"We don't hesitate to point out to President Putin that he should use the popularity that he has to broaden the political dialogue and not use his popularity to throttle political dialogue and openness in the society," Mr Powell said.
That prompted a rebuke from Mr Putin, who said the 2000 Florida election fiasco showed the weaknesses of US democracy. Some people "see the splinter in another's eye and ignore the log in his own", he said.

"We may not find the stockpiles. They may not exist any longer. But let's not suggest that somehow we knew this" before the war, Powell said on ABC's "This Week." "We went to the United Nations, we went to the world with the best information we had. Nothing that was cooked."

Last night some 3000 people staged a spontaneous demonstration outside the Popular Party?s offices in Madrid chanting ?We want the truth before voting?, ?Who did it??, ?Our dead, your war? ?No more cover-ups? and ?Aznar, because of you, we all pay?. Some demonstrators were beaten by police in riot gear.

The El Pais newspaper, which has strongly criticised Aznar?s government, said that Spain?s foreign minister, Ana Palacio, had written to ambassadors within hours of the explosions, saying in a memo: ?You should use any opportunity to confirm ETA?s responsibility for these brutal attacks, thus helping to dissipate any type of doubt that certain interested parties may want to promote.?
Both US and UK intelligence agencies suspected from the end of last year that al-Qaeda wanted to blow up a train as it went through a station. The bombs on the four trains that were attacked in Madrid were all meant to detonate as they converged on one station, bringing down the roof and killing thousands.

Asked on CNN's "Late Edition" if the war in Iraq was worthwhile given that 564 U.S. soldiers have died there, Rumsfeld said, "Oh, my goodness, yes. There's just no question ... 25 million people in Iraq are free."

Kwiatkowski's right-wing critics could not challenge her facts, not a single one, so they immediately reached for the tar brush.