Read and comment on this editorial from The Sacramento Bee on recent events in Russia that suggest a reversion to Russia's historic suspicion of foreigners. Americans and other foreigners living and working in Russia have been denied visa renewals, and Moscow has asked Washington to end Peace Corps operations in Russia because, officials say, it's no longer needed. Perhaps; yet the head of FSB, the Russian intelligence agency, also complained that Peace Corps volunteers have been "collecting information about the sociopolitical and economic situation in Russian regions." That sounds like a complaint straight out of the Cold War. Old habits of mind, it seems, die hard. Read the editorial at:
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Editorial: Putin's cover-up
Referendum in Chechnya is a sham
Bee Editorial Staff
Published 2:15 a.m. PST Friday, January 17, 2003
Vladimir Putin won the Russian presidency by promising voters he would crack down hard on the rebels in separatist Chechnya. He has done that with a vengeance (literally and figuratively), but has failed to defeat the rebels or bring peace to the ravaged republic. Rather than sensibly seeking a negotiated settlement, however, Putin is now resorting to the kind of crude tactics reminiscent of the Soviet regime he once served as a KGB officer.
The world must not be silent in the face of the daily brutality in Chechnya. Putin's repeated attempts to persuade the world, and Russians, that peace is at hand in Chechnya are belied by Russian actions, including steps to prevent outside scrutiny of what's really happening. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which has provided humanitarian aid and -- to the Kremlin's dismay -- frank criticism of Russian brutality against Chechen civilians, has been told to close its small mission there.
Prudential Other moves suggest a reversion to Russia's historic suspicion of foreigners. Americans and other foreigners living and working in Russia have been denied visa renewals, and Moscow has asked Washington to end Peace Corps operations in Russia because, officials say, it's no longer needed. Perhaps; yet the head of FSB, the Russian intelligence agency, also complained that Peace Corps volunteers have been "collecting information about the sociopolitical and economic situation in Russian regions."
That sounds like a complaint straight out of the Cold War. Old habits of mind, it seems, die hard.
Another of Putin's stratagems is to stage a referendum in which Chechen voters will be asked to approve a constitution that purports to give Chechnya a large degree of autonomy, including its own president and parliament. But those who will be allowed to compete for office have been handpicked by the Kremlin and are unlikely to raise objections to Russian forces' repressive behavior in Chechnya.
Putin defends harsh military tactics as necessary because, he says, the Chechen separatist movement has been hijacked by foreign Muslim extremists linked to the al-Qaida terrorist network. No doubt such elements are present in Chechnya; but the Chechen people have resented and resisted Russian domination for well over a century, since long before militant Islam came to be seen as a threat.
The Bush administration, which needs Russian cooperation in the war against terrorism, the confrontation with Iraq and other critical foreign policy matters, has accordingly muted its criticism of Moscow. But if the White House dare not risk offending Putin by denouncing his shabby tactics, others must -- not only human rights groups and editorial pages, but also independent voices in Congress and elsewhere. There are terrorists in Chechnya. The world needs to be reminded that some of them wear Russian army uniforms. Background on the Peace Corps in Russia
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