Putin Pumps Billions Into Security

Russia announced Tuesday it was pouring $5.4 billion in additional funding into its security agencies, indicating the country was trying to show a quick mobilization of resources for the anti-terrorism battle that President Vladimir Putin has called the country's No. 1 priority.

"The fight against terrorism requires a long-range perspective," Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin said in announcing the funding, ITAR Tass news agency said a day after Putin proposed a major extension of Kremlin control over Russia's political and security structures.

Russia's main security agencies — the Federal Security Service, Interior Ministry, border guards service and Foreign Intelligence Service — will split an additional $1.71 billion in funding. The Defense Ministry will receive an additional $3.66 billion, Kudrin said.

It was not clear, however, whether the government was earmarking new funds or Kudrin was highlighting increases that had already been put in the draft 2005 budget — in an effort to prove to skeptical Russians that the authorities were taking action against terrorism. A Finance Ministry press officer, Alexei Strekalov, told The Associated Press that ministry officials themselves did not know.

Some $18.1 billion had already been earmarked for defense in 2005, a 28 percent increase over this year, and $13.6 billion for national security and law enforcement, a 20 percent increase.

Kudrin had already committed $68.5 million in next year's budget to a new anti-terrorism program that would be used to increase security in public places, including Moscow's subway system.

In response to a series of terrorist attacks that killed some 430 people in the past three weeks, Putin said a central, powerful anti-terror agency must be created, but details were not made public.

At Monday's emergency meeting of his Cabinet, top security officials and regional governors, Putin also announced a radical restructure of Russia's electoral system that would increase Kremlin control over every layer of Russian political life.

Under the plan, popularly elected governors would be replaced by those nominated by the president, and voters would cast ballots for parties instead of individual candidates — ending the practice of legislators representing specific districts.

Now, half the members of the lower house of parliament are chosen from party lists and half elected in individual races. The chamber, the State Duma, is dominated by the pro-Kremlin United Russia party.

Putin's supporters praised the plan Tuesday.

"Strong political parties are the basis of the political system," pro-Kremlin lawmaker Mikhail Grishankov told state-controlled Channel One.

Many newspapers, Web sites and radio stations, which have escaped the government control that has settled over Russia's mass media, called the plan a step backward for democracy.

The Kommersant daily said "the only representative of the executive branch who will be elected by all the people will be the president of Russia."

Most of Putin's initiatives had little to do with increasing Russians' security and everything to do with furthering the Kremlin's clout.

Putin's mistrust for local officials runs so deep, Izvestia said, "he has decided on an extreme step: finally to take responsibility himself for events in the country."