Moscow ? President Vladimir Putin’s push to revive Russian global clout reaches a symbolic milestone today when Moscow assumes the rotating presidency of the Group of Eight industrial nations.

It’s a position that some critics say Putin doesn’t deserve because of his government’s rollback on freedoms in Russia.

Putin has suggested this summer’s G-8 summit in his home city of St. Petersburg focus on energy security, reflecting Moscow’s aspirations to convert oil wealth into political influence. It hopes projects like a prospective Baltic Sea pipeline to deliver Russian natural gas to western Europe would bolster its clout and muzzle Western criticism of its democracy record.

While the other members of the G-8 club – the world’s seven wealthiest countries – have voiced concern about Russia’s backtracking on democracy under Putin, they will likely avoid strong criticism to help Russia maintain a respectable profile as their chairman.

The Group of Seven – the United States, Japan, Germany, Britain, France, Italy and Canada – first sought to engage Russia in 1991, inviting participation by then-Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev to encourage his campaign to reform the Soviet Union.