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Russia election: Putin to run again for president

Russia's Vladimir Putin has said he will seek another term as president in next year's election.

He made the announcement in a speech to workers at a car factory in the Volga city of Nizhny Novgorod.

"I will put forward my candidacy for the post of president of the Russian federation," he said.

Mr Putin has been in power since 2000, either as president or prime minister. If he wins the March election he will be eligible to serve until 2024.

Russian TV journalist Ksenia Sobchak has already said she will stand in the election but opinion polls suggest Mr Putin will win easily.

Russia's main opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, has been formally barred from standing because he was found guilty of embezzlement - a charge he claims was politically motivated.

Russia's action man president
Reality Check: Who's buying the Putin calendar?
Happy bot-day, Mr President

Mr Putin is popular with many Russians, who see him as a strong leader who has restored Russia's global standing with a decisive military intervention in the Syrian civil war and Russia's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.

But his critics accuse him of facilitating corruption and illegally annexing Crimea, which has led to international condemnation.

Media captionPutin was given a puppy by Turkmenistan for his birthday

Vladimir Putin: From spy to president

Born 7 October 1952 in Leningrad (now St Petersburg)

Studies law and joins KGB after university

Serves as a spy in communist East Germany - some ex-KGB comrades later get top state posts in Putin era

1990s - top aide to St Petersburg mayor Anatoly Sobchak, who had previously taught him law

Enters Boris Yeltsin's Kremlin in 1997, made chief of Federal Security Service (the FSB - main successor of the KGB), then prime minister

New Year's Eve, 1999 - Yeltsin quits and names him acting president

Easily wins presidential election in March 2000

Wins a second term in 2004

Is barred from running for a third successive term by the Russian constitution, but instead becomes prime minister

Wins a third presidential term in 2012
Putin still in fashion 15 years on

Vladimir Putin's formative German years

Trump hits back at Theresa May: 'Focus on destructive Islamic terrorism within UK, not me'

Trump has hit back at British PM Theresa May late Wednesday on her criticism of anti-Muslim propaganda by Trump.

US President Donald Trump has hit back at British Prime Minister Theresa May late Wednesday on her criticism of anti-Muslim propaganda by Trump.

The diplomatic row between the two leaders is a high-profile spat with one of America's closest international partners.

Trump wrote on Twitter, "@theresa_may, don't focus on me, focus on the destructive Radical Islamic Terrorism that is taking place within the United Kingdom. We are doing just fine

.@Theresa_May, don’t focus on me, focus on the destructive Radical Islamic Terrorism that is taking place within the United Kingdom. We are doing just fine!

Earlier, in a rare rebuke to Britain's closest ally, British Prime Minister Theresa May's spokesman said Wednesday that pU.S. President Donald Trum was wrong to re-tweet videos posted by a leader of a British far-right group.

But, Downing St. rejected calls from opposition lawmakers to revoke Trump's invitation to pay a state visit to Britain.

The tiny extremist group, meanwhile, appeared delighted at the publicity boost from a leader with almost 44 million Twitter followers.

Trump drew sharp criticism from both government and opposition politicians in Britain after re-tweeting three videos from the account of deputy Britain First leader Jayda Fransen purporting to show violence by Muslims.

In response, Labour Party lawmaker David Lammy tweeted: "@realDonaldTrump you are not welcome in my country and my city." Another Labour legislator, Chuka Umunna, said Trump's invitation to visit Britain "should be withdrawn."

Trump sharing Britain First. Let that sink in. The President of the United States is promoting a fascist, racist, extremist hate group whose leaders have been arrested and convicted. He is no ally or friend of ours. @realDonaldTrump you are not welcome in my country and my cite

Labour lawmaker Chris Bryant went so far as saying that , should be arrested for inciting religious hatred if he came to the U.K.

May announced in January that Trump had accepted an invitation for a state visit to Britain, one of the highest honours the country can bestow on a foreign leader. Almost a year later, no date has been set, and opponents of Trump have vowed to stage large protests if he does come.

May's spokesman, James Slack, said it was "wrong" for the president to have re-tweeted Britain First. He said the group seeks to divide communities through its use of "hateful narratives which peddle lies and stoke tensions."

May's office said the state visit would not be cancelled, but Trump's online activity drew rebukes from government ranks.

Communities Secretary Sajid Javid, who is Muslim, tweeted that Trump "has endorsed the views of a vile, hate-filled racist organization that hates me and people like me. He is wrong and I refuse to let it go and say nothing."

Brushing off the criticism in an evening tweet, Trump said May instead of focusing on him should "focus on the destructive Radical Islamic Terrorism that is taking place within the United Kingdom."

Founded in 2011, Britain First opposes multiculturalism and what it calls the "Islamization" of Britain.

Small but publicity-savvy, it has staged direct-action protests at mosques and is active on social media.

The group regularly posts inflammatory videos purporting to show violence by Muslims, without context or supporting information.

Fransen, 31, was convicted last year of religiously aggravated harassment after hurling abuse at a Muslim woman wearing a hijab during what was billed as a "Christian patrol" in the town of Luton, north of London.

She currently faces four unrelated counts of harassment relating to leaflets and videos and a separate charge of hate speech.

Trump's retweets were a major publicity boost for the group, whose own Twitter account is followed by about 24,000 others.

Fransen tweeted: "God bless you Trump! God bless America!" in capital letters to her followers, whose number grew by several thousand to about 60,000 in the hours after the boost from the president