Gorbachev alarm at Soviet echoes
The last leader of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, has given some of his strongest criticism yet of the politics of modern Russia.
He says the United Russia party of the current Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, behaves like the old-style Communists.
He also said Russia's judicial system was not properly constitutional and dismissed members of its parliament as not truly independent.
Mr Gorbachev was speaking as the countries of Eastern and Central Europe look towards the 20th anniversary this year of the fall of Communism in Europe, as symbolised by the smashing of the Berlin wall.
Mr Gorbachev himself now says he did not foresee that his policies of openness and reform - "glasnost" and "perestroika" - would lead to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
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He says the United Russia party of the current Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, behaves like the old-style Communists.
He also said Russia's judicial system was not properly constitutional and dismissed members of its parliament as not truly independent.
Mr Gorbachev was speaking as the countries of Eastern and Central Europe look towards the 20th anniversary this year of the fall of Communism in Europe, as symbolised by the smashing of the Berlin wall.
Mr Gorbachev himself now says he did not foresee that his policies of openness and reform - "glasnost" and "perestroika" - would lead to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.