Vladimir Putin – News Stories About Vladimir Putin - Page 54

Belarus Merger Could Return Putin to Office

Dec 10, 2007 1:47 PM CST

Belarus Merger Could Return Putin to Office

New constitution would give president new lease on power

(Newser) - Vladimir Putin may release a secret weapon this week: a Russian political union with neighboring Belarus that could extend his leadership indefinitely. As the ex-KGB operative’s presidential terms run out, observers look to a merger of nations—including currency, legal system, and armed forces—as an opportunity for a...

Putin Names Favored Successor

Dec 10, 2007 7:17 AM CST

Putin Names Favored Successor

Business-friendly Medvedev would 'carry on the course'

(Newser) - Vladimir Putin ended months of speculation today by naming Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev as his chosen successor, the AP reports. A Putin loyalist, Medvedev is a business-friendly lawyer with ties to prominent natural gas company Gazprom, AP reports. Putin’s choice is expected to be the prohibitive frontrunner in...

Russian Claims He Was Asked to Kill Litvinenko

Dec 9, 2007 12:03 PM CST

Russian Claims He Was Asked to Kill Litvinenko

Warned victim of plot before tea poisoning

(Newser) - Onetime KGB agent Mikhail Trepashkin has said that a former colleague attempted to recruit him for a state-sponsored plot to kill Kremlin foe Alexander Litvinenko, who died of poisoning in London last year. Trepashkin will detail his allegations before the European human rights court, supporting the case that the Russian...

Observers
Cry Foul Over Putin Victory

Dec 3, 2007 7:53 AM CST

Observers Cry Foul Over Putin Victory

Monitors say gov't tampered with polls Kasparov calls 'dirtiest'

(Newser) - Even as Vladimir Putin hailed his party's decisive victory in Russian elections yesterday as a mandate, international elections observers said the polling was neither free nor fair, and complained of government interference. State employees were reportedly ordered to vote for Putin, CNN reports, and Garry Kasparov’s Other Russia party...

Kremlin Hails Big Putin Win

Dec 2, 2007 2:14 PM CST

Kremlin Hails Big Putin Win

PM's party expected to garner landslide victory in parliamentary election

(Newser) - Vladimir Putin had garnered more than 60% of the vote in parliamentary elections today, hailed by the Kremlin as continued popular mandate for his policies even after his term ends. Putin's United Russia party, boosted by the country's oil boom, was expected to grab a landslide victory, but opposition and...

Gorbachev Goes Easy on Putin, for Now

Dec 1, 2007 8:13 PM CST

Gorbachev Goes Easy on Putin, for Now

Ex-leader defends prez, even as Kremlin rolls back democracy

(Newser) - Gorbachev remains pals with Putin, even as the Russian prez pares back reforms that Gorbachev holds dear, the Wall Street Journal reports. The former leader reserves his blame for the Kremlin, and spares Putin, calling him "a very normal person"—even after Moscow shut down Gorbachev's political party...

Russians
Forced to Back Putin Party

Nov 30, 2007 9:21 AM CST

Russians Forced to Back Putin Party

Public employees coerced to produce decisive win Sunday

(Newser) - The Kremlin is planning to boost the ruling party's showing in Sunday's Russian parliamentary elections, the Guardian reports, by forcing millions of public employees to vote, and to vote the right way. Doctors, teachers, and public sector workers are being bullied to vote for United Russia, Vladimir Putin's party, or...

Freed Kasparov Sounds Alarm on Coming Russian Chaos

Nov 30, 2007 3:34 AM CST

Freed Kasparov Sounds Alarm on Coming Russian Chaos

Putin leading us to danger: chess champ

(Newser) - Chess legend Garry Kasparov walked out of prison after serving five days for leading a protest march and warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin was leading the nation down a dangerous path to chaos, the New York Times reports. He vowed to continue his fight against Putin's repressive policies. Fear...

Putin Stumps for Party in
TV Address

Nov 29, 2007 2:50 PM CST

Putin Stumps for Party in TV Address

President urges vote for United Russia in Sunday's parliamentary elections

(Newser) - In an announcement aired on Russian television Vladimir Putin called on citizens to vote for his United Russia party in parliamentary elections Sunday, in order to prolong "stability and continuity," and "set the tone" for March elections. He also warned casting ballots for liberal opposition candidates would...

Russia Rips
US Missile
Defense Offer

Nov 27, 2007 10:00 AM CST

Russia Rips US Missile Defense Offer

White House proposal is still 'unilateral,' says defense minister

(Newser) - American and Russian plans to collaborate on a missile defense program suffered another blow today as Russia's foreign minister blasted American offers as "a significant rollback" from earlier promises. US proposals amounted to a "unilateral" American effort that would seek help and information from Russia, and no more,...

