Free Republic

Putin poll rival tells of 'kidnap' By Anton La Guardia, Diplomatic Editor (Filed: 14/02/2004) A fierce critic of President Vladimir Putin who vanished for several days claimed yesterday that he was kidnapped, drugged and filmed in a "revolting" video designed to compromise him. Ivan Rybkin Ivan Rybkin, who is standing in the presidential election next month, said in London his life was in danger and he would conduct the rest of his campaign by video link and television advertisements. Mr Rybkin was reported missing by his wife last week but he reappeared five days later in Kiev and flew back...

LONDON (AP) - A Russian presidential candidate who disappeared for several days said Friday that he was drugged and made the subject of a compromising videotape while being held by unknown captors in Ukraine. Liberal candidate Ivan Rybkin said that he intended to actively pursue his presidential campaign but that he would do so from London because of fears for his safety. Rybkin initially said he had simply been taking a break in Kiev, Ukraine's capital, when he surfaced there earlier this week after his family and campaign staff had reported him missing. He told a packed news conference in...

Russian presidential hopeful Rybkin says he was drugged and kidnapped. Russia's presidential hopeful Ivan Rybkin, who mysteriously disappeared for five days, said Friday that he was drugged, kidnapped and kept unconscious by captors who had lured him to Ukraine. Rybkin, who said the incident involved a murky attempt involving a video tape to "compromise" him, also announced he would not withdraw from the March 14 Russian elections and told a London press conference he would conduct his campaign from Western Europe. Rybkin said that he had gone to Ukraine on the understanding that he would be meeting Chechen rebel leader...

Russia's Missing Candidate Surfaces Putin Foe Says He Visited Friends By Peter Baker Washington Post Foreign Service Wednesday, February 11, 2004; Page A24 MOSCOW, Feb. 10 -- The fate of Russia's disappearing presidential candidate cleared up Tuesday when he turned up alive and seemingly well in Ukraine. But the mystery of what really happened to him only deepened. Ivan Rybkin, a former parliamentary speaker mounting a long-shot challenge to President Vladimir Putin in the March 14 election, returned to Moscow on an evening flight, saying he had simply gone to see friends in Kiev and was stunned to learn that...

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian presidential candidate Ivan Rybkin, whose mystery disappearance triggered speculation he might have been kidnapped by rivals, turned up in Ukraine Tuesday where he said he had been taking a break. Rybkin, a fierce critic of President Vladimir Putin whom he will challenge in next month's election, told Russian media he was surprised at the fuss caused by his failure to contact family and aides. "I didn't disappear anywhere. I bought a newspaper today and was stunned," Ekho Moskvy radio quoted him as saying. Rybkin, who disappeared last Thursday, told Interfax news agency that he was entitled...

<p>Ever since I announced that I was the democratic opposition candidate in Russia's presidential elections, my friends in the West have asked me why I'm bothering to run when everyone says that Vladimir Putin is certain to be re-elected. Russia and the West, I reply, need a legitimate independent candidate who is not afraid to challenge Mr. Putin.</p>

MOSCOW (Reuters) - The mystery surrounding missing Russian presidential candidate Ivan Rybkin deepened Monday in a swirl of media speculation about his fate, Kremlin silence and attempts by officials to play down the affair. The bizarre disappearance of Rybkin, 57, a fierce critic of President Vladimir Putin, on the night of Feb. 5 injected drama into the run-up to a March 14 election that Putin is widely expected to win easily, securing a second term.Rybkin's wife, Albina, suggested that the ally of exiled entrepreneur and Putin foe Boris Berezovsky had been kidnapped. But even his aides were wary of that...

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian police have launched a hunt for a political rival of President Vladimir Putin set to challenge him in forthcoming elections after his wife reported him missing since Thursday night. Ivan Rybkin, a strong critic of Putin, is one of a finalised list of candidates for a March 14 election which Putin is widely expected to win easily, securing a second term in the Kremlin. Rybkin's wife officially reported him missing on Sunday and police called on FSB state security to help in the search. "His wife has made a report," a police spokesman said. "He left...