MOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday angrily rejected what he described as attempts to enforce foreign patterns of democracy on Russia and vowed to preserve the nation's identity against interference from abroad. Putin’s speech was his first state-of-the nation address since winning a third term in March's election despite a wave of massive protests in Moscow. Putin has pursued a tough course on dissent since his inauguration with arrests and searches of opposition activists and introduction of laws that impose heavy fines on protesters and rigid rules on civil society groups. Speaking to lawmakers, officials and clerics who gathered in the Kremlin's ornate St. George's Hall, Putin said Russia wouldfollow its own view on democracy and shrug off any “standards enforced on us from outside.” “Direct or indirect foreign interference in our internal political processes is inadmissible,” he said. “Those who receive money from abroad for their political activities and serve alien interests shouldn’t engage in politics in Russia.” One of the laws passed by the Kremlin-controlled parliament requires non-governmental organisations that receive foreign funding and engage in vaguely defined political activities to register as “foreign agents,” a move the groups said was aimed to intimidate them and destroy their credibility with Russians for whom “agent” is synonymous with “spy”.
Putin also pledged to support “institutions that represent traditional spiritual values, a hint at even more state support for the Russian Orthodox Church. In August, three members of the punk band Pussy Riot were sentenced to two years in prison for performing a protest song in Moscow's main cathedral. One was released on appeal, but two others are serving their sentences despite an international protests.
Russia’s task on the global stage will be to preserve its “national and spiritual identity,” Putin said, adding that the strengthening of the nation's military might should “guarantee its independence and security.”
He added that Russia would continue to push for “coordinated collective efforts” in dealing with global issues. The Kremlin has said that its continuous refusal to support international sanctions against Syria's President Bashar Assad is rooted in international law that bars interference in a sovereign country's affairs.
The conflict in Syria has started nearly 21 months ago as an uprising against Assad, whose family has ruled the country for four decades and it quickly morphed into a civil war, with rebels taking up arms to fight back against a bloody crackdown by the government.
According to activists, more than 40,000 people have been killed since March 2011. Putin sought to boost patriotic feelings by promising to honour heroes of World War I and restoring the historic names of old imperial regiments of the Russian army.—AP