The World Reacts to Vladimir Putin's Victory

By Barnaby Phillips

Here's a quick round-up of global reactions to Vladimir Putin's not-so surprising triumph in the Russian presidential elections:

First prize for effusiveness goes to ... Syria, where the official news agency said President Bashar al-Assad "offered in his name and that of the Syrian people his sincere congratulations for his remarkable election".

Another happy man was Hugo Chavez, the Venezuela president, who sent his personal congratulations to Moscow, saying that Vladimir Putin had "initiated a strategic relationship of co-operation between Venezuela and Russia, connected by a very strong bond of friendship".

There was also a warm reaction from Beijing.

President Hu Jintao sent a congratulatory message, and the Chinese foreign ministry said the election had been "a success".

West's reaction

In contrast, Western reactions have been almost uniformly tepid. The EU, according to the foreign affairs head, Catherine Ashton, "took note" of the election.  In this context, "took note" would appear to be diplomacy speak for "we recognise it happened, but we are not overly delighted by it".

Alain Juppe, the French foreign minister, registered a similar rection. "I take note that President Putin is our interlocutor for years to come ... The election was not exemplary ... [but] ... there was no brutal repression during the campaign, as might have been the case in other times," he said.

Talk about damning with faint praise.

The reaction from the US meanwhile, was even more restrained.

The official statement from Washington DC did not mention Vladimir Putin by name. It said that the US “looks forward to working with the president-elect after the results are certified and he is sworn in”.

US statement

The US statement noted concerns about “the conditions under which the campaign was conducted, the partisan use of government resources and procedural irregularities on election day”.

However, it also recognised the Russian government's efforts to reform the system, including the reintroduction of direct elections for governors and the simplification of registration procedures for parties and presidential candidates.

Lastly, the award for sarcasm goes to US senator and former presidential candidate, John McCain, who, after watching Putin's surprisingly weepy appearance at a victory rally, tweeted: "Dear Vlad, Surprise! Surprise! You won. The Russian people are crying too!"

Mind you, Senator McCain has form when it comes to taunting Vladimir Putin. When protests broke out in Russia after December's disputed parliamentary elections, he tweeted: “Dear Vlad, The #ArabSpring is coming to a neighborhood near you".

Putin responded by describing McCain as "nuts".

- Originally published by AlJazeera under Creative Commons License 

Ahmadinejad's South America Tour (REPORT)

By Adam Raney in America 

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad exchanged warm embraces and signed several trade and political agreements on Monday.

Few details were given to the press - other than that the agreements were meant to expand research in science, nanotechnology, industry and politics.

It was more a display of how they were deepening ties on economic development projects and strengthening their political alliance. Chavez touted ongoing projects such as food processing plants, and tractor and bicycle factories - all of which were built in Venezuela with Iran's help.

He even included pre-recorded segments at the press confence where workers gave viewers tours of corn processing plants and milk treatment plants.

For two of the world's most oil-rich countries though, the projects seemed a bit small scale to be highlighted for the international press.

The visit came amdist rising tensions between Iran and the United States.

Earlier on Monday an Iranian court sentenced a former US marine who holds both Iranian and US citizenship to death after he was convicted of spying.

And it follows threats from Iran to close an important oil shipping channel - the Strait of Hormuz - if the west sanctions its oil exports over its nulear programme.

With world attention on the brewing crisis between Iran and the US, both leaders made a point of criticising the US for its "imperialism."

Lacing barbs with humour, Chavez joked that he and Ahmadinejad were building nuclear weapons in the basement of his presidential palace. And Ahmadinejad said Chavez was the "champion in the fight against imperialism".

On a more serious note Chavez said the war they were fighting was against "poverty, misery, hunger and underdevelopment".

Chavez's rhetoric was wide-ranging - as it usually is. He blamed US imperialism in part for the killing of former Libyan leader Muammar Ghaddafi and for the protests against Bashar Assad's government in Syria.

It was Ahmadinejad's fifth visit to Venezuela and the first stop on a tour of the region that will take him also to Nicaragua, Cuba and Ecuador.

In Nicaragua both he and Chavez will attend re-elected President Daniel Ortega's inauguration and in Cuba Ahmadinejad will meet with Fidel Castro.

As Ahmadinejad meets with longtime foes of the United States, one constant on the trip will likely be continued criticism of the US and its "lackeys", as Chavez calls its allies.

- Originally published by AlJazeera under Creative Commons License