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July 25, 2008 10:44:09 PM CDT

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Honeymoon Can't Last for Russia's Power Couple

Posted May 17, 08 3:01 PM CDT in World 

(Newser) – It may look like Vladimir Putin has kept Russia stable by sliding into the PM's chair; optimists even predict he'll share power politely with President Medvedev. But these lovebirds are actually destined to fight, writes Ivan Krastev in the Wall Street Journal: Eventually Medvedev will want to exercise power, and not as Putin’s “mini-me.”

Putin's move has ensured continuity, not stability. He’s built a divided Kremlin and driven unsustainable economic growth. He also needs the West for development while he portrays it as a hostile boogeyman. Meanwhile Russians have grown steadily anti-Western, and “the change of personalities in the Kremlin is unlikely to change this consensus.”

Source Wall Street Journal

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Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, right, and Vladimir Putin, left, attend the annual Victory Day parade at Moscow's Red Square, on Friday, May 9, 2008.   (AP Photo)
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, right, and Vladimir Putin, left, speak while attending the annual Victory Day parade at Moscow's Red Square, on Friday, May 9, 2008.   (AP Photo)
Former President Vladimir Putin, left, and President Dmitry Medvedev sit after answering lawmakers' questions in the State Duma, parliament lower house, in Moscow, Thursday, May 8, 2008.   (AP Photo/Sergei Karpukhin, Pool)
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Russia  • Vladimir Putin  • Dmitry Medvedev  • Kremlin  • power sharing


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