Moscow
Secretary of State Colin Powell wrote a scathing front-page commentary in the Russian newspaper Izvestia this week, criticizing Russia for failing to live up to democratic norms. “Political power is not yet tethered to law” in Russia, he wrote. He cited the closing down of independent newspapers and TV stations, the harassment of opposition political parties and prominent businessmen, and the lack of basic civil liberties. Powell’s criticism signaled that the Bush administration was having second thoughts about its enthusiastic support for President Vladimir Putin, who has been aggressively consolidating his power. The fledgling alliance between the U.S. and Russia, Powell warned, “would not achieve its potential” unless the two nations shared “basic principles.”
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