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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

Putin seeks new term as Russia president

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Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday said he would seek a new six-year term in the country’s March elections in a move that would make him the longest-serving Russian leader since Joseph Stalin.


Putin, who has been in power for the past 18 years, is expected to sail to victory, with only token opponents competing against him.


“I will offer my candidacy for the post of president of the Russian Federation,” he said at the GAZ factory in Nizhny Novgorod, surrounded by workers.


Putin’s widely-expected announcement came as Russia reeled from a decision by the International Olympic Committee to ban the country from the Winter Games as punishment over claims of state-orchestrated doping.


But despite a litany of mounting problems including corruption, poverty and poor healthcare, the 65-year-old leader enjoys approval ratings of some 80 per cent.


Just hours earlier Putin had declined to confirm his candidacy at a glitzy event dedicated to volunteers.


“There is always a great deal of responsibility involved in this decision for any person, because the motive must be the desire to make life better in this country,” he told an audience of mostly young people. — AFP


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