Russian parliament backs changes allowing Putin to run again for president - Reuters

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Constitutional changes allowing Vladimir Putin to run for president again in 2024 sailed through Russia’s lower house of parliament on Wednesday, opening the way for him to potentially stay in power until 2036.

Screens display the vote results during a session of Russia's lower house of parliament, which give an approval to constitutional changes in a final reading in Moscow, Russia March 11, 2020. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina

Putin, 67, who has dominated the Russian political landscape for two decades as either president or prime minister, made a dramatic appearance in the chamber a day earlier to argue that term limits were less important in times of crisis.

Putin, a former KGB officer, is currently required by the constitution to step down in 2024 when his second sequential and fourth presidential term ends. But the amendment which he backed would formally reset his presidential term tally to zero.

The 450-seat State Duma, the lower house of parliament, on Wednesday voted in favor of the change, along with other amendments to the constitution, by 383 votes, in a third and final reading. Nobody voted against, but 43 lawmakers abstained. Twenty-four lawmakers were absent.

If, as Putin critics expect, the constitutional court now gives its blessing to the amendment and it is backed in a nationwide vote in April, Putin would have the option to run again for president in 2024.

Were he to do that, and his health and electoral fortunes allowed, he could potentially stay in office for another two back-to-back six-year terms until 2036 at which point he would be 83 and have spent 36 years at the top of Russian politics.

Kremlin critic and opposition politician Alexei Navalny has said he believes Putin will now try to become president for life.

Putin has not spelled out what his plans for the future are after 2024, but has said he does not favor the Soviet-era practice of having leaders for life who die in office.

PROTEST PICKETS

Putin in January unveiled a major shake-up of Russian politics and a constitutional overhaul, which the Kremlin billed as a redistribution of power from the presidency to parliament.

But Putin’s critics say the reform was merely a smoke screen to give the country’s ruling elite a way to keep Putin in power after 2024.

Opposition activists have said they plan to organize protests as early as Friday against the move to allow Putin to stay on. Their plans are complicated however by an order from Moscow’s government which has banned public gatherings of more than 5,000 people until April 10 due to coronavirus-related risks.

Two people staged lone pickets outside the State Duma on Wednesday. One of them Gleb Tumanov, 31, said he was a member of the Yabloko party, and held a banner calling the move “an usurpation of power.”

“I’m here because of Vladimir Putin’s desire to stay for a fifth term or even maybe a sixth,” said Tumanov.

“It just feels sad. And reminiscent of the Soviet Union. I didn’t spend very much time living in the Soviet Union obviously but neither do I have any desire to do so.”

The changes backed by the State Duma on Wednesday will now be reviewed by other parts of the Russian legislative branch, including by Russia’s upper house of parliament later on Wednesday. No significant opposition is expected.

Additional reporting by Andrey Kuzmin, Alexander Marrow and Anton Zverev; editing by Philippa Fletcher

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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2020-03-11 11:40:59Z
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Russian parliament backs changes allowing Putin to run again for president - Reuters

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Constitutional changes allowing Vladimir Putin to run for president again in 2024 sailed through Russia’s lower house of parliament on Wednesday, opening the way for him to potentially stay in power until 2036.

Screens display the vote results during a session of Russia's lower house of parliament, which give an approval to constitutional changes in a final reading in Moscow, Russia March 11, 2020. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina

Putin, 67, who has dominated the Russian political landscape for two decades as either president or prime minister, made a dramatic appearance in the chamber a day earlier to argue that term limits were less important in times of crisis.

Putin, a former KGB officer, is currently required by the constitution to step down in 2024 when his second sequential and fourth presidential term ends. But the amendment which he backed would formally reset his presidential term tally to zero.

The 450-seat State Duma, the lower house of parliament, on Wednesday voted in favor of the change, along with other amendments to the constitution, by 383 votes, in a third and final reading. Nobody voted against, but 43 lawmakers abstained. Twenty-four lawmakers were absent.

