as Alexander III

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A Putative president for Russia, in for life..., Andrei Piontkovsky

via openDemocracy - oD Russia by Andrei Piontkovsky on 9/29/11

Putin’s recent announcement that he would be “standing for” president caught people off guard, as it was intended to. For Andrei Piontkovsky, it was a disgusting spectacle and test of the Russian people that will almost

U.S. diplomats had no illusions about the allocation of roles within the Russian duumvirate, according to WikiLeaks. President Medvedev was seen as the junior figure, playing 'Robin to Putin’s Batman'. The recent succession announcement confirms the correctness of this view.

The present Russian Federation Constitution allows Vladimir Putin to serve two terms as president i.e. until 2024. If Medvedev then succeeds him, the duumvirate’s power could last until 2036. Longer than Krushchev, Brezhnev, Andropov, Chernenko and Gorbachev put together.

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:: RUSSIA, GOVERNMENT - Putin as Democracy :: JRL 9/29/11

via www.cdi.org on 10/1/11

Putin as Democracy
Matthew Van Meter | Russia Profile | Sept. 28, 2011 | JRL 2011-175-18 | JRL Home

Okay, so I was wrong. I've been saying since Dmitry Medvedev's ascendance to the presidency of Russia that Vladimir Putin had finally figured out how to be president for life without having to make Western allies unnecessarily squeamish about his inordinate power. Though Medvedev, to some extent, transcended his status as a Putin puppet, he was the perfect man to placate the sulking mass of allies and "allies" accrued by Russia in its 20 years of existence.

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The tandem: hope against hope dashed!, Alexei Levinson

via openDemocracy - oD Russia by Alexei Levinson on 9/30/11

The presidential election is still 6 months away, but speculation about who would stand i.e become president had reached fever pitch. A section of society really hoped that Medvedev would continue his liberal policies, even though signs that this could happen were few and far between. Now there is clarity – and disappointment, says Alexei Levinson

Vladimir Putin - the master showman. Russians have seen him on TV skiing, diving, singing, doing judo, playing hockey and even flying a modern fighter-bomber.

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Russia's Medvedev defends plan for Putin return - Globe and Mail

via Russia - Google News on 9/30/11

AFP

Russia's Medvedev defends plan for Putin return
Globe and Mail
Mr. Medvedev's remarks appeared intended to placate many Russians who feel their voices count for little in a political system dominated by Mr. Putin and his ruling United Russia party for more than a decade. “The choice is made by the people, ...
In Russia, Turning Back the ClockNew York Times
Russia bleeds cash as investors pull outBBC News
Russia Loses a Vital Cabinet MemberBusinessWeek
AFP -Bloomberg
all 307 news articles »

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Russia's Medvedev defends Putin swap plan (Reuters)

via Yahoo! News: World - Russia on 9/30/11

Reuters - President Dmitry Medvedev vowed to overhaul Russia's government next year and defended plans for a job swap designed to return Vladimir Putin to the Kremlin by saying on Friday that voters will decide who leads the country.

Russia's Medvedev: Putin is more popular (AP)

via Yahoo! News: World - Russia on 9/30/11

AP - President Dmitry Medvedev defended his decision not to seek a second term in an interview broadcast Friday, saying that the nation likes Vladimir Putin more.

 

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Russia Blog

via www.russiablog.org on 10/1/11

July 14, 2011

Micromanagement Instead of Leadership: "Manual Control" Goes On as Putin Visits the Site of Cruise Ship Tragedy

Yuri Mamchur

 

Today, Vladimir Putin paid a surprise visit to Kazan - a Russian Volga river town that witnessed the sinking of the river cruise boat that killed nearly 200 and left. Since the tragedy, a few more details on the sinking emerged: the ship was built in 1955, the operator didn't have neither a tourism permit nor a permit to operate the vessel, and the vessel itself was not licensed to even be on the water. All in all, in a normally functioning country (or, as they call it these days, "system") nothing would've happened as the business would've not been operating, tickets would've not been sold, the ship would've not sailed, and no one would've died.

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Russia's Medvedev defends Putin swap plan - Reuters

via Russia - Google News on 9/30/11

Reuters

Russia's Medvedev defends Putin swap plan
Reuters
Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev meets with workers from the field of Russian culture industry in the town of Vyazma at the Gorki residence outside Moscow, September 29, 2011. By Steve Gutterman MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Dmitry Medvedev vowed to ...
Medvedev Defends Plan to Trade Places With PutinNew York Times
Russia's futureFinancial Times
Seat warmer: Russia's Medvedev stepping aside for 'more popular' PutinChristian Science Monitor
Toronto Star -San Francisco Chronicle
all 605 news articles »

Dmitry Medvedev: 'Putin is more popular than I am'

via World news: Russia | guardian.co.uk by Miriam Elder on 9/30/11

Outgoing Russian president denies political rivalry with current prime minister, claiming his ambition is 'to be of use to my country'

The outgoing Russian president, Dmitry Medvedev, agreed to step down because he believes Vladimir Putin is more popular, he has said.

"I note that Prime Minister Putin, without a doubt, is currently the most authoritative politician in our country," Medvedev said in an interview with the country's three state-run television stations. "His rating is slightly higher."

Medvedev has been the target of ridicule in Russia since Putin announced that he would return to the presidency next year.

The interview is to be aired on Friday, but a transcript was pre-released by the Kremlin. Putin has said he will make Medvedev his prime minister.

"My main ambition is to be of use to my country and my people," Medvedev said.

He stressed that he and Putin represented "the same political force", and dismissed the idea of competition between them. "Can you imagine a situation where, for example, Barack Obama started competing with Hillary Clinton?" he asked, apparently forgetting the rivalry that divided the two in the run-up to the 2008 US presidential election.

Medvedev brushed off a question from the head of the state-owned NTV television channel, Vladimir Kulistikov, when he asked: "What's the point of elections if everything is already decided?"

The ruling United Russia party's support for Putin and Medvedev was "merely a party recommendation on who to support in the elections, and nothing more," he said. "The vote is exercised by the people – and these are not empty words. Any politician can 'fly' in the elections. No one is insured from anything – what predictability?

"Let the people decide whom to vote for, who has more authority," Medvedev said. "And only people, only our citizens, are able to place the final emphasis, voting for this or that person or political force, or rejecting it. That's democracy."

Putin is likely to win the presidential election, to be held in March 2012.

. Russia's main liberal opposition, the People's Freedom party, has been refused registration for a parliamentary vote, due in December. Other opposition parties, including the communists and the far-right Liberal Democratic party, are considered Kremlin-friendly.

• Dmitry Medvedev
• Vladimir Putin
• Russia
• Europe

Miriam Elder

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15:06 01.10.2011