Putin calls for elimination of elections for key posts
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Portraying it as a means of combating terrorism, Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday outlined a plan to eliminate popular elections of governors and individual
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MOSCOW -- President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, who is due to step down next year at the end of his second term, pledged yesterday that his successor will be chosen in a free and democratic election.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that it would be "absolutely unacceptable" for him to stay in power after his second consecutive four-year term ends in May.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin called on Thursday for a powerful parliament and unchanged policies after he leaves the Kremlin, hinting he may go on to use a power base in parliament to dominate the country.
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Russia's top election authority on   Wednesday threw out a call for a people's poll that would clear   the way for President Vladimir Putin to stay on in power,   making it more likely he will step down as he plans in 2008.
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Russia&#39;s parliament backed on Friday President Vladimir Putin&#39;s plan to scrap elections for governors under sweeping political reforms aimed at strengthening his grip on power.
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MOSCOW  - President Vladimir Putin sought to convince the nation Thursday that his electoral reform was not a retreat from democracy but was needed to save Russia from international terrorists and to limit the political influence of business barons. Putin said in a nationwide television interview his plan to end direct elections of regional governors and parliament deputies will help strengthen the government, which he said was being eroded by ethnic divisions and turf battles between local clans.
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Russia&#39;s Parliament has overwhelmingly approved President Vladimir Putin&#39;s plan to reinforce control over Russia by replacing popular elections of regional leaders with a central selection process.
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The Russian Parliament has passed a bill proposing a radical overhaul in the way Russia is run. The measure abolishes the direct election of regional governors, who will now be appointed by the Kremlin.
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MOSCOW - President Vladimir Putin on Monday demanded an overhaul of Russia's political system, including an end to the direct popular election of governors, saying the changes were needed to combat terrorism.    Critics charged the Russian leader was using the bloody outcome of the Beslan school siege to grab more power...
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RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin is considering extending his term of office, due to expire in 2008, in a sign of his determination to tighten his grip on power and crack down on terrorism after the Beslan school massacre.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin has  signed into law a bill dropping a minimal turnout threshold in  polls, which critics say will make them less fair, despite a  plea by his human rights adviser not to do so.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin said the country needs a single ``vertical&#39;&#39; system of power to fight terrorism such as the attack on a school last week that killed 339 people.
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President Vladimir Putin ordered  sweeping changes Monday to Russia's political system to help  combat terrorism, but immediately drew charges he was  exploiting a bloody school siege to boost his personal power.
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President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday warned of a threat of extremism and ethnic and religious intolerance in the months before parliamentary elections and he ordered law enforcement agencies to do more to protect Russia's secrets.
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President Vladimir Putin outlined plans Monday to &quot;radically&quot; change the Russian political system in a way that would increase his own power, portraying the moves as
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On Monday President Vladimir V. Putin announced he would strip Russia&#39;s 89 regions of much of their authority and electoral legitimacy.