Putin forever?
One of the disadvantages of practicing Kremlinology is that it's really difficult to evaluate the clues you get.So, here's the latest speculation.
Putin Says He Will Run for Parliament
"President Vladimir V. Putin, who is barred from seeking another term, suggested Monday that he might become prime minister next year, seeming to confirm what many analysts had assumed: that he plans to hold on to the power he has accrued over eight years.
"Mr. Putin, who spoke at the congress of the United Russia party, the country’s dominant political force, said he would lead that party’s candidate list in the December parliamentary elections.
"The announcement was at once consistent and surprising...
"'Heading the government is quite a realistic proposal,' he said, before adding a qualifier he often uses when publicly discussing his plans for 2008. 'But it is too early to think about that.'...
"Gleb O. Pavlovsky, a political scientist who leads a research institute closely connected with the Kremlin, said that Mr. Putin would give his name to the party as an electoral locomotive, but would not actually seek a seat in the Parliament after the results were tallied in December.
"Instead, Mr. Pavlovsky said, Mr. Putin had identified the party and the parliamentary campaign as another possible base of power after he leaves office. 'The party may become his main tool after the end of his presidency,' he said by telephone. 'The new president won’t be able to appoint a prime minister without the support of the party leader.'..."
Labels: elections, parties, politics, Russia
posted by Ken Wedding @ 7:52 AM
1 Comments:
When your students read this, will they understand what Putin meant when he said "he would lead that party’s candidate list..."?
Why would his leadership be important?
Could your students explain how, even if he did that, he might not serve in the Duma? In other words, what did Pavlovsky mean when he said that Putin "would not actually seek a seat in the Parliament after the results were tallied in December"?
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