MOSCOW, Sept 28 (AFP) - Plans to boost executive control over Russia in response to terror attacks are risky and imperfect but President Vladimir Putin has no effective alternatives, a senior Kremlin official said Tuesday.
"It's not the best option, but the situation is difficult," the official told reporters, speaking on condition he not be named.
"The dosage of firmness versus softness is always debatable. No one is ever satisfied -- neither those in power, who think the measures don't go far enough nor the defenders of freedom, who think they go too far."
Failure to strike the right balance "is a danger this new model contains," the official admitted, adding: "People will have to be vigilant."
Putin's proposals, which include scrapping direct popular election of regional governors and instead having local lawmakers vote on candidates picked by the Kremlin, have been criticized both in Russia and abroad.
The official however rejected criticism from the West on Putin's proposals, saying there were specific factors at work in Russia due to its size and history that required well-suited responses, not finger-pointing.
"Why do we have to align ourselves with notions from manuels on democracy?" asked the official.
Selecting gubernatorial candidates would be problematic for the Kremlin as Russia has no policy for training and career advancement of elite administrative cadres, he added.