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Bush, George W.

President Bush Warns Putin on Democracy and Soviet-Era Tensions

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

President Bush delivered a sharp warning to President Putin of Russia on Saturday, using the 60th anniversary of Nazi Germany's defeat to caution against "stirring up fears and exploiting old rivalries" in the former Soviet republics on Russia's borders. Bush emphasized the importance of democratic values, stating that "stable, prosperous democracies are good neighbors, trading in freedom and posing no threat to anyone." The remarks are likely to further irritate Putin, who has accused the United States of meddling in the affairs of Russia's former republics.

Key Takeaways:

  • President Bush warned President Putin that "no good purpose is served by stirring up fears and exploiting old rivalries" in the former Soviet republics on Russia's borders.
  • Bush emphasized the importance of democratic values, stating that "stable, prosperous democracies are good neighbors, trading in freedom and posing no threat to anyone."
  • The president pointedly said, "The United States has free and peaceful nations to the north and south of us" and "we do not consider ourselves to be encircled."
  • Bush called for "free and open and fair" elections in Belarus, the last dictatorship in Europe, backed by Putin.
  • At a news conference, Bush did not dispute the premise of a question implying that the United States was behind revolutionary change in Georgia, Ukraine, and Kyrgyzstan.
  • The president stated that "freedom is the only reliable path to peace" and warned against appeasing or excusing tyranny, and sacrificing freedom in the vain pursuit of stability.
  • Bush acknowledged that the United States and Britain shared some blame for the annexation of the Baltics, noting that the 1945 Yalta agreement was in an "unjust tradition" of earlier treaties.

Statistics:

  • The United States has grown concerned over Putin's prosecution of business leaders, increasing control over the press, and involvement in the affairs of Georgia and other neighbors since the last year.
  • Belarus is the last dictatorship in Europe, with a president backed by Putin.
  • The 1945 Yalta agreement, in which Europe was carved up by Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin, was an "unjust tradition" of earlier treaties like the Munich and Molotov-Ribbentrop pacts.

Sources:

  • The New York Times, Saturday's speech in Riga, Latvia, by President George W. Bush
  • CBS News "60 Minutes" program, Putin's remarks about Bush's criticism of democracy

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