Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


Putin, Medvedev Engage in Rare Public Split Over Libya

   James Brooke | Moscow  March 21, 2011
   Russia's  President  Dmitry  Medvedev speaks to the media at the Gorki
   residence outside Moscow, March 21, 2011

Photo: AP

   Russia's  President  Dmitry  Medvedev speaks to the media at the Gorki
   residence outside Moscow, March 21, 2011

   In  a  rare  split between Russiaâs two top leaders, Russian President
   Dmitry  Medvedev  calls  Prime  Minister  Vladimir Putinâs comments on
   Libya  "unacceptableâ   Russiaâs  ruling  duo  is  like  the national
   symbol,  the  two-headed eagle.  President Medvedev looks west.  His
   political  mentor,  Prime  Minister  Putin, looks east.  For the last
   three  years,  the  two have managed to hide their differences and run
   the country together.
   But now public tensions are emerging - over Libya.
   Mr. Putin, visiting a military armaments factory, denounced the United
   Nations  resolution  allowing  military action in Libya as "a medieval
   call to crusade."
   The  nations  sending  war planes on bombing missions to Libya include
   Britain,  France  and Italy.  During the Middle Ages, British, French
   and  Italian  knights joined Christian crusades against Islamic rulers
   in the eastern Mediterranean.
   In  response,  President  Medvedev donned a leather bomber jacket, and
   gave  a  press  conference  in  a  pine  forest  to  rebut such loaded
   language.
   He  said,  "Under no circumstances it is acceptable to use expressions
   which  essentially lead to a clash of civilizations, such as âcrusadeâ
   and so on."
   He   defended  his  governmentâs  decision  to  abstain  on  the  U.N.
   resolution  -  a measure he said was only partly flawed.  In fact, he
   said, "I do not believe this resolution to be wrong."
   A  few  hours  earlier, Mr. Putin had called the resolution "defective
   and flawed."
   Fyodor Lyukanov, editor of Russian in Global Affairs magazine, said it
   sounded  as if Mr. Putin found Russiaâs failure to veto the resolution
   offensive. "It looks like Putin felt obliged to publicly differentiate
   his  position  from Medvedevâs, because Medvedevâs decision to abstain
   in  the Security Council was probably not what Putin would like to see
   as [a] Russian vote," he said.
   Mr.  Putin,  on a tour of a ballistic missile assembly line in central
   Russia,  delved  even further into foreign policy.  "This U.S. policy
   is becoming a stable trend," he said.
   Citing  American  air  strikes  on  Belgrade  and the wars in Iraq and
   Afghanistan,  he  said,  "Now  it is Libyaâs turn under the pretext of
   protecting civilians.  Where is the logic and the conscience?  There
   is neither."
   Back  in  Moscow,  Mr. Medvedev stressed to his pool of reporters that
   Western  military  action  in  Libya  is  "the result of the appalling
   behavior  of the Libyan leadership and the crimes it committed against
   its own people."
   One  year  from  now,  Russians  are  to  vote for president.  Today,
   political  watchers  are scrutinizing the tandem for cracks that might
   point to the next official candidate.
   The Obama administration is making little secret of its preference for
   Mr.  Medvedev.  When U.S. Vice President Joe Biden visited Moscow two
   weeks  ago,  he  showered praise on Russiaâs president, and quoted him
   approvingly seven times in his major address here.
   On  Tuesday,  U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates is to meet in Moscow
   with  President Medvedev and other high officials.  His schedule does
   not list a meeting with Prime Minister Putin.

.