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President Putin Redux - NYTimes.com
via www.nytimes.com on 9/28/11
September 28, 2011
President Putin Redux
Russia’s next presidential election is not until next March but — barring an unexpected turn — the winner is pretty much decided.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, a former president and Russia’s main power player, announced last Saturday that he would run for another presidential term. President Dmitri Medvedev, the protégé Mr. Putin installed in 2008, has agreed to head the United Russia party slate in the December parliamentary elections and to take the lesser post of prime minister after the presidential vote.
Mr. Medvedev, more liberal and Western-oriented, tried to step out of Mr. Putin’s shadow with a push for judicial and political reforms that would break the Kremlin’s iron grip. He never succeeded. Only a few months ago, he seemed eager to run again for president, but Mr. Putin proved again that he is really the one in charge.
Russia’s Constitution permits only two consecutive presidential terms. If Mr. Putin wins a six-year presidential term, he could run again in 2018 and stay in power until 2024. A truly chilling prospect.
Elections alone do not make a democracy, and Mr. Putin, a former K.G.B. officer, has made clear his disdain for democratic rights. His Russia is a place where journalists and human rights activists are murdered with impunity, political and business opponents are thrown in jail, and media outlets are controlled by or intimidated by the government. Mr. Putin has ridden high on an oil-fueled economic boom. But production levels are leveling off. The country needs to expand its revenue base by reducing the dependency on oil and gas, encouraging business competition and increasing foreign investment. To be successful, that will require cracking down on corruption, strengthening the rule of law and building an independent judiciary — reforms that Mr. Medvedev talked about but did not deliver.
The Obama administration has generally done a good job of “resetting” and managing the relationship with Moscow, working productively on Iran and Libya, concluding a new nuclear weapons agreement and increasing Russian logistical support to American forces in Afghanistan. Those interests will continue.
That means President Obama will have to find ways to continue working with Mr. Putin. He will also have to be ready to speak out, clearly and forcefully, when Mr. Putin bullies his own citizens or his neighbors. There can be no illusions about who Mr. Putin really is.
Party Is Over for Medvedev the Modernizer | News | The Moscow Times
via www.themoscowtimes.com on 9/28/11
When Dmitry Medvedev was named by then-President Vladimir Putin in December 2007 as his preferred successor, he was widely ridiculed as a weak figure who would allow Putin to continue to hold the reins.
Google Reader - "PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova
via RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД by Mike Nova on 9/28/11
Putin to return as Russia's president
Saturday, September 24, 2011, 10:58:28 AM | News
Putin to return as Russia's president
Putin to return as Russia's president
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Vladimir Putin declared on Saturday he planned to reclaim the Russian presidency at March elections that could open the way for the former KGB spy to rule until 2024.
Russia's Putin: I had no role in oil trading empire
Today, September 28, 2011, 5 hours ago | News
Russia's Putin: I had no role in oil trading empire
Russia's Putin: I had no role in oil trading empire
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin publicly addressed one of the most serious corruption allegations against him for the first time on Wednesday, saying he did not help businessman Gennady Timchenko create the Gunvor oil trading empire.
Car bomb kills eight in Russia's Dagestan
Today, September 28, 2011, 4 hours ago | News
Car bomb kills eight in Russia's Dagestan
Car bomb kills eight in Russia's Dagestan
MAKHACHKALA, Russia (Reuters) - One policeman and seven civilians were killed when a car bomb exploded in Russia's Muslim North Caucasus province of Dagestan on Wednesday, authorities and local media said.
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova
