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Putin gave his first interview in about three years to American television, the first excerpts of which were shown on NBC News on Saturday night. He answered the journalist’s questions in Russian and the television provided an English translation.
In an interview, the Russian leader called Biden, who became US president after “colorful” Trump, a “career man” who spent his entire life in politics.
Although Putin described relations with the United States as “the lowest in recent years,” he said he looked forward to working with Biden.
“I am very hopeful that there will be some advantages, some disadvantages, but there will be no impulsive moves by the current president of the United States,” Putin told NBC News.
“I think the former president of the United States, Trump, is an exceptional personality, a talented personality … He is a colorful personality. You may like it or not. But he did not come from the United States seat,” said the host of the Kremlin.
In a meeting with Putin in Geneva on Wednesday, Biden plans to raise several American complaints, including allegations of Russian interference in the elections and hacking.
Putin has openly admitted that during the 2016 elections he supported Trump, who expressed his admiration for the Russian leader, and at his first summit, the Republican appeared to agree with a statement by a Russian counterpart that Moscow did not intervene in the elections. from the United States. .
Biden has said he has no illusions about Putin and has equated him with a “murderer” after a series of high-profile incidents, including the assassination of Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov.
When asked directly in the interview if he was a “murderer”, Putin chuckled but did not answer “yes” or “no”.
“In the performance of my duties, I have become accustomed to the causes of attacks from all sides and in various fields, under various pretexts; to attacks of different caliber and severity, I’m not surprised, “he said, adding that the epithet” murderer “is part of the common Hollywood” coincidence “behavior.
According to him, such speech “is part of the American political culture where it is considered normal. By the way, here, no, this is not considered normal here, “said the Russian president.
He also called a Washington Post report a “lie” that Russia plans to introduce Iran with an advanced satellite system that would allow Tehran to track possible military targets.
“At least I don’t know anything about such things,” the Russian leader said from the Kremlin. “It’s really silly.”
According to NBC News reporter Keiro Simmons, Putin also said he was unaware of cyberattacks against the United States and asked Biden to sign a cyberspace agreement with Russia.
NBC News previously said that the full interview with Putin would be shown next Monday, two days before his meeting with Biden in Geneva on June 16, at the end of the US president’s first overseas trip.
Putin previously gave an interview to American television Fox News in 2018, when D. Trump was the president of the United States. Later that summer, Fox News reporter Chris Wallace met with the Russian leader.
This time, Putin interacted with Simmons, a British journalist who began his career in his homeland and later moved to the United States.
In the run-up to Putin and Biden’s meeting in Geneva, Russia’s ties with the United States have been the most tense since the end of the Cold War.
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