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{{Document | {{Document | ||
− | | | + | |title=Vladimir Putin interview with Gilles Bouleau and Lean-Pierre Elkabbach |
− | | | + | |publication_date=2014/06/04 |
|type=interview | |type=interview | ||
|description=Vladimir Putin interview with two French media men on the eve of his visit to France for the 70th anniversary commemoration of the Allied Normandy landings | |description=Vladimir Putin interview with two French media men on the eve of his visit to France for the 70th anniversary commemoration of the Allied Normandy landings | ||
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|draft=No | |draft=No | ||
|collection=No | |collection=No | ||
− | | | + | |authors=Vladimir Putin |
|subjects=Russia, Ukraine coup 2014, The Great Game | |subjects=Russia, Ukraine coup 2014, The Great Game | ||
− | | | + | |constitutes=Interview |
|source_name=Kremlin web site | |source_name=Kremlin web site | ||
|AuthorDetail=President of the Russian Federation | |AuthorDetail=President of the Russian Federation | ||
− | | | + | |source_URL=http://eng.kremlin.ru/transcripts/22441 |
|image=PutinFrenchInterview.jpeg | |image=PutinFrenchInterview.jpeg | ||
|comment=Ask yourself what other contemporary major-power leader would be both willing to grant such a predictably hostile interview and able to conduct him/herself in such a calm measured, polite, indulgent and informative fashion - and in addition, if not comprehensively ignored, would be spun and distorted in a similarly hostile fashion by the {{ccm}} | |comment=Ask yourself what other contemporary major-power leader would be both willing to grant such a predictably hostile interview and able to conduct him/herself in such a calm measured, polite, indulgent and informative fashion - and in addition, if not comprehensively ignored, would be spun and distorted in a similarly hostile fashion by the {{ccm}} | ||
|authors_note=In the run-up to his visit to France, Vladimir Putin gave an interview to Radio Europe 1 news programme author and frontman Jean-Pierre Elkabbach and anchor of the evening news on TF1 TV channel Gilles Bouleau. The interview was conducted through intepreters and recorded on 3 June 2014 in Sochi. | |authors_note=In the run-up to his visit to France, Vladimir Putin gave an interview to Radio Europe 1 news programme author and frontman Jean-Pierre Elkabbach and anchor of the evening news on TF1 TV channel Gilles Bouleau. The interview was conducted through intepreters and recorded on 3 June 2014 in Sochi. | ||
− | | | + | |note='''Image right:''' Vladimir Putin during the recording of an interview with the French media. With Gilles Bouleau of TF1 TV channel (left) and Jean-Pierre Elkabbach from Radio Europe 1. 3 June 2014 |
− | | | + | |declassified=No |
}} | }} | ||
'''Question:''' Good afternoon Mr President. Good afternoon, President Putin. Thank you very much for agreeing to give this exclusive interview to Radio Europe 1 and the TF1 TV channel at your Sochi residence. On Thursday evening you will meet with President Francois Hollande in the Elysee Palace, and the next day you will attend the D-Day 70th Anniversary Commemoration. This will be your first trip to the beaches of Normandy, and you will be the first Russian President to attend the ceremony. What do you as a Russian citizen think about being invited to this exceptional ceremony? | '''Question:''' Good afternoon Mr President. Good afternoon, President Putin. Thank you very much for agreeing to give this exclusive interview to Radio Europe 1 and the TF1 TV channel at your Sochi residence. On Thursday evening you will meet with President Francois Hollande in the Elysee Palace, and the next day you will attend the D-Day 70th Anniversary Commemoration. This will be your first trip to the beaches of Normandy, and you will be the first Russian President to attend the ceremony. What do you as a Russian citizen think about being invited to this exceptional ceremony? | ||
Line 29: | Line 29: | ||
This is what we want, and this is what we will keep working towards. We see no other way to develop relations with our neighbours and all other countries. | This is what we want, and this is what we will keep working towards. We see no other way to develop relations with our neighbours and all other countries. | ||
}} | }} | ||
− | '''Question:''' Do you want to defend the Russian nation or to become the symbol of Russian nationalism and the Russian Empire? We remember what you said about the Soviet Union’s dissolution. You said that it was the worst geopolitical disaster of the | + | '''Question:''' Do you want to defend the Russian nation or to become the symbol of Russian nationalism and the Russian Empire? We remember what you said about the Soviet Union’s dissolution. You said that it was the worst geopolitical disaster of the 20<sup>th</sup> century. You also said that those who do not regret the collapse of the Soviet Union have no heart, and those who want to restore it have no brains. You have brains. What do you propose: Russian nationalism, or the restoration of the Russian Empire to its previous borders? |
