[Mb-civic] CBC News - PUTIN CALLS USSR'S BREAKUP 'CATASTROPHE'

Mon Apr 25 05:45:56 PDT 2005

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PUTIN CALLS USSR'S BREAKUP 'CATASTROPHE'
WebPosted Mon Apr 25 06:42:17 2005

MOSCOW---The collapse of the Soviet Union was "the greatest political
catastrophe of the last century," Russian president Vladimir Putin said
Monday as he delivered his annual state of the nation address.

The former KGB agent said the 1991 breakup of the Union of Soviet
Socialist Republics was a "true drama" that left tens of millions of
Russian people living outside Russia, in breakaway republics formerly
under Soviet control.

"The epidemic of destruction extended even to Russia itself," he told the
country's two houses of parliament, saying personal savings were wiped
out and "old ideals" were destroyed.

Putin has come in for international criticism recently over what some
see as a rollback in press and judicial freedom, as well as
democratic rights.

His nostalgia for a time of superpower glory in which secret police spied
on their fellow citizens and thousands were imprisoned for seeking
reforms has also raised eyebrows.

 FROM FEB. 24, 2005: 'No way back' for Russian democracy: Putin

But in Monday's speech, Putin said Russia's main goal now is to develop a
free and democratic society, though he clarified that it would be a
democracy based on Russian traditions instead of Western ideals.

"We must become a free society of free people," he said.

Putin said he aims to do that by strengthening the state, boosting the
rule of law and continuing to implement economic reforms.

The president also said he wants to make Russia more attractive to
foreign investors.

Putin said he will crack down on bureaucratic corruption and end the
practice of pursuing businesses to pay past tax bills. He said he has
also asked Russia's tax inspectors to stop looking into dubious
privatizations of state businesses that happened more than three
years ago.

His speech came at a time of falling approval ratings for Putin and his
government, in part due to painful social reforms that sparked street
protests earlier this year.

As well, the state's long legal battle against one of Russia's largest
oil companies, Yukos, has shaken investor confidence in the country and
faith in the independence of the country's judicial system.