Is Vladimir Putin a strong leader?
| 10:14 UK time, Wednesday, 29 December 2010
Few global observers look to Dmitry Medvedev when discussing who's in charge in Russia. Indeed, Wikileaks recently revealed that US diplomats consider Putin the "alpha male", while Medvedev is "hesitant".
And in the wake of a second conviction of Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the Russian business leader and jailed opponent of Putin, people are asking whether Putin isn't just a little too powerful.
puts it:
Mikhail Khodorkovsky is a man who irritates Putin. He had the nerve to support politicians who opposed the election of then president Putin Naturally, anyone who tells the emperor there are no clothes on his body is subject to either being killed or sent to jail.
And in the Russian daily newspaper , the president of the Institute of Modern Politics, Vladimir Lysenko, said the verdict was a "victory" for Putin.
Khodorkovsky's wealth couldn't keep him out of jail. But is a victim of Putin's power - or simply guilty?
Khodorkovsky was once Russia's richest man, but critics suggest that even that wealth couldn't keep him out of jail because he used it to finance the opposition when Putin was president.
Some Russian newspapers have indicated as much. You can almost hear the resigned sigh in the words of Alexander Minkin, in the Moscow daily Moskovsky Komsomolets:
Those who hoped that judge Viktor Danilkin would suddenly find sufficient civic courage to pass a fair verdict can now give up that hope for good. He found a different kind of courage. Because it is of course not easy to come out to people and deliver a guilty verdict after the outrage that has been taking place in court for the past two years.
However, Putin's view - expressed in a televised question-and-answer session last week - is simply that he believes "a thief belongs in prison".
And the Russian foreign ministry has robustly responded to the criticism from other countries:
"Attempts to exert pressure on the court are unacceptable. We expect everyone to mind his own business, both at home and in the international arena."
The Foreign Policy blog describes Putin as the Last Action Hero
suggests that Putin is loved in Russia precisely because he has taken on the oligarchs:
"Oh please. We all know Putin is loved in Russia, and Khordokovky and other oligarchs made their money dubiously."
And there certainly is an argument that, in a country where a tiny clique of men became insanely wealthy incredibly quickly (owing to the privatisation of formerly state-owned companies dealing in natural resources like gas and oil), a strong leader is needed to deal with them.
In that context, perhaps Putin is not too powerful? Maybe he has just the power Russia and its people need.
What do you think? Is Putin too powerful? Does the Khodorkovsky suggest he is manipulating the justice system? Or is it important Russia has a powerful leader?
