Merkel, Putin Clash Over Human Rights at Kremlin Meeting
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin clashed in Moscow over human rights and democracy as they struggled to show a united front amid rising criticism from Germany.
Merkel, speaking alongside Putin today in the Kremlin, said she was “irritated” by Russian laws clamping down on political organizations and condemned the sentencing of members of the punk band Pussy Riot. Putin replied with accusations of gender inequality in Germany and discord in the European Union.