Lucky he was on the ticket:
"Report of attempt to kill Putin meets with skepticism" February 28, 2012|By Vladimir Isachenkov
MOSCOW — Security forces have foiled a Chechen-linked plot to assassinate Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, Russian state television reported yesterday in a broadcast expected to boost support for Putin’s bid to regain the presidency.
Other candidates immediately questioned the timing of the report, which comes just days before Sunday’s presidential election and as Putin and his United Russia party face unprecedented protests after a scandal-marred parliamentary election in December.
The Communist Party candidate called the assassination report a “cheap trick.’’
Putin has portrayed himself as a strong protector of Russia’s national interests and has counted the victory over Chechen separatist rebels as one of the key achievements of his 12-year rule.
That's why Israel and the U.S. don't like him.
The state television report casting Putin as a terrorist target could draw public sympathy and help secure his victory by a wider margin.
I know the feeling, Russian citizen.
The report, which included two televised confessions, said suspects in the assassination plot have been arrested in Ukraine and were linked to a Chechen rebel leader who has claimed responsibility for other terror attacks in Russia.
Putin, who was Russia’s president from 2000 to 2008 and has been prime minister since then, is running for a third, now six-year presidential term. He is expected to win easily against four Kremlin-approved challengers, but a wave of protests since December’s tainted parliamentary election has undermined his image as a strong, popular leader.
Well, we know who is behind those.
Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said any statements linking the reported plot to the presidential campaign were “blasphemous.’’
As long as they are not treasonous.
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A Chechen rebel website, KavkazCenter, shrugged off the report about the assassination plot as “election propaganda nonsense.’’
We get a lot of that here in AmeriKa.
The website noted that the explosion in Odessa was initially reported to be a gas leak and the men were said to be preparing explosives for a contract hit on a local businessman.
Since when are "terrorist" websites credible to the CIA pa... per?
Gennady Zyuganov, the Communist leader running far second to Putin in the polls, called the report “a cheap trick that reeks,’’ according to the state RIA Novosti news agency.
I think I recognize that smell.
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"Putin may run again if he wins vote" March 03, 2012|By Ellen Barry
MOSCOW - Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who is likely to win a third presidential term tomorrow, said in an interview released yesterday that he might run for president for a fourth time in 2018, which would lengthen his term as Russia’s paramount leader to 24 years.
“It would be normal, if things are going well, and people want it,’’ Putin said in an interview with the editors of six foreign newspapers. “And if people don’t want it and things aren’t going well, and a person clings to his chair and doesn’t want to give it away, and if, on top of that, he violates the law - that would not be normal.’’
“But I don’t know whether I want to remain for more than 20 years,’’ he continued, according to an official transcript of the meeting. “I have not yet made this decision for myself.’’
During the interview, Putin forcefully defended Russia’s position in the Syrian conflict but distanced himself somewhat from the government of President Bashar Assad, refusing to answer the question of whether Assad can survive as a leader.
State-controlled television gave heavy coverage to the three-hour interview, broadcasting video of Putin parrying questions from “the most authoritative foreign editorial offices.’’ After the interview ended, Putin brought the journalists with him to an ice rink to watch him play hockey. The editors were from Britain, Canada, France, Italy, Germany, and Japan; no US publication was represented.
After the tone and tenor of your pieces on the guy what would you expect?
He discussed relations with the United States at length, however, saying the “reset’’ had yielded agreements on reducing stockpiles of strategic missiles, and Russia’s accession to the World Trade Organization, but had done “practically nothing’’ to allay Russia’s complaints about a planned US missile defense system.
Related: No deal near on missile shield, Russian says
Russia has long feared the system would compromise its nuclear deterrent, and Putin complained that under President George W. Bush, the United States proposed and then backed out of a deal that would have allowed Russian experts to monitor the system’s radars, to ensure they were oriented toward Iran and not Russia.
