Q: The Kremlin wanted their person in charge of Moscow as we approach these important elections. But you were someone the Kremlin turned to in the past. What changed, what made them decide you were no longer a mayor they could depend on and that you would become a threat to them?
Luzhkov: It would be more appropriate to ask President Dmitry Medvedev that question. The thing is that today there are only two figures that can realistically count on becoming a president of Russia - Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev. Medvedev was not confident enough to believe that if there ever was competition between him and Putin in the future, that the position of Moscow mayor and the Muscovites would be in his favor, not Putin's. That is why this decision was taken, the reason was found, but this is the real reason.
Q: Isn't the real reason that you publicly criticized president Dmitry Medvedev, that you broke the unwritten golden rule of Russian politics?
Luzhkov: First of all, the mayor of Moscow has always been an independent figure throughout the past 20 years, no matter who the president was. Moscow was independent in its positioning towards the processes going on in the country. And of course the authorities didn't like that independence. Moscow has been the only major city, the only Russian region which allowed itself to behave independently. The government dislikes not just the opposition but also those who dare to speak their opinion or question the decision of the authorities. Moscow has done that many a time in the past 18 years or so, and that has been an irritating factor. Right now, things will become more smooth for the authorities.
Q: Do you believe that is the reason? Isn't it true that the real reason that you were fired is because you overstepped that line?
