Reuters: Putin's "Cuban missile crisis" 30 October

The showdown between the U.S. and the Soviet Union has led the Russians to dismantle their rocket installations in Cuba, and Soviet ships steam out for Cuban ports with their decks heavily laden with missiles they are removing from the island. Still unresolved is the question of the jet bombers in Cuba which Castro claims belong to him. But the U.S. insists they, too, must be removed and will continue to quarantine the island until that is accomplished.

The choice came days after Putin announced a plan to hold onto power after his term ends. Putin said that if his close ally, Dmitry Medvedev, wins next year's presidential vote, he would serve as Medvedev's prime minister.

Medvedev, 42, who will be the youngest Russian leader since Tsar Nicholas II when he is sworn in on May 7, has asked former President Putin to be his prime minister. Putin, 55, was prevented by term limits from running for re-election. The Election Commission said voter turnout neared 70 percent.

News from Reuters

Vladimir Putin's criticism of NATO expansion and U.S. plans for a missile defence shield - as well as moves to rebuild Russia's defence capability - have been trademarks of his eight-year presidency. But in a wide-ranging farewell news conference, he said he plans no conflicts with the West.

In an address before the National Defense University in Washington, Bush said the system was needed to protect against states like Iran and was not a threat to Russia.

Several thousand supporters of outgoing Russian President Vladimir Putin staged a rally in Moscow on Wednesday, less than two weeks before parliamentary polls. The event was organised by the "Pro-Putin" movement which wants Putin to stay on in a leadership role, despite a constitutional bar on him holding the presidency more than twice in a row. An AFPTV report.

Bush and Czech President Mirek Topolanek say only three words separate negotiators from concluding an agreement to situate a missile defense radar system in the Czech Republic.

A young KGB spy falls in love with an flight attendant named Lyudmila and then conquers the Kremlin. Sound familiar? The plot of a new movie out of Russia is a whole lot like the life and times of President Vladimir Putin.