“As soon as one side comes under the illusion that it is invulnerable to a strike from the other side, there immediately arise both a number of conflicts and aggression,’’ Putin said. “Not because America is by definition an aggressive country, but because it is a fact of life. There is no way around it. And this worries us.’’
Our government sure has been acting like it.
Putin came across as confident that he would not face destabilizing dissent after tomorrow’s election, despite a series of antigovernment protests that snowballed after parliamentary polls in December....
Near the end of the interview, Putin addressed one of the mysteries of Russian political life: his wife, Lyudmila, has virtually disappeared from public view, and there is little record of his two adult daughters. Lyudmila Putin was last seen in October 2010, when a census-taker visited the prime minister’s residence. Vladimir Putin allowed that his wife may not carry out the public duties of a first lady if he wins a third presidential term.
“I cannot say it’s easy for her to deal with this,’’ he said. “The modern media are quite ruthless and not everyone is prepared to allow this to pass through them. You can see that members of my family are not involved in politics or business. They aren’t involved in anything and I would like them to be left alone, too. This is connected with their personal welfare and security.’’
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"Putin wins third term as Russian president; Opposition says it will protest alleged fraud" by David M. Herszenhorn | New York Times, March 05, 2012
MOSCOW - In an outcome long predicted, Russian voters overwhelmingly granted Vladimir V. Putin a six-year term as president on Sunday, setting the stage for a far more suspenseful postelection confrontation between Putin and opposition groups.
“We have won,’’ Putin declared to a huge throng of supporters outside the Kremlin walls, a tear running down his cheek. “We have gained a clean victory!’’ He added, “We won! Glory to Russia.’’
Putin has been Russia’s preeminent leader for 12 years, serving two terms as president from 2000 to 2008 before his current term as prime minister. But the prospect of more protests, starting with a rally on Monday night in Pushkin Square in central Moscow, threatened to undercut his promise of stability.
And that is all the Empire's war managers are looking to do: destabilize Russia so it can't rush to assist Iran.
Independent election observers and opposition leaders said there were widespread complaints of vote-rigging, and reports of Putin supporters being bused to multiple polling places to cast votes.
I'll take that with a grain of salt from the AmeriKan media. They never say s*** about the massive fraud here because they are part of it.
Some opposition leaders called for protests beyond those allowed by government permits, raising the prospect of a sharp response from the authorities.
Anticorruption blogger Aleksei Navalny said he would lead an unsanctioned march to the Kremlin after a rally scheduled for Monday. He has called for a permanent encampment of demonstrators like those created by the Occupy movements in the West. “People need to go out on the streets and not leave until their demands are met,’’ he said in a television interview....
I agree with that last part, but here in AmeriKa they would be evicted with scathingly disparaging coverage from the corporate media!
Putin, who did little traditional campaigning and refused to debate his opponents, nonetheless engaged in some of the most aggressive election-year politicking of his career.
Lucky Russians. And when a U.S. president does the same it's called using the office.
He postponed for six months the annual increase in household utility charges, the largest expense for most Russian families; increased pensions and military salaries; and promised an avalanche of new government spending.
It's called stimulus -- or was -- here.
He employed anti-American rhetoric, accusing Washington of trying to stoke revolution in Russia as well as in the Middle East. He appealed to nationalist pride.
In some places, yeah.
Related: New Cold War With Russia
Yeah, some are hoping.
“We still have much to do for our Russia and for our people,’’ he thundered at a rally. “And we will do it based on the talent of our people, on our great history, which is written with the blood and sweat of our forefathers.’’
--more--"
"A jubilant Vladimir Putin shrugged off opposition assertions Wednesday that his presidential election victory was unfair and marred by fraud, saying any violations were not significant enough to affect the vote’s outcome.
Like a U.S. election.
--more--"
Related: Russia to study vote-rigging videos
Also see: US to Attempt Overthrow of Putin Government\
Failed.
