Russian President Pution was named Time maganzine's "Person of the Year"
 
Russian President Vladimir Putin was named Time magazine's "Person of the Year" on Wednesday for imposing¹ stability that restored Russia as a world power.

The magazine recognized Putin's "extraordinary feat² of leadership in taking a country that was in chaos³ and bringing it stability," said Richard Stengel, Time's managing editor.

The magazine noted⁴ that "Person of the Year" is not an honor or an endorsement⁵ but a recognition of leadership that shapes the world.

Putin, 55, is enormously popular in Russia, presiding over a resurgent economy flush with revenue from oil and natural gas.

Putin recently endorsed⁶ vice-PM Dmitry Medvedev's presidential bid, and said he would accept Medvedev's offer to serve as prime minister if Medvedev is elected March 2.

The Kremlin said Wednesday the Time recognition was seen there as an acknowledgment of Putin's role in helping⁷ Russia pull out of its social and economic troubles in the 1990s.

Others considered for Person of the Year included Nobel Prize-winner Al Gore⁸ and author J.K. Rowling.

This year's choice was a return to the magazine's tradition of picking an individual rather than last year's choice of “You”, which refers to anyone creating or using content on the World Wide Web.

Putin is the fifth Russian (or Soviet) leader to be named Person of the Year: Gorbachev, Andropov, Khrushchev and Stalin, who was named twice.

本周三，俄罗斯总统普京被《时代》杂志评为“2007年度人物”。普京之所以当选，是因为他在执政期间稳定了俄罗斯的政局，使俄罗斯重归世界强国之列。

该杂志执行总编理查德•斯坦格尔说，《时代》杂志赞赏普京“作为领导人所取得的卓越成绩，他领导俄罗斯从混乱走向稳定”。

《时代》杂志指出，“年度人物”不是一项荣誉，也不是一种认可，而是对改变世界的个人或力量的承认。

55岁的普京总统在俄罗斯深受爱戴，在他的领导下，以石油和天然气为支柱的俄罗斯经济走上了全面复苏的道路。

近日，普京支持副总理梅德韦杰夫参加俄罗斯下届总统选举。他表示，如果梅德韦杰夫明年3月2日当选总统，他将接受梅德韦杰夫的邀请，出任国家总理。

克里姆林宫于本周三表示，普京当选《时代》年度人物是《时代》杂志对其政绩的承认，普京总统带领俄罗斯走出了上世纪90年代的社会和经济困境。

其他几位年度人物候选人包括诺贝尔奖得主艾尔•戈尔和作家J·K•罗琳。

今年《时代》年度人物的评选又恢复了以往选择单个人的传统，去年的年度人物是“你”，代表创造和使用互联网内容的所有用户。

普京是第五位当选《时代》年度人物的俄罗斯（包括前苏联）领导人，其他几位领导人包括：戈尔巴乔夫、安德罗波夫、赫鲁晓夫以及曾两次当选的斯大林。

Vocabulary:

flush with:having a lot of sth, esp money; well supplied（充足；例如：flush with funds 资金充足）