− | {{Q|'''Vladimir Putin:''' We will not promote Russian nationalism, and we do not intend to revive the Russian Empire. What did I mean when I said that the Soviet Union’s collapse was one of the largest humanitarian – above all humanitarian – disasters of the | + | {{Q|'''Vladimir Putin:''' We will not promote Russian nationalism, and we do not intend to revive the Russian Empire. What did I mean when I said that the Soviet Union’s collapse was one of the largest humanitarian – above all humanitarian – disasters of the 20<sup>th</sup> century? I meant that all the citizens of the Soviet Union lived in a union state irrespective of their ethnicity, and after its collapse 25 million Russians suddenly became foreign citizens. It was a huge humanitarian disaster. Not a political or ideological disaster, but a purely humanitarian upheaval. Families were divided; people lost their jobs and means of subsistence, and had no means to communicate with each other normally. This was the problem. |
}} | }} | ||
'''Question:''' And what about the future? | '''Question:''' And what about the future? |
Latest revision as of 03:42, 5 July 2017
Vladimir Putin interview with two French media men on the eve of his visit to France for the 70th anniversary commemoration of the Allied Normandy landings |
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Subjects: Russia, Ukraine coup 2014, The Great Game
Example of: Interview
Source: Kremlin web site (Link)
Image right: Vladimir Putin during the recording of an interview with the French media. With Gilles Bouleau of TF1 TV channel (left) and Jean-Pierre Elkabbach from Radio Europe 1. 3 June 2014
Wikispooks Comment
Ask yourself what other contemporary major-power leader would be both willing to grant such a predictably hostile interview and able to conduct him/herself in such a calm measured, polite, indulgent and informative fashion - and in addition, if not comprehensively ignored, would be spun and distorted in a similarly hostile fashion by the commercially-controlled media
Author's Note
In the run-up to his visit to France, Vladimir Putin gave an interview to Radio Europe 1 news programme author and frontman Jean-Pierre Elkabbach and anchor of the evening news on TF1 TV channel Gilles Bouleau. The interview was conducted through intepreters and recorded on 3 June 2014 in Sochi.
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Vladimir Putin interview with Gilles Bouleau and Lean-Pierre Elkabbach
Question: Good afternoon Mr President. Good afternoon, President Putin. Thank you very much for agreeing to give this exclusive interview to Radio Europe 1 and the TF1 TV channel at your Sochi residence. On Thursday evening you will meet with President Francois Hollande in the Elysee Palace, and the next day you will attend the D-Day 70th Anniversary Commemoration. This will be your first trip to the beaches of Normandy, and you will be the first Russian President to attend the ceremony. What do you as a Russian citizen think about being invited to this exceptional ceremony?
Question: Of course, you and Russia will take your rightful place on the beaches of Normandy. You lived in the Soviet Union until you were 40, you saw its collapse, and now you are actively contributing to Russia’s revival. What would you like to see happen now? What are your goals? Is Russia’s strategy a path of dialogue or expansion and conquest?
This is what we want, and this is what we will keep working towards. We see no other way to develop relations with our neighbours and all other countries.
Question: Do you want to defend the Russian nation or to become the symbol of Russian nationalism and the Russian Empire? We remember what you said about the Soviet Union’s dissolution. You said that it was the worst geopolitical disaster of the 20th century. You also said that those who do not regret the collapse of the Soviet Union have no heart, and those who want to restore it have no brains. You have brains. What do you propose: Russian nationalism, or the restoration of the Russian Empire to its previous borders?
Question: And what about the future?
Do you want to restore the empire within the former borders or do you want to continue developing your country within your own borders?
Question: Mr Putin, we are now talking about why a neighbouring country, Ukraine, is being torn apart by war. There is no other word for it. Now pro-Russian forces want to breach Ukraine’s borders. Who can stop them and what is your policy?
