Putin On The Move

I can't remember which talk radio shows I listened to back in 2000. Time has become a blur. But I remember when Vladimir Putin showed up on the scene after Boris Yeltsin's resignation as the Russian Federation President.

People familiar with the Soviet Union, who knew or knew of Putin, were giving their analysis of the Putin presidency-to-come. What they predicted was that Putin would figure out a way to become President For Life, in spite of the Russian constitutional limit of two terms.

It looks as though that prediction is on its way to being fulfilled. The London Telegraph is reporting that Putin supporters in the Kremlin are working toward changing the Russian constitution to remove the two-term limit.

I realize President Bush has looked Putin in the eye and found him to be a good man. But I believe that at times President Bush has more faith in the goodness of his fellow man than he should. He seems to give the benefit of the doubt unless presented with opposing evidence. He wouldn't speak to Yasser Arafat, which was the right thing. But Putin has made a point of playing his career close to the vest, so any visible evidence against him wouldn't show before President Bush. I'm surprised Condoleeza Rice didn't provide stronger red flags about Putin to the President.

A couple key paragraphs from the Telegraph article:

Although the Kremlin still insists Mr Putin has no ambitions to serve beyond the end of his second term in 2008, independent analysts say his allies have long been plotting to keep their man in power.

The main factor deterring Mr Putin from changing the constitution is the fear of the likely cool response from the West. The strategy could easily be compared with that of Alexander Lukashenko, the president of Belarus, described by President George W Bush as "the last dictatorship in Europe".

Keep your eyes open. Especially in light of the recent war games between Russia and China, Putin and the Russian Federation still merit wary watchfulness, if not outright mistrust.