WASHINGTON—Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has been the source of much speculation in the West as to his true nature and motivation. He was elected president twice in 2000–2008, and again to a six-year term in 2012. So he is not a czar, though widespread fraud was well documented in the third election.
Freedom House, which tracks freedom and democracy of the world’s countries, changed its rating of Russia from “partly free” in 2004 to “not free” in 2005.
The main reasons were the virtual elimination of viable opposition parties, government corruption, attacks on civil society, increasing state control of national …read more
Source: The Epoch Times