For example, in Ukraine governors are still appointed by Kiev. After the anti-constitutional coup in Kiev last February, the first thing the new authorities tried to do was deprive the ethnic minorities of the right to use their native language. This caused great concern among the people living in eastern Ukraine.
Question: You did not let this happen but are you saying that we are on the verge of another Cold War?
Question: Is there any risk of a war? Now, as we see tanks on their way from Kiev, many people in France are asking this question. Were you tempted to send troops to eastern Ukraine?
Question: But now we see so much tension in politics. Yet despite this, you will be in Normandy speaking about peace while Barack Obama keeps urging Europe to arm itself.
Question: But, Mr President, the United States and the White House claim they have evidence that Russia intervened in the conflict, sent its troops and supplied weapons. They claim they have proof. Do you believe that?
Question: Are you saying the US is lying?
Question: So you do not want to annex Ukraine and you never tried to destabilise the situation there?
Question: The new Ukrainian president was elected on May 25 through a democratic vote. Do you recognise Mr Poroshenko as a legitimate president?
Question: In other words, if you meet him on 6 June on the beaches of Normandy, and if President Hollande helps to make this meeting possible, will you shake hands with him? Will you talk with him?
Question: But will you meet with Poroshenko? You said you would only work with him on the condition that he would not totally yield to US influence.
Question: Do you recognise Ukraine’s sovereignty and its neutral stance with respect to relations between Russia and the West?
Question: Mr President, Russian troops annexed Crimea recently. Will you ever give it back?
Question: But Crimea has been included on the map of Russia, the kind of maps we used in school. It’s part of Russia now. What was it, annexation or reunification? Which word should we use?
Russian troops were in Crimea under the international treaty on the deployment of the Russian military base. It’s true that Russian troops helped Crimeans hold a referendum on their (a) independence and (b) desire to join the Russian Federation. No one can prevent these people from exercising a right that is stipulated in Article 1 of the UN Charter, the right of nations to self-determination.
Question: In other words, you will not return Crimea [to Ukraine]? Crimea is Russia, is that it?
I want everyone to understand this clearly. We conducted an exclusively diplomatic and peaceful dialogue – I want to stress this – with our partners in Europe and the United States. In response to our attempts to hold such a dialogue and to negotiate an acceptable solution, they supported the anti-constitutional state coup in Ukraine, and following that we could not be sure that Ukraine would not become part of the North Atlantic military bloc. In that situation, we could not allow a historical part of the Russian territory with a predominantly ethnic Russian population to be incorporated into an international military alliance, especially because Crimeans wanted to be part of Russia. I am sorry, but we couldn’t act differently.
Question: So, Francois Hollande has invited you to France, to Paris and Normandy. You know him very well. Can you move further forward, and can you describe your relations as confidential?
Question: Do you think so, or are you sure?
But our personal relations have always been trust-based, which helps in work as well. I hope it will stay this way.
Question: You are talking about trust-based relations – both in defence and the economy. You have paid over a billion euros for two Mistral-class amphibious assault ships, and Russian naval officials are to visit Saint-Nazaire in a few days. Have you given them special permission to go to France?
Question: Despite external pressure, you have asked France to supply these assault ships – and if France does it you may place other orders as well, right?
Question: Do you think France is a sovereign and independent state whose opinion is respected? What do you think of Germany? You speak with Angela Merkel in both Russian and German, while François Hollande doesn’t speak Russian and you don’t speak French. Do you have a common language of communication?
Speaking of the level of sovereignty, I will say it again – any country that becomes a member of a military alliance gives away some of its sovereignty to a supranational body. For Russia, this would be unacceptable. As for other countries, it has nothing to do with us. They have to decide such matters for themselves. In this regard, I think of the Gaullist tradition and General Charles de Gaulle, who protected France’s sovereignty. I think this deserves respect. And there’s another example: François Mitterrand, who spoke of European confederation, with Russia as its member. I think this opportunity still exists and we will have it in the future.
Question: My next question concerns the United States. You will meet with Barack Obama in a few days, you will sit a few metres away from him. But he doesn’t seem to be willing to speak to you. What will this meeting be like and how will relations develop between the world’s richest country and its largest country? How can you avoid speaking to each other when there’s a real need for this since the war is not too far off?
Question: Because Ukraine is near Russia.
