Putin Defies Critics in Last Bow

Today may have been Vladimir Putin’s final press conference as Russia's president, but he made it clear he won’t be going far, the New York Times reports. Putin said he would remain a force in the Kremlin, as “there’s enough power to go 'round,” Bloomberg adds. He defied international criticism, refusing to withdraw recent threats to aim nuclear weapons at Eastern Europe.

Putin condemned the idea of a US missile-defense system in Europe and criticized NATO for overstepping its bounds. Russia, he said, must respond by increasing its own nuclear defenses. “We will have to re-target our missiles on the objects that we think threaten our national security,” he said. Putin plans to become prime minister after Russia chooses his successor March 2. (More Vladimir Putin stories.)