World

No Obamamania in Russia?

by sivakaran | July 7, 2009 at 11:44 am

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Barack Obama's visits at home and abroad have garnered adoring crowds and cheers during his visits. But in Russia, there was no cheering crowds, but just some smiles and waves, perhaps the reflection of relationship between Russia and U.S.A.

Feted in many countries as a global superstar and accustomed to rapturous welcomes when he travels at home and abroad, the U.S. president received a more muted response during two days of talks in Moscow.

Instead of cheering crowds lining the streets, Obama's motorcade was greeted with some smiles and waves as it sped through the Russian capital. Most people looked on, showing little reaction.

The cooler reception reflects Russia's testy relations with the United States

According to a parliamentary secretary, Russia maybe the one country without Obamamania, stated, for us, he is not president of the world but only of the USA.

"We are maybe the one country in the world where there is no Obamamania," Sergei Markov, a parliamentary deputy from the ruling United Russia party, told Reuters.

"For us he is not president of the world but the president of the United States of America."

However, a recent graduate of the Moscos's New Economic School suggested, it only seem that we're not that excited. The lack of crowd is due to people's busy lives, and Obama's schedule.

Tuesday, a major speech by the president at Moscow's New Economic School was greeted with no more than polite applause.

"We have a different way of expression. Maybe it only seems that we're not that excited," said Mikhail Panfilov, 26, a recent graduate of the school, adding he thought the event was "extraordinary."

He suggested that people's busy lives and ignorance of Obama's schedule accounted for the low turnout to greet him. "Russian people have a lot of problems. They have a lot of work. They have no time to go and make crowds."