Putin Lacks Trust to Meet Russia Opposition Leaders, Kudrin Says
Vladimir Putin hasn’t met with opposition leaders over the biggest protests at his 12-year rule because he doesn’t trust them, said Alexei Kudrin, a former finance minister and long-time ally of the Russian premier.
Tens of thousands of people took to the streets in Moscow and other Russian cities over alleged fraud in December’s parliamentary polls, which brought victory for Putin’s ruling United Russia party.
The prime minister has “a lot of mistrust toward the group that’s trying to position itself as representing the interests of the protesters,” Kudrin, who is mediating between the government and the opposition, said in a recorded interview with Kommersant-TV to be aired Jan. 22.
Putin, 59, is seeking to return as president in March after four years as prime minister, taking over from his successor in the Kremlin, Dmitry Medvedev. Opposition groups are planning to rally in Moscow on Feb. 4, with more than 20,400 people signing up to attend the event via the organizers’ Facebook Inc. page.
Kudrin, who left the government in September after clashing with President Dmitry Medvedev over plans to increase military spending, has called for a new parliamentary vote within 18 months and the dismissal of the country’s election chief.
Putin doesn’t understand who the protesters are or who should represent them, according to Kudrin, who said he met with the premier after rallies in December and this month.
Putin said Jan. 18 he is ready to open a dialogue with political opponents. No meetings are scheduled as yet and no opposition figure has requested time with the prime minister, his spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said yesterday.
To contact the reporter on this story: Stepan Kravchenko in Moscow at skravchenko@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Balazs Penz at bpenz@bloomberg.net
Rate this Page