Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday submitted a slew of new proposed amendments to the nation’s constitution that include a mention of God and describe marriage as a heterosexual union.
Putin first proposed amending the constitution in January’s state-of-the-nation speech, saying it is necessary to broaden the powers of parliament and bolster democracy.
Kremlin foes have described the proposed changes as part of Putin’s efforts to remain in charge after his six-year term ends in 2024.
Photo: AP
PARLIAMENT
The Kremlin-controlled parliament quickly endorsed Putin’s draft in the first of three required readings last month, and is set to give it the final approval next week, setting the stage for a nationwide vote on April 22.
Following up on proposals from a Kremlin working group that worked in parallel with lawmakers, Putin on Monday presented 24 pages of additional amendments for the second reading scheduled for Tuesday next week.
Lawmakers said they include an article that points to a millennium-long Russian history and pledges homage to “ancestors who bequeathed to us their ideals and a belief in God.”
The amendment follows a proposal by the Russian Orthodox Church to add a reference to God to the Constitution.
Another amendment describes marriage as a “union of a man and a woman,” a wording in sync with Putin’s long-stated opposition to same-sex marriages.
The president also responded to a working group member’s suggestion to add wording that would prevent any future Russian ruler from giving away Ukraine’s Crimea — annexed from Ukraine in 2014 — or any other territory.
He added an amendment that prohibits surrendering any part of Russian territory and outlaws making calls for that.
Another proposal underlines a special status of Russians as a “state-forming” ethnic group while pledging to protect the nation’s other ethnic groups.
WORLD WAR II VICTORY
And in sync with proposals to outlaw disparaging the Soviet role in the World War II victory, Putin added an article pledging to protect “historic truth” and forbid “belittling the people’s heroic protection of the Motherland.”
The amendment comes as Russia prepares to celebrate the 75th anniversary of victory in World War II — the nation’s most important holiday.
However, the new set of amendments does not offer any clue what position Putin might take to continue calling the shots after his term ends.
The 67-year-old Russian leader has been in power for more than 20 years, making him the nation’s longest-serving leader since Joseph Stalin.
ANGER: A video shared online showed residents in a neighborhood confronting the national security minister, attempting to drag her toward floodwaters Argentina’s port city of Bahia Blanca has been “destroyed” after being pummeled by a year’s worth of rain in a matter of hours, killing 13 and driving hundreds from their homes, authorities said on Saturday. Two young girls — reportedly aged four and one — were missing after possibly being swept away by floodwaters in the wake of Friday’s storm. The deluge left hospital rooms underwater, turned neighborhoods into islands and cut electricity to swaths of the city. Argentine Minister of National Security Patricia Bullrich said Bahia Blanca was “destroyed.” The death toll rose to 13 on Saturday, up from 10 on Friday, authorities
Two daughters of an Argentine mountaineer who died on an icy peak 40 years ago have retrieved his backpack from the spot — finding camera film inside that allowed them a glimpse of some of his final experiences. Guillermo Vieiro was 44 when he died in 1985 — as did his climbing partner — while descending Argentina’s Tupungato lava dome, one of the highest peaks in the Americas. Last year, his backpack was spotted on a slope by mountaineer Gabriela Cavallaro, who examined it and contacted Vieiro’s daughters Guadalupe, 40, and Azul, 44. Last month, the three set out with four other guides
Local officials from Russia’s ruling party have caused controversy by presenting mothers of soldiers killed in Ukraine with gifts of meat grinders, an appliance widely used to describe Russia’s brutal tactics on the front line. The United Russia party in the northern Murmansk region posted photographs on social media showing officials smiling as they visited bereaved mothers with gifts of flowers and boxed meat grinders for International Women’s Day on Saturday, which is widely celebrated in Russia. The post included a message thanking the “dear moms” for their “strength of spirit and the love you put into bringing up your sons.” It
DISASTROUS VISIT: The talks in Saudi Arabia come after an altercation at the White House that led to the Ukrainian president leaving without signing a minerals deal Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy was due to arrive in Saudi Arabia yesterday, a day ahead of crucial talks between Ukrainian and US officials on ending the war with Russia. Highly anticipated negotiations today on resolving the three-year conflict would see US and Ukrainian officials meet for the first time since Zelenskiy’s disastrous White House visit last month. Zelenskiy yesterday said that he would meet Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the nation’s de facto leader, after which his team “will stay for a meeting on Tuesday with the American team.” At the talks in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah, US
RSS