If, as Putin critics expect, the constitutional court now gives its blessing to the amendment and it is backed in a nationwide vote in April, Putin would have the option to run again for president in 2024.

Were he to do that, and his health and electoral fortunes allowed, he could potentially stay in office for another two back-to-back six-year terms until 2036 at which point he would be 83 and have spent 36 years at the top of Russian politics.

Kremlin critic and opposition politician Alexei Navalny has said he believes Putin will now try to become president for life.

Putin has not spelled out what his plans for the future are after 2024, but has said he does not favor the Soviet-era practice of having leaders for life who die in office.

PROTEST PICKETS

Putin in January unveiled a major shake-up of Russian politics and a constitutional overhaul, which the Kremlin billed as a redistribution of power from the presidency to parliament.

But Putin’s critics say the reform was merely a smoke screen to give the country’s ruling elite a way to keep Putin in power after 2024.

Opposition activists have said they plan to organize protests as early as Friday against the move to allow Putin to stay on. Their plans are complicated however by an order from Moscow’s government which has banned public gatherings of more than 5,000 people until April 10 due to coronavirus-related risks.

Two people staged lone pickets outside the State Duma on Wednesday. One of them Gleb Tumanov, 31, said he was a member of the Yabloko party, and held a banner calling the move “an usurpation of power.”

“I’m here because of Vladimir Putin’s desire to stay for a fifth term or even maybe a sixth,” said Tumanov.

“It just feels sad. And reminiscent of the Soviet Union. I didn’t spend very much time living in the Soviet Union obviously but neither do I have any desire to do so.”

The changes backed by the State Duma on Wednesday will now be reviewed by other parts of the Russian legislative branch, including by Russia’s upper house of parliament later on Wednesday. No significant opposition is expected.

Additional reporting by Andrey Kuzmin, Alexander Marrow and Anton Zverev; editing by Philippa Fletcher

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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2020-03-11 10:52:12Z
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Russian parliament backs changes allowing Putin to run again for president - Reuters

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Constitutional changes allowing Vladimir Putin to run for president again in 2024 sailed through Russia’s lower house of parliament on Wednesday, opening the way for him to potentially stay in power until 2036.

Screens display the vote results during a session of Russia's lower house of parliament, which give an approval to constitutional changes in a final reading in Moscow, Russia March 11, 2020. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina

Putin, 67, who has dominated the Russian political landscape for two decades as either president or prime minister, made a dramatic appearance in the chamber a day earlier to argue that term limits were less important in times of crisis.

Putin, a former KGB officer, is currently required by the constitution to step down in 2024 when his second sequential and fourth presidential term ends. But the amendment which he backed would formally reset his presidential term tally to zero.

The 450-seat State Duma, the lower house of parliament, on Wednesday voted in favor of the change, along with other amendments to the constitution, by 383 votes, in a third and final reading. Nobody voted against, but 43 lawmakers abstained. Twenty-four lawmakers were absent.

If, as Putin critics expect, the constitutional court now gives its blessing to the amendment and it is backed in a nationwide vote in April, Putin would have the option to run again for president in 2024.

Were he to do that, and his health and electoral fortunes allowed, he could potentially stay in office for another two back-to-back six-year terms until 2036 at which point he would be 83 and have spent 36 years at the top of Russian politics.

Kremlin critic and opposition politician Alexei Navalny has said he believes Putin will now try to become president for life.

Putin has not spelled out what his plans for the future are after 2024, but has said he does not favor the Soviet-era practice of having leaders for life who die in office.

PROTEST PICKETS

Putin in January unveiled a major shake-up of Russian politics and a constitutional overhaul, which the Kremlin billed as a redistribution of power from the presidency to parliament.

But Putin’s critics say the reform was merely a smoke screen to give the country’s ruling elite a way to keep Putin in power after 2024.

Opposition activists have said they plan to organize protests as early as Friday against the move to allow Putin to stay on. Their plans are complicated however by an order from Moscow’s government which has banned public gatherings of more than 5,000 people until April 10 due to coronavirus-related risks.

