Russian President Vladimir Putin faced mounting diplomatic embarrassment in late November 2004 after Ukraine's supreme court moved to review the disputed presidential election result that had handed victory to Kremlin-backed candidate Viktor Yanukovich. Putin had been the first world leader to congratulate Yanukovich following the 21 November vote, which opposition groups, the European Union, and the United States alleged was marred by fraud.
The premature congratulations put Moscow in an awkward position alongside only China, Belarus, and several Central Asian states, while most other governments either stayed silent or condemned the vote. The Kremlin initially tried to walk back Putin's message, claiming he had merely expressed satisfaction at Yanukovich's lead in exit polls, though a presidential spokesman had previously described the victory as decisive.
Russia subsequently shifted to a more combative tone, with senior officials accusing Western governments of deliberately destabilizing Ukraine and encouraging street protests in Kyiv. Putin, at a Russia-EU summit, warned against pushing a major European state toward chaos.
Political analysts in Moscow criticized the president for staking Russia's foreign policy credibility on an uncertain electoral outcome. Independent analyst Andrei Piontkovsky said Russia had "isolated itself completely" through what he called imperialist delusions. Should the supreme court overturn the result, Putin and his Ukrainian allies would face a significant public retreat.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this AFP wire report, first published in November 2004, in its own words.