Question: And this is where the war is going on. When he mentioned the war, he said it is not far off.
Question: Do you think it should be stopped immediately?
As for my relations with Barack Obama, I have no reason whatsoever to believe he is not willing to talk to the President of Russia. But ultimately, it is his choice. I am always ready for dialogue, and I think that dialogue is the best way to bridge any gaps. We have been in contact until now, we have talked on the telephone regularly.
Question: Russia and the United States are experiencing some problems. Are these problems between two powers or between two people, Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin?
Question: So you are willing to talk and you regret what is happening? But don’t you think the United States is trying to surround Russia, to make you weaker as a leader and perhaps isolate you from the world? You are being very diplomatic now but you know the facts.
Of course, we can see attempts by the United States to pressure their allies by employing their obvious leadership in the Western community, in order to influence Russia’s policy.
Russia’s policy is based solely on its national interests. Of course, we take the opinions of our partners into account but we are guided by the interests of the Russian people.
Question: Mr President, it is very convenient that you are meeting with Mr Obama on June 6. Perhaps, it would be worse if you were meeting with Hillary Clinton. Only a few days ago, she said that what Russia is doing in Eastern Europe resembles what Hitler was doing in the 1930s.
Question: Women must be respected, of course, and I’m sure you respect them. Do you think she went too far? There is a lot of mockery and cartoons in the media – including those showing you. What was your first reaction? Were you angry? Did you want to get back at her or laugh? We have never seen you laugh.
There are basically no Russian troops abroad while US troops are everywhere. There are US military bases everywhere around the world and they are always involved in the fates of other countries even though they are thousands of kilometres away from US borders. So it is ironic that our US partners accuse us of breaching some of these rules.
Question: But you have taken some decisions regarding your defence budget. Are you as President taking any special decisions on security and defence now, because the general environment is more risky?
As for our [defence] budget, it has hardly grown in terms of percent of GDP, barely by one-tenth of a percent. But we want to rearm our army and navy based on modern, advanced technology, by reducing quantity and improving quality. We have a relevant rearmament programme, and it was not adopted yesterday or in response to the Ukrainian crisis. It has been our policy, which we will continue to implement.
Question: Mr President, Syrian leader Bashar Assad has been re-elected president without much effort. Can you influence him? Can you ask him to order his army to stop its atrocities, to stop fighting their own people?
Question: Religious, Islamic [organisations]…
Question: We don’t quite understand why you, Vladimir Putin, the man who wants to modernise Russia, support a person who is killing his own people, who is covered in their blood. How can this be?
Question: I’d like to ask you about your country, Russia. How would you describe its current political regime? Some describe it as a democracy, while others argue that Russia is so huge that it needs an iron hand. How does Vladimir Putin define the Putin regime?
Question: Can a person stand in opposition to the authorities in Russia without fear of losing his ties and reputation, without being punished?
Question: But is it possible to be a personal opponent of Vladimir Putin without exposing oneself to risks?
Question: There have always been periods of strict order and authoritarian power in Russia. But in the age of the Internet, can a country develop by restricting freedoms?
Question: And homosexuality. It is not pedophilia, it’s a different story.
Question: We would like to talk about the end of your term in 2018. We would like to talk about labour camps. We find such things surprising in the West. For example, Pussy Riot were sentenced to a term in labour camps, and it wasn’t just an ordinary prison. Will you close those camps by the end of your term?
Prisons where people can’t even work is the worst punishment you can think of. And I don’t think we should put all convicts in such facilities where people are deprived of their freedom. I think it is much worse than what you are describing.
Question: Who convinced you that you are carrying out a special mission for Russia?
Question: Do you have a role model in the Russian history? Are you guided by Soviet or Russian politics?
Question: And the last question, Mr President. In 2013, Forbes rated you as the most powerful person in the world. Were you flattered by this title?
With regard to cultural influence, we are proud of the Russian culture – literature, the arts and so on.
As for the economy, we are aware that we still have a lot to do before we reach the top. Although lately, we have made major strides forward and are now the fifth largest economy in the world. It is a success but we can do more.
Question: We don’t know yet how Vladimir Putin’s era will go down in history. What would you like to be remembered for? And would you like to be seen as a democrat or an authoritarian leader?
Question: Thank you very much. Have a good trip to France, Mr President. Good-bye.