Two people staged lone pickets outside the State Duma on Wednesday. One of them Gleb Tumanov, 31, said he was a member of the Yabloko party, and held a banner calling the move “an usurpation of power.”

“I’m here because of Vladimir Putin’s desire to stay for a fifth term or even maybe a sixth,” said Tumanov.

“It just feels sad. And reminiscent of the Soviet Union. I didn’t spend very much time living in the Soviet Union obviously but neither do I have any desire to do so.”

The changes backed by the State Duma on Wednesday will now be reviewed by other parts of the Russian legislative branch, including by Russia’s upper house of parliament later on Wednesday. No significant opposition is expected.

Additional reporting by Andrey Kuzmin, Alexander Marrow and Anton Zverev; editing by Philippa Fletcher

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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2020-03-11 10:39:46Z
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China wants to take a victory lap over its handling of the coronavirus outbreak - CNN

Speaking Friday, Wang Zhonglin, party chief of Wuhan, the virus-hit capital of Hubei province, said that people in the city -- much of which remains on lockdown -- were not appreciative enough.

It is necessary, Wang reportedly said, "to carry out gratitude education among the citizens of the whole city, so that they thank (President Xi Jinping), thank the Chinese Communist Party, heed the party, walk with the party, and create strong positive energy."

His comments attracted widespread criticism online, and have since been mostly scrubbed by the censors, though some state media reports including the quote remain accessible. Yet while Wang appears to have gone too far in the eyes of many -- creating a public relations headache the propaganda apparatus had to clean up -- the sentiment he was expressing is nevertheless widely shared.

As the coronavirus spreads around the world, China has been increasingly vocal about what it appears to feel is a lack of appreciation from the global community for its efforts to contain the outbreak, and preventing the crisis from being even worse than it may turn out to be.

The first cases of the virus were reported in Wuhan late last year, and since then China has borne the brunt of the outbreak, with almost three quarters of the more than 110,000 or so confirmed global cases in mainland China. More than 3,000 people have died due to the virus in China, with the majority in Hubei province. Hundreds of millions of people have also been placed under lockdown, while others have been unable to return to work due to travel restrictions.

Those containment efforts do appear to have been successful, with the number of new cases slowing to a trickle in recent weeks, as new outbreaks continued to emerge worldwide.

Underlining how much a corner has been turned in China, Xi himself arrived in Wuhan Tuesday for an inspection tour, his first since the outbreak began. While other senior officials have visited the city previously, it was thought that it was too risky for Xi to go himself until now, emphasizing how confident the government is that the outbreak is under control.

'A responsible country'

State media and top officials have begun pushing back hard on external criticism of Beijing's handling of the virus, both the seemingly flippant -- like Fox News host Jesse Watters demanding China apologize for the virus itself -- to the more substantial, such as widespread concerns over the government's apparent mishandling of the virus when it emerged in Wuhan.

"In its efforts to fight off the epidemic, China has conducted itself as a responsible country," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said last week in response to the Watters video. "China's signature strength, efficiency and speed in this fight has been widely acclaimed. To protect the health and safety of people across the world, the Chinese people have made huge sacrifice and major contributions."

Zhao pointed to the 2009 swine flu pandemic, which "broke out in the US" (the first cases were actually in Mexico) before spreading to hundreds of other countries, killing hundreds of thousands of people. "I don't remember anyone asking the US to apologize," he said.

State broadcaster CGTN also linked coronavirus to the US swine flu outbreak, while Global Times, a state-backed tabloid, accused US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo of attempting to "pass the buck" to China by criticizing Beijing's handling of the virus.

"As the chief US diplomat, Pompeo insisted on speaking of the 'Wuhan virus' despite the opposition of (the World Health Organization) and international public opinion, in an attempt to arouse resentment among those affected countries against China," the paper said in an editorial. "Pompeo's move not only exposes malicious US intentions toward China without regard to common sense, but also hits a new low in his personal conduct."

