Putin Slams 'Arrogant World Powers'
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin lashed out Monday at "arrogant world powers" as he hosted his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabao for a regional security summit Moscow bills as a counterpart to NATO.
Russia's likely new head of state after next year's presidential elections accused Western nations of hypocrisy for backing revolutions in North African countries that previously enjoyed their strong support.
"It really is just like you said -- these are arrogant world powers," Putin said in response to remarks from Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi made during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Saint Petersburg.
"They also supported the old North African regimes," news agencies quoted Putin as saying in a clear reference to European powers and the United States.
"But what is interesting, they also supported the North African revolutions as well, the ones that overthrew the old regimes."
Russia strongly opposed NATO's air campaign in Libya and has warned the West against acting tough towards its close Soviet-era ally Syria.
The 10-year-old SCO joins Russia and China with the four ex-Soviet states of Central Asia in a loose security union that Moscow hopes to develop into a more powerful force rivaling the Brussels-based NATO bloc.
Iran is one of three nations along with Pakistan and India to have applied to join the organization. Mongolia also has observer status. Monday's summit brought together mainly prime ministers from the SCO's member and observer states.
But the group made no formal decision on expansion at Monday's meeting and was short on other concrete results.
"Russia would welcome the positive review of applications to join our organization in one form or another from any interested nation," Putin was quoted as saying.
Pakistan's application has been under review since 2006 and some analysts question the nation's actual ability to closely coordinate their policies on major international security issues such as Afghanistan.
07 November 2011, 20:06
12
Putin will be devoured by the same Monsters he is now defending and allying with.
07 November 2011, 22:20
32
So waging a number of illegal wars and killing HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of innocent people means that the world powers are arrogant? No, THEY ARE CRIMINALS. And where is the US from all of that? Up the US Hole, if you know what I mean.
08 November 2011, 02:40
00
Its not that Putin condemns arrogance in the exercise of power by the World Powers, rather he is jealous that Russia is not THE world power exercising power arrogantly.
He is trying to open his own shop to counter NATO and look at his customers: Assad's Syria, Khamenie's Iran and the Communist regime of China which is on the same track of extinction as every other autocratic regime.
His condemnation of "world powers" for deposing autocratic dictators in North Africa rings hollow in light of the Russian veto used to stop the murderous regime of its old client the Assads of Syria. It is the height of hypocracy and arrogance.
08 November 2011, 07:48
23
We all say the US was backing dictators, and when the US admits change and accepts to deal with it as is we are suddenly amazed!
it is obvious the Russians are clinging to the past and are unable to cope with this change thus they are keen on trying to keep the Assad regime alive... maybe to see what they can gain if they let him fall????
so wht does that make them? they are only keeping a murderous regime alive killing its own people: are they any better than the US????
