MOSCOW. Nov 3 (Interfax) - George W. Bush's re-election as U.S. president would mean the U.S. people "haven't let themselves be intimidated by terrorists," Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday.

"If Bush wins, I'll be glad that the American people haven't let themselves be intimidated by terrorists and have made a decision that was appropriate," Putin told a news conference.

Putin explained that terrorists had sought to prevent Bush being re-elected and that a sensational anti-Bush statement by international terrorism suspect Osama bin Laden days before the U.S. election was "the best corroboration of this thesis."