Putin restores Soviet era tune as national anthem
Tuesday, 26 December 2000 11:03
Russia's President, Vladimir Putin, has signed into law a bill restoring a tune from the Soviet era as Russia's national anthem. The tune, with new lyrics, will replace an anthem introduced by Mr Putin's predecessor, Boris Yeltsin. Liberal politicians and intellectuals had protested against reinstating the old anthem, which was chosen by the dictator Joseph Stalin in 1943.
Meanwhile, Russia's Defence Minister, Igor Sergeyev, arrives in Iran today to begin a three-day visit that is being viewed with misgiving by the United States. The visit is aimed at developing military co-operation and an arms trade between Moscow and Tehran. Last month, Russia told the United States it was scrapping a five-year-old agreement not to sell arms to Iran. The White House responded by warning that trade ties could suffer as a result.
