Russian President Vladimir Putin sharply criticized the United
States on Saturday for what he said was an attempt to force its
will on the world.
Speaking at an annual gathering of top security and defense officials
in Germany, Putin attacked the concept of a "unipolar world"
-- implying the United States is the sole superpower -- and said
U.S. actions abroad had made conflicts worse.
"What is a unipolar world? No matter how we beautify this
term it means one single center of power, one single center of
force and one single master," Putin said.
"It has nothing in common with democracy because that is
the opinion of the majority taking into account the minority opinion.
People are always teaching us democracy but the people who teach
us democracy don't want to learn it themselves."
After the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union, the world was left
with only one "superpower". But Putin has led Russia's
transformation from a state in economic crisis into a land with
increasing power thanks to its vast oil and gas resources.
Putin said the United States had repeatedly overstepped its national
borders in questions of international security, a policy that
he said had made the world less, not more, safe.
"Unilateral actions have not resolved conflicts but have
made them worse," Putin said, adding that force should only
be used when backed by the United Nations Security Council.
"This is very dangerous. Nobody feels secure any more because
nobody can hide behind international law," he said.
Putin mentioned no specific conflicts. But he has been very critical
of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, where U.S. soldiers
are still struggling to crush an insurgency.
"LONG ON BRAVADO"
The new U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, the top U.S. official
at the conference, said Putin's comments were "interesting,
very forthright".
U.S. Senator Joseph Lieberman, also in Munich, called the speech
"provocative" and "rhetoric that sounded more like
the Cold War". Republican Senator Lindsey Graham dismissed
Putin's speech as "long on bravado and short on realism".
A Putin spokesman, however, said the Russian president was not
trying to provoke Washington.
"This is not about confrontation, it's an invitation to
think," he told reporters.
Putin made clear he believed President Bush was a good man, despite
their many disagreements.
"I consider the president of the United States a decent
man. He is also a friend. He is criticized for everything he does
but he is a decent man. He says Russia and the U.S. will never
be enemies and I agree with him," he said in answer to a
question.
Putin also called on European states, many of which have disagreed
with U.S. policy in Iraq and elsewhere, to be more active in international
affairs.
He added that Russia had no intention of changing its approach
to foreign policy, one Western diplomats say frustrates European
and U.S. leaders when it stands in the way of a consensus they
have reached.
"Russia has always pursued an independent foreign policy,"
he said. "We are not going to change this tradition today."
(Additional reporting by Madeline Chambers, Mark John and Kristin
Roberts)
((Editing by Steve Pagani)
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