Moscow, Mar.11 (ANI): US Vice President Joe Biden, has said Russia is being held back by corruption and the Kremlin's reluctance to embrace democracy, adding that attempts to modernize Russia's economy without political reform were likely to fail.
In a speech given at the Moscow State University during his weeklong European visit, Biden said: " Do not compromise on the basic tenets of democracy, you need not make that Faustian bargain."
After his meeting with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, Biden said he did not want to lecture the Russians, but ended up delivering a speech in which he criticized almost every part of Russia's political and legal system.
Biden said: " Get your system right, Modernization in every way is essential," adding that corruption was scaring off foreign investors.
He also addressed issues related to poblems in business investment, citing the case of Sergei Magnitsky, a lawyer who was arrested and died in custody in 2009 after accusing the police of corruption, demonstrators who were beaten and detained last year while advocating for the right to peacefully assemble, and Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the Russian oligarch whose second trial on new charges of embezzlement and money laundering was clouded with allegations of misconduct, The Telegraph reports.
During his visit, Biden set out to build a succeddful 'reset' of US- Russian relations over the past two years and discussed international security issues as well as nore sensitive issues like domestic economic growth in both countries and political reforms in Russia. (ANI)
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