DTN News - RUSSIA NEWS: Putin Assassination Plot News Greeted With Skepticism In Russia
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources The Star
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - February 28, 2012: Security forces have foiled a Chechen-linked plot to assassinate Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, state television said Monday in a report likely to boost support for the Russian leader in a presidential election less than a week away.Other candidates questioned the timing of the report, which comes as Putin and his party face unprecedented protests following a scandal-marred parliamentary election. The Communist Party candidate called the report a “cheap trick.”
The report, which included televised confessions, said the suspects were arrested in Ukraine and linked to a Chechen rebel leader who has claimed responsibility for terror attacks in Russia.
Putin has portrayed himself as a strong protector of Russia's national interests and has counted the victory over Chechen separatist rebels as one of the key achievements of his 12-year rule. The report casting him as a terrorist target could draw public sympathy and help secure his victory by a wider margin.
Putin, who was Russia's president from 2000 to 2008 and has been prime minister since then, is running for a third, now six-year presidential term. He is expected to win easily against four Kremlin-approved challengers, but the wave of protests since December's parliamentary election has undermined his image as a strong, popular leader.
Channel One said the suspects, acting on instructions from Chechen warlord Doku Umarov, were preparing to kill Putin in Moscow immediately after Sunday's election. It said the suspects were arrested in Ukraine's Black Sea port city of Odesa after an accidental explosion Jan. 4 while they were trying to manufacture explosives at a rented apartment.
The Ukrainian Security Service said earlier this month it had detained a man sought by Russian authorities on charges of terrorism and two of his accomplices in Odesa on Feb. 4, but said nothing at the time about them being linked to an anti-Putin plot.
Its spokeswoman, Marina Ostapenko, said Monday the announcement in Moscow came only now because the Russian special service was conducting its own investigation. She confirmed the main suspect was involved in a plot to kill Putin, but didn't elaborate.
There was no immediate explanation for the different number of suspects cited by Russia and Ukraine.
Channel One said the source for its information was Russia's Federal Security Service, the main KGB successor agency dealing with domestic security. The agency refused to comment.
Umarov, whose whereabouts are unknown, has not responded to the allegations.
A Chechen rebel website, KavkazCenter, shrugged off the report about the assassination plot as “election propaganda nonsense.” The website noted that the explosion in Odesa was initially reported to have been caused by a gas leak and then that the men were preparing the explosives for a contract hit on a local businessman.
Three veteran party leaders on the presidential ballot differed on whether the report could be believed, but all said they suspected the news was intentionally delayed until shortly before the election to provide maximum benefit to Putin.
Sergei Mironov, leader of the socialist Just Russia party, said the assassination plot was plausible. The others disagreed.
Gennady Zyuganov, the Communist leader running second in the polls, called the report “a cheap trick that reeks,” the state RIA Novosti news agency quoted him as saying.
The nationalist party leader, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, said the assassination plot was invented by political spin doctors and designed to appeal to “poorly educated old ladies” and housewives, the news agency reported.
The majority of Russians get their news from state-controlled television, whose blanket coverage of Putin casts him as the defender of a stable and prosperous Russia.
Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the statements linking the reported plot to the campaign were “blasphemous.”
Channel One said two of the alleged members of the group arrived in Ukraine from the United Arab Emirates via Turkey with instructions from Umarov, the top military leader for the Chechen rebels. One of them, a Chechen, was killed during the accidental explosion in Odesa and the other one, Kazakhstan citizen Ilya Pyanzin, was wounded in the blast and arrested.
Pyanzin led the investigators to their contact in Odesa, Adam Osmayev, a Chechen who previously had lived in London and had been sought by Russia since 2007, the report said. The TV station showed footage of Osmayev's arrest in Odesa with black-clad special troops bursting in and a half-naked, bloodied Osmayev on his knees, his head bowed down.
Speaking to Channel One from custody in Ukraine, Osmayev described the group's mission: “Our goal was to go to Moscow and try to kill Prime Minister Putin ... Our deadline was after the Russian presidential election.”
Both of Osmayev's hands were bandaged, and his face was covered in green dots from an antiseptic used to treat his cuts.
He said he wouldn't have become a suicide bomber, but the other Chechen who was killed in the accidental explosion might have agreed. Osmayev added they considered using powerful military mines that would have made a suicide mission unnecessary.