Pompeo told CNBC last week that it had been "incredibly frustrating" to work with the Chinese government to obtain data on the coronavirus, "which will ultimately be the solution to both getting the vaccine and attacking this risk."

He blamed the initial response to the virus -- during which Chinese officials appeared to downplay information about its severity -- as putting the US "behind the curve" in coming up with a response.

Controlling the narrative

The angry response to Fox News host Watters and Secretary of State Pompeo, as well as the expulsion last month of three Wall Street Journal reporters over the headline of an opinion piece about the virus, highlights Beijing's sensitivities over how it is perceived to be handling the outbreak.

Only a month ago, Beijing was dealing with widespread public anger over the death of whistleblower doctor Li Wenliang. Li had attempted to warn university classmates about a new SARS-like virus spreading in Wuhan, only to be reprimanded by police for spreading "rumors." He later died of the virus after contracting it while helping with relief efforts.

China's massive censorship and propaganda apparatus struggled to contain the reaction, and eventually several top Wuhan and Hubei officials were fired.

The public anger over Li's death and the authorities' response remains close to the surface, as the reaction to the comments made by Wang, the Wuhan party chief, showed (he eventually backtracked, thanking the "heroic Wuhan people" for their sacrifice Sunday). This week, the censors have again struggled to contain a story about another Wuhan doctor, who reportedly informed colleagues like Li about a spike in cases caused by a coronavirus.

An interview with Dr. Ai Fen in a prominent Chinese magazine was scrubbed shortly after publication, but on major Chinese social media platforms, users have reposted it over and again as censors try to delete it, including coming up with creative ways to display it in an attempt to avoid automatic deletion, such as writing the text backwards or vertically, or in braille or emojis. Some users described it as a "relay race" to try and stay one step ahead of the censors.

This shows the major challenge Beijing is facing over the coronavirus even as the caseload itself comes under control. By externalizing criticism, China's government may be able to further rally the country behind its leaders.

Given that sentiment in the US already appears hostile towards China, off the back of a drawn-out trade war and military rivalry, Beijing could also be worried about its initial mishandling of the outbreak becoming an election year issue.

And in setting out its line on where blame should lie, or not, China is potentially getting ahead of any future criticism as the virus spreads worldwide, killing hundreds more and sending global markets into a dangerous negative spiral.

The Chinese people have paid a tremendous cost in the past few months, that any gratitude owed by the world is to them, and not the government, is not something many officials seem willing to contemplate.

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2020-03-11 04:44:00Z
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Dozens of Iranians die from methanol poisoning in attempt to fight coronavirus - New York Post

At least 44 people have died of methanol poisoning in Iran — mistakenly thinking that downing bootleg booze would ward off Covid-19, according to the state news agency.

Despite alcohol being banned in most of the Islamic Republic, it is responsible for hundreds of patients being hospitalized because of fake rumors that it would save drinkers from the virus that has killed 291 and infected more than 8,000 there, the state news agency IRNA reported, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).

The death toll from alcohol poisoning in the province of Khuzestan reached 36 Tuesday — double those killed by the coronavirus in that region, the report says.

The bootleg alcohol has killed seven more people in the northern region of Alborz and one in Kermanshah, western Iran.

Jundishapur medical university in Ahvaz, the capital of Khuzestan, has seen more than 200 people hospitalized for poisoning, spokesman Ali Ehsanpour told the state agency, according to AFP. The cases were caused by “rumors that drinking alcohol can be effective in treating coronavirus,” Ehsanpour confirmed.

The unknown nature of the new coronavirus has sparked a series of wildly inaccurate rumors — with many even initially thinking its name meant it was connected to Corona beer.

Map of coronavirus cases in the US

Coronavirus cases in the United States

French officials were also forced to send out an alert on Twitter Sunday saying, “No, Cocaine does NOT protect against # COVID19. It is an addictive drug that causes serious side effects and is harmful to people’s health.”

