The president of Russia Dmitry Medvedev (on the right) and chairman of the Government of Russia Vladimir Putin (at the left).
Photo: Dmitry Azarov
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U.S. Waiting for Russian Leaders to Sort Out Powers
The administration of George W. Bush wants to see how the powers specified in the Russian Constitution are divided in practice by new Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Fried said on Thursday. “Time will tell,” Fried said in reference to the new Russian government at a session of the U.S. Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe entitled “U.S.-Russia Relations: Looking Ahead to the Medvedev Administration.”
Fried noted the high level of popularity Putin attained during his years as president and that Putin and Medvedev have been close colleagues for a long time and may work together smoothly. Nonetheless, there has never been a duumvirate in Russian history, or else they have produced bad results. Fried said the U.S. would work with the new president and the government under Prime Minister Putin both in areas where the two countries disagree and where cooperation is possible.
Fried added that Russian history will have an impact on the outcome of the current emerging balance of power.
www.kommersant.com
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