Russian Crackdown Draws Fire

Nov 26, 2007 9:40 AM CST

Russian Crackdown Draws Fire

US, Council of Europe condemn police violence and arrests of opposition leaders

(Newser) - Authorities detained Russian opposition leaders yesterday and broke up a St. Petersburg rally and march in the second day of aggressive crackdowns on dissent, the Washington Post reports. Several candidates in Sunday's parliamentary elections were among the 200 held. "They have forbidden us from discussing Putin," one candidate...

Russian Police Detain Kasparov

Nov 24, 2007 9:39 AM CST

Russian Police Detain Kasparov

Riot police disperse a rally by the Other Russia opposition coalition

(Newser) - Russian police seized opposition leader and former chess champion Garry Kasparov today at a rally in Moscow protesting the fairness of upcoming elections, the BBC reports. Authorities arrested Kasparov and other leaders of the Other Russia coaltion when they broke through police lines to march toward the election commission. "...

Putin Rips West's 'Dirty Tricks'

Nov 22, 2007 4:26 AM CST

Putin Rips West's 'Dirty Tricks'

Accuses foreign governments of funding rival parties

(Newser) - Russian President Vladimir Putin told a crowd of cheering supporters that opponents of his United Russia party are in the pay of foreign governments bent on weakening the nation, reports the Times of London. He ripped opponents as "jackals" who "slink through foreign embassies" and learn from "...

Watchdog Won't Monitor Russia Election

Nov 16, 2007 2:05 PM CST

Watchdog Won't Monitor Russia Election

European body blames Moscow for 'delays and restrictions'

(Newser) - An international election watchdog agency has canceled its mission to monitor Russia’s December vote because its delegation's visa applications “have continuously been denied,” reports the Washington Post. The lack of oversight by the agency, part of the 55-member Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, is expected...

Putin Claims 'Moral Right'
to Power

Nov 13, 2007 5:36 PM CST

Putin Claims 'Moral Right' to Power

Says United Party victory will mean 'citizens trust me'

(Newser) - Putin claimed a “moral right” to keep a hand in Russian politics today if his party wins the December 2 election, Reuters reports. A victory for the pro-Kremlin United Party looks likely, so how would he rule after resigning as president in May? "I will refrain from a...

Putin Party Election Strategy: Vodka for Votes

Nov 1, 2007 3:24 AM CDT

Putin Party Election Strategy: Vodka for Votes

Booze & backpacks among lures for Russian voters

(Newser) - Free bottles of vodka are among the gifts Russia's ruling party is using to lure voters in upcoming elections, reports Agence France Presse. President Vladimir Putin's party, United Russia, has also stamped its logo on backpacks and lids for the jam jars many Russians fill to get through the winter.

Kremlin May Forge a Separate
2.0 Peace

Oct 28, 2007 8:54 PM CDT

Kremlin May Forge a Separate 2.0 Peace

Moscow mulling the creation of a Russian-only computer network

(Newser) - The Kremlin is going 2.0 by extending its reach into cyberspace, where dissidents have found refuge from the government’s tight censorship. While Putin allies mount pro-government websites and snatch up existing independent outlets, Moscow is considering the creation of a separate Russian network. “The attractiveness of the...

US Cools War Rhetoric With Iran

Oct 26, 2007 10:03 PM CDT

US Cools War Rhetoric With Iran

Sanctions 'in no way, shape or form' a prelude to war, official says

(Newser) - Washington cooled war rhetoric with Iran yesterday, calling sanctions "diplomacy" that "in no way, shape or form" anticipate force. The sanctions are "more a demonstration of restraint than a signal that we’re going to war," echoed one US expert. But the US move did irk...

Iran Defiant
Over New US Sanctions

Oct 26, 2007 9:50 AM CDT

Iran Defiant Over New US Sanctions

Putin joins in, calling Americans 'mad people wielding razor blades'

(Newser) - New American sanctions against Iran's Revolutionary Guards provoked a fiery response from Iran today, along with criticism from allies China and Russia. Iran's foreign ministry told the BBC that the sanctions were "contrary to international law, without value and, as in the past, doomed to failure." Vladimir Putin...

Russia Stiff Arms International Vote Monitors

Oct 25, 2007 5:11 AM CDT

Russia Stiff Arms International Vote Monitors

Showdown looms with US & EU in bid to keep observers at a distance

(Newser) - Russia may be headed for another showdown with the US and the European Union over its proposals to severely limit the authority of international election monitors. The Kremlin wants to cut the number of observers and ban their reports from publication until after elections. The move comes just months before...