In the wake of Vladimir Putin's resounding election victory, Russian police rounded up more than 500 demonstrators at unauthorized opposition rallies and some who refused to disperse after a sanctioned event on Monday night.

The protesters had taken to the streets in Moscow and St. Petersburg to question the legitimacy of Putin's claim to the presidency  amid allegations of election fraud. For months, the opposition had managed to stage peaceful protests ahead of the vote, but following Monday night's arrests by riot police, leaders accused Putin of using tougher methods to crack down on their movement.

A number of those arrested were reportedly released quickly, though some were said to be threatened with brief jail sentences.

"The use of force and detention of opposition politicians could have been avoided," defeated presidential candidate Mikhail Prokhorov said in postings on Twitter and Facebook late on Monday. "It was a peaceful rally. I am outraged by the use of force against people who came to express their views. Today's events at Pushkin Square broke the tradition of the recent peaceful protest rallies in the country."

Some protesters were reportedly hurt in scuffles with police, but the overriding restraint shown by most officers was seen as an indication that Putin  hoped to avoid criticism. Still, police had warned opposition leaders to stay in check and advised demonstrators to avoid unauthorized gatherings.

Putin's Spokesman Defends Arrests

In a Twitter post on Monday night US Ambassador to Russia  Michael McFaul said the arrests were "troubling," adding that "freedom of assembly and freedom of speech are universal values."

But Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov defended the arrests made in Pushkin Square, telling news agency RIA Novosti that during both legal and illegal opposition protests, police had shown a "high level of professionalism, legitimacy and effectiveness."

While they have emphasized their desire to continue working with Russia, the US and a number of European countries have expressed worries about alleged election fraud on Sunday. As with the Dec. 4 parliamentary poll, observers reported voting irregularities. Putin received landslide support of nearly 64 percent, though independent monitoring organization Golos claimed that without the fraud he would have registered only just over 50 percent.

Meanwhile a follow-up protest has been planned for Saturday in Moscow. The opposition -- made up mainly of urban, middle class professionals who long for more democracy -- faces the challenge of coming together  to further their cause.

Germany's commissioner for German-Russian cooperation, Andreas Schockenhoff, urged Putin to engage in dialogue with Russian society. A new middle class that wants more than just material security has emerged in the country, he told daily Ruhr Nachrichten on Tuesday. "Putin regards them as opponents, but they aren't," he said. "Status quo doesn't mean stability, it means stagnation."

Commentators for German dailies on Tuesday also consider what might come next for Putin and his opponents:

The center-right daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes:

"Putin masquerades as the sole politician powerful enough to bring about the shift to democracy that only he allegedly desires. That Putin actually wants to allow more democracy is questionable because too much -- such as actions taken against the media and recently the independent organization for electoral observation 'Golos' -- indicates that he's not particularly serious. Moreover, the projects to reform the political system appear to be placebos aiming at defusing the situation without any fundamental improvements."

"The distrust among the protesters after the fraud during the Duma election is too great to believe Putin's claim that the presidential election was aboveboard. There will be further demonstrations, and conflicts can't be ruled out."

"Another matter is whether Putin's unending accusations that America wants to destabilize Russia will disrupt the relationship between the two countries in the long run. As a rule, foreign policy posturing during campaigns isn't taken too seriously abroad. But if the new beginning initiated by Obama fails to meet expectations while the election campaign rules America, or a deep disagreement arises between Russia and the US over policy for the Middle East or Iran, then a real cooling of the relationship can't be ruled out for a time. This would affect Europe too. Should this become the case, there would be plenty to do. For instance, resurrecting the same kind of arms control as a means of building trust that was used some years ago when Russia was in the midst of an election campaign and anti-American sentiments reached a climax. But ultimately, the world can't afford this kind of discord."

Conservative daily Die Welt writes:

"With (Putin's victory) the protest movement has reached a new phase. The demonstrators now know that those who want to change Russia need patience. To avoid allowing Putin's extended czardom from becoming lost time for Russia, the opposition must try to rebuild the country from the bottom up. (…) Only widening the civic spirit and engagement shown in recent months can lead Russia out of a dead end. But the opposition should also use the time to install more youthful leadership."

"At the beginning of his leadership, Putin stabilized the country and helped bring back a bit of pride. But this has since been exhausted. Stability has turned into despotism. … The Putin model has also reached its limits. Thus the czar in the Kremlin will have to take care, lest his managed democracy collapse as quickly as the Soviet Union. It failed because of torpor -- and because it was broke."

Center-left daily Süddeutsche Zeitung writes:

"For Putin, it is no longer about victory or defeat. The new (old) president must now find a way to include the opposition and win them back for the country -- an opposition that has filled the streets with hundreds of thousands of protesters since last December. Such a project appears to be almost impossible following the verbal assaults made in the heat of the campaign. But Putin has to try, because his and Russia's future depends on it."

"Those who have taken to the streets since December … are young, well-educated and worldly. They are not just angry due to widespread disregard of abstract democratic principles. Rather, each day they realize anew that there is no room for them in Russia. Young scientists, who don't want to become part of the corrupt apparatus in universities. Young businesspeople, who not only expect to be extorted out of part of their profits, but also out of their entire company."

"Small steps are necessary for political rapprochement to succeed. Putin must first tone down his rhetoric: During the campaign he referred to the demonstrators as a band of apes and as traitors. Hardly a foundation for mutual trust. Medvedev set a good example by inviting opposition representatives to round-table discussions, ordering the verdict against the imprisoned oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky to be reviewed and promising to rethink the ban on the liberal People's Freedom Party. Putin's most difficult challenge, however, will be sharing power. Because rapprochement does not necessarily mean fealty."

The left-leaning daily Die Tageszeitung writes:

"Should leading representatives of the German business community rejoice over Putin's expected reelection? They don't even know the answer to that question themselves."

"In the past, that had always been different. In contrast to his predecessor Boris Yeltsin, Putin had always been considered to be calculable and, thus, a guarantor of stability. The fact that, after coming to power in 2000, Russia developed into an autocratic system in which human rights violations are part of everyday life, the opposition is pressured and even deactivated, and in which rule of law has no application, is only of marginal interest to German businessmen and women. What they care about most is that the rubels and euros continue to flow."