Pussy Riot: Power to join them? Russia wants to know.
A meeting between U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power and previously jailed members of the dissident Russian band Pussy Riot drew annoyance from Russian leaders, Wednesday.
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power (L) meets (L-R) Maria Alyokhina and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova of the Russian band Pussy Riot and Nadezha's husband Pyotr Verzilov in New York, Wednesday.
REUTERS/Louis Charbonneau
NEW YORK
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power on Wednesday discussed "disturbing" trends in聽Russia聽with previously jailed members of the Russian punk band Pussy Riot, prompting聽Moscow's U.N. envoy to ask if she was joining the group.
Power, who was well known for her own human rights activism before she joined the first administration of U.S. President聽Barack Obama聽after his 2008 election, met at the聽U.S. mission聽to the U.N. with聽Nadezhda Tolokonnikova聽and聽Maria Alyokhina聽ahead of their appearance at an all-star concert.
Power and the two band members discussed "the disturbing trend in (Russia) of legislation, prosecutions and government actions aimed at suppressing dissent and pressuring groups that advocate for fundamental human rights and basic government accountability," Power's deputy spokesman聽Kurtis Cooper聽said.
The case of聽Pussy Riot聽sparked a global outcry. In 2012 Tolokonnikova, 24, and Alyokhina, 25, were convicted of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred after storming聽Moscow's biggest聽Orthodox cathedral聽and beseeching the Virgin Mary to rid聽Russia聽of President聽Vladimir Putin.
Russian U.N. Ambassador聽Vitaly Churkin聽was asked about Power's roughly half-hour meeting with the two聽Pussy Riot聽members during a briefing at the聽Russia mission.
"She has not joined the band?" he asked. "I would expect her to invite them to perform at the聽National Cathedral聽in Washington. This is my expectation."
"Maybe they could arrange a world tour for them, you know," he said. "St Peter's Cathedral聽in聽Rome, then maybe in聽Mecca聽in聽Saudi Arabia, ending up with a gala concert at the Wailing Wall in聽Jerusalem. So if Ambassador Power fell short I would be disappointed."
Russia's leadership has not attempted to hide its annoyance when Washington criticizes聽Moscow聽for its human rights record. The Russian Federation has in turn accused the聽United States聽of rights abuses at home.
(Reporting by Louis Charbonneau and Michelle Nichols; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)