MOSCOW, October 1 (RIA Novosti) - The United States failed to take adequate steps in response to the global financial crisis, the Russian prime minister said Wednesday.
"What is happening today, and it is known to have started in the United States in the sphere of economics and finances, is due not to the irresponsibility of certain people, but the irresponsibility of a system that claimed to be the leader," Vladimir Putin told a government meeting.
The $700 billion package of measures to stabilize the financial system drafted by the Bush administration was rejected Monday by the House of Representatives, which led to record falls on U.S. stock markets.
The Senate was to discuss and vote on a revised version of the stabilization package Wednesday.
