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Americans say Putin is 'top dog'
Source: Agencies |
November 30, 2010, Tuesday
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RUSSIA'S Vladimir Putin emerges from the biggest ever leak of United States diplomatic documents as the "alpha-dog" ruler of the country.
The 58-year-old prime minister is presented by US diplomats as Russia's most powerful politician, holding the keys to everything from energy deals to Moscow's Iran policy.
By contrast, President Dmitry Medvedev "plays Robin to Putin's Batman," is pale and hesitant and has to get his decisions approved by Putin.
But correspondence from the elite of the US diplomatic corps also casts Putin as a leader plagued by an bureaucracy and grappling with ruling a "virtual mafia state" dominated by corrupt businessmen and the security forces.
A cable from the US Embassy in Paris said US Defense Secretary Robert Gates observed on February 8, 2010, that "Russian democracy has disappeared and the government was an oligarchy run by the security services."
Gates told his French counterpart that "President Medvedev has a more pragmatic vision for Russia than PM Putin."
Putin is the dominant member of what Russian officials call a ruling tandem with Medvedev, who Putin tapped as his successor when a constitutional limit of two consecutive terms kept him out of the 2008 presidential race.
But the publication of such frank statements by US diplomats about Russian leaders ahead of the 2012 presidential election are embarrassing for President Barack Obama, who has worked closely with Medvedev to improve ties.
The documents give a glimpse of an arcane world where US diplomats pore over news reports and garner titbits of information on everything from businessmen breaking United Nations sanctions on Iran to Kremlin politics.
The 58-year-old prime minister is presented by US diplomats as Russia's most powerful politician, holding the keys to everything from energy deals to Moscow's Iran policy.
By contrast, President Dmitry Medvedev "plays Robin to Putin's Batman," is pale and hesitant and has to get his decisions approved by Putin.
But correspondence from the elite of the US diplomatic corps also casts Putin as a leader plagued by an bureaucracy and grappling with ruling a "virtual mafia state" dominated by corrupt businessmen and the security forces.
A cable from the US Embassy in Paris said US Defense Secretary Robert Gates observed on February 8, 2010, that "Russian democracy has disappeared and the government was an oligarchy run by the security services."
Gates told his French counterpart that "President Medvedev has a more pragmatic vision for Russia than PM Putin."
Putin is the dominant member of what Russian officials call a ruling tandem with Medvedev, who Putin tapped as his successor when a constitutional limit of two consecutive terms kept him out of the 2008 presidential race.
But the publication of such frank statements by US diplomats about Russian leaders ahead of the 2012 presidential election are embarrassing for President Barack Obama, who has worked closely with Medvedev to improve ties.
The documents give a glimpse of an arcane world where US diplomats pore over news reports and garner titbits of information on everything from businessmen breaking United Nations sanctions on Iran to Kremlin politics.
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