Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) speaks with Prime Minister Tony Blair / Photo: AP
Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) speaks with Prime Minister Tony Blair / Photo: AP Russia’s Putin Compares Chechnya With Northern Ireland During Blair’s Visit
During British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s visit to Moscow that took place on Monday Russian President Vladimir Putin compared the pressure put on the Kremlin over <NOBR>Chechnya</NOBR> to the criticism of Britain in connection with Northern Ireland.
It was not clear whether Blair had pressed Putin over human rights or brought up the fraud conviction of former oil tycoon <NOBR>Mikhail Khodorkovsky</NOBR>, whose trial British officials say has hurt investment in Russia.
But Putin, asked by a reporter, said: “We know about these (human rights) criticisms, especially surrounding the Chechen events, just as criticism about Britain used to be heard in terms of Northern Ireland.”
“We are opposed to the use of these issues for interfering in our internal affairs or as a tool for achieving foreign policy objectives,” Russian President was quoted by Reuters as saying.
One of the reporters at a joint news conference linked human rights abuses and corruption in Africa with the situation in Russia. Putin, at his turn, reacted sharply: “We know that in some African countries there was a practice of eating political opponents. We do not have such a tradition or culture and I think a comparison between Africa and Russia is not quite fair.”
The Kremlin leader was the first of four European leaders whom Blair was due to meet in a two-day trip to prepare for the gathering of G8 nations at the Gleneagles country hotel in Scotland from July 6-8.
“We fully support the ideas of the British leadership (in G8) and in particular of the prime minister ... for the forthcoming summit,” Putin told journalists at his country residence west of Moscow.
Some politicians in Europe and the United States have recently demanded Russian exclusion from the club of eight industrialized democracies, saying it is not rich or democratic enough to hang on to its membership.
But Putin defended Russia’s place, saying it understood the problems of “transition economies.” http://www.mosnews.com/news/2005/06/14/blairresults.shtml
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