CBS News White House correspondent Mark Knoller tweeted Friday that President Obama called Russian president-elect Vladimir Putin from Air Force One to congratulate him on his victory in the 2012 Russian presidential race. According to Knoller at 11:26 AM:
Pres. Obama phoning congratulations from AF-1 to Pres-elect Vladimir Putin of Russia.
Putin’s political opponents have accused the Russian prime minister and president-elect of engaging in voter fraud to win the 2012 race, leading to protests this week in Moscow. Putin himself acknowledged "irregularities" suggesting voter fraud in the election, but claimed that they were too small to influence the election results.