2012-09-18

Putin pushes American front groups out

The United States seeks to mold Russian society in an American image, but Putin has other ideas.
US aid agency told to shut Moscow office
Mr Putin’s Kremlin has repeatedly claimed that the US state department helped sponsor the protests that broke out last December over allegations of vote-rigging in parliamentary elections. Protesters have continued to target the president and his government.

Mr Putin has since forwarded a new law that could threaten the activities of non-governmental organisations receiving funding from foreign governments or organisations, forcing them to register as “foreign agents”. The Kremlin is deeply suspicious of democracy groups such as Golos, the election monitoring organisation that helped to publicise fraud in the December parliamentary poll.

Among the groups to be affected by the withdrawal of USAID from Russia are Golos, which has been majority funded by the American body, the human rights group Memorial and the National Democratic Institute, a senior US government official said.
Putin is tightening control of Russian society, but is it blind authoritarianism or not? The article goes on:
“Over the coming weeks and months the Obama administration will be looking for ways to advance our old foreign policy objectives using new means,” the official said.
The Kremlin is deeply suspicious of American organizations that are carrying out U.S. foreign policy objectives. No kidding!

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