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2020-03-10 16:04:29Z
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Putin backs amendment that could see him run Russia until 2036 - CNN

Under current Russian law, Putin is required to step down as president in 2024, when his second consecutive term in office comes to an end.

The proposed constitutional amendment was brought by MP Valentina Tereshkova, a loyal Putin supporter, and called for the presidential term limit to either be scrapped or simply for Putin to be allowed to run for president again.

Tereshkova added her proposal to a package of other constitutional amendments just 20 minutes before MPs voted on a slew of sweeping constitutional reforms.

The amendments will go through two more rounds of approval in parliament Wednesday. They are seen as largely arbitrary procedures, and will need to get clearance from the Constitutional Court before they are put to the Russian people in a public vote on April 22.

Putin backed the proposed amendment ahead of the vote.

"The second proposal, which means removing obstacles for any Russian citizen, including the incumbent president, and allowing them to run in the next presidential election ... this would be possible in principle but only if the Constitutional Court officially rules that this is not against the main law," Putin said in his address to the Duma.

Putin had previously said he would abide by the law and step down in 2024.

The development comes two months after the entire Russian government resigned to clear the way for a raft of constitutional amendments proposed by Putin which were widely seen as a ploy for him to extend his decades-long grip on power.

Tereshkova, a cosmonaut who became the first woman in space, was more overt about her proposal's intentions on Tuesday, saying it was aimed at keeping Putin in power to promote stability in Russia.

"Why try to be disingenuous or overthink it? People are worried about what's going to happen after 2024 and I understand them. This is not a matter of just the presidential post but also about the person who is trusted and who made decisions in the toughest situations and answered for them, that people could count on. Whatever people say publicly for political reasons, I'm sure everyone in this room too deep down understands this and agrees with me," she said.

"I don't know if the president is ready to run in that election but what I know for sure is that the very existence of this possibility for the current president, given his huge authority, is a stabilizing factor for our society."

Putin is serving his fourth term as president. He ruled Russia from 2000 to 2008 in two consecutive runs, and again in 2012 until now. He served as prime minister in 1999 to 2000, and also in between his two presidential terms, a period in which he was seen to have more power than his allied president at the time, Dmitry Medvedev.

Putin has enjoyed high approval ratings in Russia over his long tenure, but in the past two years his popularity has dropped over his pension reforms and the country's stagnating economy.

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2020-03-10 15:54:58Z
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Factbox: Latest on the spread of coronavirus around the world - Reuters

(Reuters) - The number of people infected with the coronavirus topped 114,000 across the world as the outbreak spread to more countries, causing greater economic damage.

A man wearing a protective suit is seen neat the ferry port of Molo Beverello after Italy orders a countrywide lockdown to try and contain a coronavirus outbreak, in Naples, Italy, March 10, 2020. REUTERS/Ciro De Luca

(Interactive graphic tracking global spread of coronavirus: open tmsnrt.rs/3aIRuz7 in an external browser)

DEATHS/INFECTIONS

- More than 114,300 people have been infected by the coronavirus globally and over 4,000 have died, according to a Reuters tally of government announcements.

- Mainland China reported 19 new cases as of Monday, down from 40 cases a day earlier. Total confirmed cases in mainland China stood at 80,754.

EUROPE

- In Italy, which has 9,172 cases and 463 deaths, the government ordered everyone across the country not to move around other than for work and emergencies, banned all public gatherings and suspended sporting events.

- Spain, with over 1,200 cases and 30 deaths, will close schools and universities in Madrid and the Basque capital Vitoria.

- The death toll in France rose to 30 from 25 a day earlier.

- Two passengers on a cruise ship being held outside the southern French port of Marseille are being tested for suspected infection.

- Italians arriving in Britain are being advised to self-isolate, a spokesman for Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Tuesday.

- Poland, with 17 cases so far, on Tuesday announced cancellation of all mass events.

- Russia recommended on Tuesday that people avoid public transport, shopping malls and other public places at rush hour.

