Russia

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Protesters chant slogans against the Syrian regime and Russia's support of President Bashar Assad, seen in a poster with a shoe on his face, in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, on Sunday, June 17, 2012. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)

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Protesters chant slogans against the Syrian regime and Russia's support of President Bashar Assad as they hold a burned banner depicting Mr. Assad (right) and his brother, Maher Assad (left), in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, on Sunday, June 17, 2012. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)

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Protesters chant slogans against the Syrian regime and Russia's support of President Bashar Assad as they burn a banner Sunday depicting Mr. Assad, his brother, Maher Assad, and Russian President Vladimir Putin in the port city of Sidon, Lebanon. (Associated Press)

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President Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet Monday on the sidelines of the Group of 20 economic gathering in Mexico. Mr. Obama needs Russia to help, or at least not hurt, U.S. foreign policy aims in the Middle East and Afghanistan. It will be the leaders' first meeting since Mr. Putin returned to Russia's top job. (Associated Press)

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Ksenia Sobchak, a 30-year-old blond socialite and TV personality, has taken an unusual path into the ranks of Russia's protest leaders. President Vladimir Putin is rumored to be Miss Sobchak's godfather. (Associated Press)

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Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov speaks June 15, 2012, at a news conference in Moscow. (Associated Press)

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** FILE ** Anti-corruption blogger Alexei Navalny speaks to the media as he arrives for questioning at the headquarters of Russia's Investigation Committee in Moscow on Wednesday, June 13, 2012. (AP Photo/Misha Japaridze)

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A woman holds a caricature depicting Russian President Vladimir Putin during an opposition rally in St. Petersburg, Russia, on Tuesday. The rally came a day after policed raided the homes of protest leaders. Opposition figures likened the raids to the repression of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin. (Associated Press)