The British the Times has flung in to the fans who seek to find in the attack of the Caucasian Mujahideen against Russian invaders and their puppets anything you like, even the traces of the Martians, but not the will of the Mujahideen themselves, a new version - "to whom it is favorable" in the wake of bombings in the Moscow metro.
"Recent developments in Moscow has cast Medvedev in a new light", British the Times wrote. The positions of the formal chieftain of the Kremlin have become stronger, and in 2012 he could get rid of Putin's tutelage, making Alexander Khloponin a prime minister, the paper says.
Thus, the Times confounded those analysts and commentators, including those from the cohort of Russian opposition democrats, who saw "Putin's trace" in the Moscow metro bombings.
The paper considers that Medvedev "has taken centre stage as Russia's leader in the past week, far more than Vladimir Putin and demonstrated political skill and courage in responding to events".
"He balanced tough language on fighting terrorism with practical proposals for improving the lives of people in the troubled North Caucasus", explained in the article.
"For perhaps the first time since Medvedev's election as pesident two years ago, this crisis has made it possible to see the outlines of a post-Putin politics in Russia. Medvedev has looked in command, tough but moderate, and in tune with thoughtful Russians, who realise that there are no simple solutions to the problems of the troubled region", article's author, Tony Halpin, lays the flattering unction to Medvedev's team's soul.
The author remembered how Medvedev not afraid to (!) and "went down to metro and laid flowers at the scene of death of people".
Moreover, he did not even afraid (!) of explosions in Dagestan, and went there and "announced in addition to harsher law enforcement methods of combating terrorism, he spelt out five principles insisting that social protection of population should also be improved for defeating terrorism in the North Caucasus".
Medvedev also upbraided Russian businessmen, telling them "to invest in the region as a matter of national duty and not simply to concentrate funds in Moscow or abroad".
The paper noted that the so-called envoy of Medvedev in the North Caucasus, Alexander Khloponin, has a great future. If he succeeds in this arena, he could move even higher in his career, the Times predict.
"A Medvedev-Khloponin tandem after 2012, with the latter as prime minister in a second Medvedev term, would appeal to many in Russia who support the president's modernizing agenda and see no future in a return to Putin's authoritarian "power vertical", the paper forecasts.
More attacks could blow all of this off track and Putin still has plenty of opportunities to assert his claim to return to the Kremlin in 2012 if he chooses".
"But something has subtly changed in Russia's domestic politics and Medvedev may be coming into his own at last", the author concluded.
Department of Monitoring,
Kavkaz Center