Umarov, the Chechen rebel leader, has claimed responsibility for a number of attacks against Russia, including a January 2011 suicide bombing at Moscow's Domodedovo airport that killed 37 people and injured more than 180. He also had warned that many more such attacks would follow if Russia did not allow the Caucasus to become an independent Islamic state governed by Sharia law.
Umarov also claimed responsibility for the double-suicide bombing of Moscow's subway in March 2010 that killed 40 people.
He is seen more as an ideological than a military figure, as many militant cells operate autonomously and shun centralized command.
In response to Russia's opposition protests, Umarov issued a statement this month ordering his men to avoid hitting civilian targets, saying that civilians should be spared because they have risen up against Putin.
Channel One said Osmayev had led the investigators to a cache of explosives near a Moscow avenue that Putin uses to travel between his office and a suburban residence. A Russian security officer told the television station that the suspects also had videos of Putin's convoy taken from different angles to prepare for the attack.
Pyanzin, who also confessed on film, was shown saying the group were to sabotage economic facilities and then try to kill Putin.
Related News;
RT - 20 minutes ago
Three out of the five contenders in the Russian presidential race – Vladimir Zhirinovsky, Gennady Zyuganov and Sergey Mironov – have met for a new type of debate to be grilled by journalists, instead of fighting with each other.
BBC News - 22 minutes ago
By James Coomarasamy BBC World Service It is not just in Russia that Russians have been stirring to the possibilities of politics in their home country. In London, some members of the expatriate community have a new-found urge to express publicly their ...
Vancouver Sun - 24 minutes ago
An attempt on the life of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has been averted six days before a presidential election that is expected to return the former president to power for another six years, Russian media reported Monday.
ABC News - 37 minutes ago
If Vladimir Putin reclaims the Russian presidency in this weekend's election, he'll owe a word of gratitude to this bleak industrial outpost known for making military tanks. In December, amid a stunning wave of protests against Putin over fraud-stained ...
Chicago Tribune - 37 minutes ago
NIZHNY TAGIL, Russia (AP) — If Vladimir Putin reclaims the Russian presidency in this weekend's election, he'll owe a word of gratitude to this bleak industrial outpost known for making military tanks. In December, amid a stunning wave of protests ...
Edmonton Journal - 41 minutes ago
Muscovites are cynical by nature. Many mocked or had serious doubts about the suspicious timing of Monday's announcement that assassins intending to murder Vladimir Putin had been captured as long ago as Jan. 4. But the current Russian prime minister ...
Sofia Echo - 1 hour ago
Under Russian president Dmitry Medvedev, Russia has found common ground with Washington - on shipping war supplies to Afghanistan, halting the sale of anti-aircraft missiles to Iran and joining the World Trade Organization. With prime minister Vladimir ...
San Francisco Chronicle - 1 hour ago
Alexei Druzhinin / AP Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin was to be killed by antitank mines, an alleged conspirator says. Security services of Russia and neighboring Ukraine foiled a plan to assassinate Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin ...
San Francisco Chronicle - 1 hour ago
AP Alexei Druzhinin / AP Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin speaks during the meeting of military-technical cooperation in the Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow, Monday, Feb. 27, 2012. Putin warned against military intervention in Syria or an ...
Philadelphia Inquirer - 1 hour ago
By Vladimir Isachenkov AP MOSCOW - Security forces have foiled a Chechen-linked plot to assassinate Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, state television reported Monday in a broadcast likely to boost support for Putin's bid to regain the presidency.
The Moscow Times - 1 hour ago
By Nikolaus von Twickel Prime Minister Vladimir Putin offered a blueprint of his foreign policy priorities in a 6060-word article published Monday, but analysts said it contained little new thinking. Putin, who is expected to win the presidential ...
Ottawa Citizen - 1 hour ago
By Gleb Bryanski, Reuters February 28, 2012 2:08 AM Security services in Russia and Ukraine said on Monday they had foiled a plot to kill Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, but his opponents ridiculed the announcement as a campaign stunt six days before he ...
The Moscow Times - 1 hour ago
By Alexander Bratersky A handout photo distributed Monday shows the apartment where two people were detained and one killed after an explosion in Odessa on Jan. 4. Ukrainian and Russian security officials announced Monday that they had uncovered a plot ...
AFP - 2 hours ago
MOSCOW — The timing of the revelation of a plot to assassinate Vladimir Putin appears to have been specially chosen to help the Russian leader's presidential election campaign, according to opposition commentators. Russia's state-controlled Channel One ...
