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| Pooty-Poot: We are not adversaries |
| 2005-09-19 |
| Russian President Vladimir Putin said Sunday that it was impossible for Russia to resume its Cold War rivalry with the United States. "We are not adversaries. We are partners in many areas of international activities," he said in an interview broadcast by the U.S. broadcaster Fox News. But Putin reiterated his opposition to a U.S.-European push to refer Iran to the U.N. Security Council for consideration of sanctions over its nuclear program. He also said the United States should pull its troops out of Iraq within two years. But we are not adversaries. And Putin is an honorable man. On the sensitive subject of Iran, where Russia is building an atomic power plant despite U.S. concerns that Iran may be trying to build nuclear weapons, Putin rejected calls to have the International Atomic Energy Agency seek sanctions against the Tehran regime. "Today, the Iranian side is working sufficiently in cooperation with the IAEA and (IAEA chief Mohamed) ElBaradei has told us so. So, let's proceed from today's realities," Putin said. Well, if El Baradi says it's OK, it's OK. But we are not adversaries. And Putin is an honorable man. Putin, whose government fiercely opposed the war to oust Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, said the U.S.-led coalition's military presence in Iraq is fueling the insurgency and urged that a deadline be fixed for the withdrawal of foreign troops. "In our opinion, the fact of their presence there pushes the armed opposition to perpetrate acts of violence," Putin said. But we are not adversaries. And Putin is an honorable man. The Russian president acknowledged that fledgling Iraqi security forces need time before they can take over from U.S.-led forces but said a timetable for a pullout is essential to "make everybody move in the right direction." "I believe it should be within just over a year, or within two years, something like that. It will all depend on the situation in that country," he said. Putin also used the Fox interview to warn against trying to lecture Russia on democracy. "I am convinced that democracy cannot be exported from one country to another But we are not adversaries. And Putin is an honorable man. Putin is often criticized in the West for rolling back democratic freedoms by imposing state control of national broadcasters and scrapping elections for regional governors. He repeated his pledge not to change the Russian constitution to allow him to run for a third consecutive term in the 2008 election. And Putin is an honorable man. |
| Posted by:Jackal |
| #2 After "The Tempest", "Julius Caesar" is my favorite. |
| Posted by: DMFD 2005-09-19 21:27 |
| #1 What are these assholes in russia, iran, europe, britain, and the rest of the world going to have to bitch about after we do pull out of Iraq? What will it be then? Israel? Kyoto? Guatanamo? I guess what I am saying is they are always going to bitch and cry like a bunch of little sissy girls (no offense to the sissy girls out there). The only way I can see to deal with the rest of the world is Pax Americana. |
| Posted by: bigjim-ky 2005-09-19 12:56 |