- Serbia closed its borders for people from coronavirus-affected countries, Moldova banned foreigners from entering by plane from any country affected, and Denmark suspended all air traffic from virus hotspots.

- Austria will deny entry to people arriving from Italy and has banned indoor events of more than 100 people.

- The Czech Republic, which has reported 40 cases, will suspend schools other than universities from Wednesday, and ban events hosting more than 100 people.

AMERICAS

- Canada recorded its first death, a resident at a British Columbia’s long-term care facility.

- Panama confirmed its first case on Monday.

- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission issued warning letters to firms selling products that claim to prevent, treat or cure COVID-19.

- U.S. President Donald Trump has not been tested for the coronavirus, the White House said on Monday, though at least two lawmakers with whom he has recently come into contact have announced they were self-quarantining after attending a conference with a person who had tested positive for the virus.

ASIA

- President Xi Jinping visited Wuhan, where all temporary coronavirus hospitals have now been closed, on Tuesday for the first time since the epidemic began, indicating a possible turning point as the virus spread slows in China.

- China’s Hubei province said on Tuesday it will implement a “health code” mobile phone-based monitoring system to start allowing people to travel within the province.

- South Korea reported 35 new cases on Tuesday, bringing total infections to 7,513. The death toll rose by three to 54.

- Japan’s death toll rose to 16 and total cases climbed above 1,200. The country is set to revise a law allowing Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to declare emergency, if needed.

- Mongolia reported its first case.

- Hong Kong will quarantine all visitors from Italy and parts of France, Germany and Japan for two weeks from March 13.

- Singapore started charging visitors for coronavirus treatment after it reported new imported cases from neighboring Indonesia.

MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA

- Iran’s death toll jumped on Tuesday to 291 and the total number of infections rose to more than 8,000.

- Lebanon reported its first death on Tuesday.

- Israel, with 42 cases, will require anyone arriving from overseas to self-quarantine for 14 days

- Burkina Faso on Monday reported its first two cases.

- Tunisia will suspend all flights and shipping to Italy except to Rome and bring forward a scheduled school holiday to Thursday from next Monday.

- Saudi Arabia’s health ministry said on Monday it has detected five new cases, bringing the total to 20.

AUSTRALIA

- Australia’s cases rose overnight to 100 from 80 on Tuesday. The health minister said that the government has requested health experts to review the status of travel advisories for Italy.

ECONOMIC FALLOUT

- Earnings of major global companies could fall 10% this year, Citigroup analysts said, citing the steep fall in oil prices and economic disruption due to the coronavirus.

- China will modify the environmental supervision of companies to boost post-coronavirus recovery, giving firms more time to rectify environmental problems, but stressed it was not relaxing standards.

- Italy will approve measures worth around 10 billion euros ($11.35 billion) to counteract the virus impact, the industry minister said on Tuesday.

- Global oil demand is set to contract in 2020 for the first time in more than a decade as global economic activity stalls due to the coronavirus, the International Energy Agency said on Monday.

- Global luxury brands including Gucci and Louis Vuitton are scaling back orders with Italian suppliers, as the spread of the coronavirus from key market China to Italy hits business, industry sources said.

MARKETS

- Oil and equity markets staged solid rebounds on Tuesday after the previous day’s pummeling, with signs of co-ordinated action by the world’s biggest economies to cushion the economic impact of coronavirus helping pull investors out of panic mode. [MKTS/GLOB]

EVENT CANCELED, POSTPONED, BEHIND CLOSED DOORS

- The Boao Forum, which China is trying to promote as Asia’s answer to Davos, has been postponed.

- Ireland canceled all St. Patrick’s Day parades due next week and the government set aside 3 billion euros to tackle the infection.

- Madonna canceled shows in Paris on Tuesday and Wednesday, promoter Live Nation said on Monday.

Compiled by Milla Nissi, Krishna Chandra Eluri and Uttaresh.V; Editing by Tomasz Janowski and Arun Koyyur

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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2020-03-10 16:59:59Z
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