Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that Moscow would not work behind the scenes to protect its interests in the former Soviet republics, speaking two days before Ukraine's court-ordered presidential revote.
The new poll was called after Ukraine's original November election was thrown out following documented large-scale fraud. Hundreds of international monitors arrived in Ukraine to watch over Sunday's contest.
Putin had publicly backed pro-Kremlin Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich, who was initially declared the winner of the nullified ballot. West-leaning opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko, whose supporters had staged weeks of street protests, was widely forecast to win Sunday's rematch.
While rejecting allegations of Russian interference, Putin accused unnamed foreign partners of actively deploying the very tactics he denied using. Kremlin strategist Gleb Pavlovski acknowledged that a Yushchenko victory would compel Moscow to seek different political allies inside Ukraine.
Sergei Markov, a political consultant close to the Kremlin who had worked on Yanukovich's campaign, said Moscow was still searching for its next move, noting that influence over any future government remained the central question.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this AFP wire report, first published in December 2004, in its own words.