Bush, Putin Spar Over Democracy
BRATISLAVA, Slovakia — Responding to a challenge from President Bush, Russian President Vladimir V. Putin said Thursday that his nation was irrevocably committed to democracy, but complained that his critics lacked a "full understanding of what is taking place" there.
Bush stood side by side with Putin at an often-tense news conference after their summit in this East European capital and said he had expressed his "concerns" to the Russian leader "in a constructive and friendly way." But he continued to press Putin in public. "Democracies have certain things in common. They have a rule of law and protection of minorities, a free press and a viable political opposition," Bush said.
Putin offered general assurances on democracy but made no specific pledges to alter his style of governance, which has been criticized by U.S. officials, lawmakers and others as increasingly authoritarian. Since becoming president in 2000, Putin has imposed more controls on the media, parliament and the legal system and ended direct election of regional governors.
"Russia has made its choice in favor of democracy. This is our final choice, and we have no way back," Putin said. But he cautioned that the adoption of democracy should not cause the "collapse of the state and the impoverishment of the people," adding, "Democracy is not anarchy."
Discussion of the state of Russia's democracy dominated the leaders' public remarks, overshadowing their agreements on upgrading security at Russia's nuclear plants, establishing a program to keep nuclear fuel from being diverted for use in atomic weapons, and enhancing controls to prevent extremists from acquiring shoulder-fired antiaircraft missiles.
The two presidents also agreed that North Korea and Iran should not be permitted to possess nuclear weapons. They made no mention of U.S. displeasure with Russia for helping Iran construct nuclear power facilities.
The Bush-Putin summit occurred at the end of a four-day European trip for the U.S. leader that was billed as a chance for Washington to mend fences with Europe over the Iraq war. Bush kicked off the trip in Brussels with a call for "a new era of transatlantic unity" but bluntly warned Russia that it must "renew a commitment to democracy and the rule of law" if it is to join the European and transatlantic alliances.
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