Aljazeera.com (blog) - 3 hours ago
By Jonah Hull in You'd need many weeks of travel to get the true feel of a country the size of Russia. Even then, you wouldn't be anywhere close to understanding it. It is harder still to pierce the veil of people's real political allegiances and ...
Belfast Telegraph - 3 hours ago
Vladimir Putin lashed out at American interference on the world stage yesterday, ahead of Sunday's presidential election. In the latest of a series of articles in the Russian press, the Prime Minister rehashed familiar Russian complaints but did not ...
Washington Post - 3 hours ago
MOSCOW — Reports of a foiled plan to assassinate Vladimir Putin set off waves of skepticism Monday as distrust of the government erupted publicly just days before Sunday's presidential election. Russians have long been quietly cynical of their leaders, ...
The Seattle Times - 3 hours ago
Reports of a foiled plan to assassinate Vladimir Putin set off waves of skepticism Monday as distrust of the government erupted publicly just days before Sunday's presidential election. By Kathy Lally No comments have been posted to this article.
Times of Oman - 5 hours ago
IT is a busy year for presidential elections. While there will be hotly contested battles for the presidencies of France and the United States, only in my home country, Russia, does the outcome of the presidential election seem a foregone conclusion.
Daily News & Analysis - 5 hours ago
By Tom Parfitt | Place: Moscow | Agency: Daily Telegraph Russian and Ukrainian security services have thwarted a plot to blow up Vladimir Putin shortly after this Sunday's presidential election in Russia, it was claimed yesterday (Monday).
AsiaOne - 5 hours ago
Activists scuffle during an opposition protest on Revolution square in central Moscow February 26, 2012. Thousands of Russians joined hands to form a ring around Moscow city centre on Sunday in protest against Vladimir Putin's likely return as ...
The Chosun Ilbo - 5 hours ago
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Monday said the international community cannot accept North Korea's nuclear ambitions but it would be unwise to test the strength of the new regime in the North. Putin, who is running for a third term as...
Pakistan Observer - 5 hours ago
Moscow—Prime Minister Vladimir Putin warned against military intervention in Syria or an attack on Iran in scathing criticism of the West on Monday as he laid out his foreign policy priorities ahead of Russia's presidential vote.
Hamilton Spectator - 6 hours ago
Alexei Druzhinin/AP MOSCOW Russian television reported Monday that the Ukrainian and Russian intelligence services had worked together over many weeks to thwart an assassination attempt on the Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
Pakistan Observer - 6 hours ago
Moscow—Russian and Ukrainian secret services have foiled a plot to assassinate Prime Minister Vladimir Putin after the March 4, 2012 Presidential elections, Russian state television said on Monday. Channel One said two suspects arrested in Ukraine ...
Channel News Asia - 6 hours ago
MOSCOW: Vladimir Putin's hopes of turning Russia into one of the world's top five economies by 2020 will stay a pipe dream unless he makes a final push to wean the economy off its dependence on oil exports. But the hundreds of billions of dollars Putin ...
Canada.com - 7 hours ago
By Anna Malpas and Laetitia Peron, AFP February 27, 2012 Russia's new Internet-savvy opposition is going online to protest and monitor the presidential elections on March 4, bringing its iPhones and Twitter into the fray against Vladimir Putin.
Newsday - 7 hours ago
World Newsday > News > World Report: Putin assassination plot thwarted Published: February 27, 2012 9:21 PM MOSCOW -- Security forces have foiled a Chechen-linked plot to assassinate Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, state television reported yesterday in ...
Firstpost - 7 hours ago
Moscow: Security services in Russia and Ukraine said Monday they had foiled a plot to kill Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, but his opponents ridiculed the announcement as a campaign stunt six days before he runs in Russia's presidential election.
Houston Chronicle - 7 hours ago
AP FILE - In this Thursday, Feb. 23, 2012 file photo, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin gesture while speaking as he attends a massive rally in his support at Luzhniki stadium in Moscow, Russia. Russian and Ukrainian special services have arrested ...
*Speaking Image - Creation of DTN News ~ Defense Technology News *This article is being posted from Toronto, Canada By DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News Contact:dtnnews@ymail.com ©COPYRIGHT (C) DTN NEWS DEFENSE-TECHNOLOGY NEWS
