Putin Quotes

Vladimir Putin uses energy to hold our allies hostage. If energy is going to be used as a weapon, I say America must have the largest arsenal. ~ Rick Perry

Terrorists are always a threat to someone. If we'll be scared of them, it means they have won. ~ Vladimir Putin

Any minority's right to be different must be respected, but the right of the majority must not be questioned. Without the values at the core of Christianity and other world religions, without moral norms that have been shaped over millennia, people will inevitably lose their human dignity. ~ Vladimir Putin

I read papers, try to watch news programs on television, but, as a rule, recorded. During the day I have no time for that, so I watch something taped. As for the newspapers, I try to get through them every day. Additionally, of course, I look through news bulletins. ~ Vladimir Putin

I think it's fine when the mayor of the biggest city in Russia consults the president. ~ Vladimir Putin

President Obama is in China. Also in China is evil Russian dictator Vladimir Putin. They're both in China at the same time. It's like running into your ex-girlfriend on vacation. ~ David Letterman

Our society, including the liberals, must understand that there must be order. ~ Vladimir Putin

We have created islands, small islands of power, but we have not built a bridge between those islands, .. The center and the territories, regional and local authorities are still competing with each other, competing for power. Those who take advantage of disorder and arbitrary rule are watching their mutually destructive fight. ~ Vladimir Putin

Putin learned from reading the William King and David Cleland textbook in the 1980s and 1990s, planning for uncertainty is the most important element of strategy. ~ Clifford G. Gaddy

Putin was a former KGB intelligence officer who'd been stationed in East Germany at the Dresden headquarters of the Soviet secret service. Putin has said in interviews that he dreamed as a child of becoming a spy for the communist party in foreign lands, and his time in Dresden exceeded his imagination. Not only was he living out his boyhood fantasy, he and his then-wife also enjoyed the perks of a borderline-European existence. Even in communist East Germany, the standard of living was far more comfortable than life in Russia, and the young Putins were climbing KGB social circles, making influential connections, networking a power base.

The present was bright, and the future looked downright luminous.

Then, the Berlin wall fell, and down with it crashed Putin's world. A few days after the fall, a group of East German protestors gathered at the door of the secret service headquarters building. Putin, fearing the headquarters would be overrun, dialed up a Red Army tank unit stationed nearby to ask for protection. A voice on the other end of the line told him the unit could not do anything without orders from Moscow. And, "Moscow is silent," the man told Putin.

Putin's boyhood dream was dissolving before his eyes, and his country was impotent or unwilling to stop it. Putin despised his government's weakness in the face of threat. It taught him a lesson that would inform his own rule: Power is easily lost when those in power allow it to be tak ~ Matt Szajer

Democracy means the power of the people and the possibility of influencing the governing parties. Russia had had enough experience with a one-party-system - we will not go back there. ~ Vladimir Putin

There are big countries and small countries, rich and poor, those with long democratic traditions and those still finding their way to democracy. ~ Vladimir Putin

Terrorism has no nationality or religion. ~ Vladimir Putin

Everyone must hoe his plot daily ... ~ Vladimir Putin

I've lost some weight. I am on that new Obama diet. Every day I let Vladimir Putin eat my lunch. ~ Jay Leno

Russia - having sat across the table from Vladimir Putin, it's pretty clear when you meet him that he has an almost limitless ambition for power. And he's been very good at acquiring it - political power, economic power, military power, territorial power. ~ Carly Fiorina

As commander in chief, I will not speak to Vladimir Putin until we've set up that no-fly zone; until we've gathered our Sunni-Arab allies and begun to deny ISIS territory; until I've called the supreme leader of Iran and told him new deal - new deal. We the United States of America are going to cut off the money flow, which we can do; which we don't need anyone's permission or collaboration to do. ~ Carly Fiorina

I have to say that oil and gas revenues make up a large part of the Russian budget revenue. This is a serious component for us in addressing economic development, budget funding for our development programmes and, of course, and meeting of our social commitments to our citizens. ~ Vladimir Putin

Let us be frank: provoking military-political instability and other regional conflicts is also a convenient way of deflecting people's attention from mounting social and economic problems. Regrettably, further attempts of this kind cannot be ruled out. ~ Vladimir Putin

Protest actions and propaganda are two slightly different things. ~ Vladimir Putin

Russia will not soon become, if it ever becomes, a second copy of the United States or England - where liberal value have deep historic roots. ~ Vladimir Putin

Any people has a right to self-determination, and now in Europe the process of diluting national sovereignty in the framework of a united Europe is more accepted. ~ Vladimir Putin

Nobody should pin their hopes on a miracle. ~ Vladimir Putin

In 1995, Russia virtually gave Chechnya de facto statehood and independence even though, de jure, it didn't recognize Chechnya as an independent state. And I would like to emphasize strongly that Russia withdrew all of its troops, we moved the prosecutors, we moved all the police, dismantled all the courts, completely, 100 percent. ~ Vladimir Putin

The breakup of the Soviet Union is a national tragedy on an enormous scale only the elites and nationalists of the republics gained. ~ Vladimir Putin

You can do a lot more with weapons and politeness than just politeness. ~ Vladimir Putin

Russia's Vladimir Putin appeared in public for the first time after a mysterious 10-day absence. Putin said it took him that long to recover from the finale of 'The Bachelor.' ~ Conan O'Brien

I think: the powers like to talk about "freedom" in order to wash the population's brains. ~ Vladimir Putin

The Patriots deflated balls are but an allegory for America's deflated balls in dealings with Putin, the Mullahs in Iran, and Islamic terrorists. ~ Dennis Miller

We are ready to build large underground gas storages in Turkey, to participate in the privatization of Turkey's gas-distribution networks, to use the existing and participate in the construction of new pipelines in order to supply our energy resources through Turkey to third countries, including in southern Europe ~ Vladimir Putin

We ask that (other countries) do not interfere in our regulation. ~ Vladimir Putin

Putin sought to destabilize Ukraine's economy. ~ Joe Biden

I think every person should have some faith inside him, in his heart. What matters is not an external display of this faith, but the inner state of the soul. ~ Vladimir Putin

I have always reacted negatively to those who with their snotty noses and erotic fantasies prowl into others' lives. ~ Vladimir Putin

I am not anti-American,' he said. 'I just despise the current American administration. I despair that Bush has made ordinary, decent people all over the world think twice about what was once, and still could be again, a great country, when what happened on September 11th should have made ordinary, decent people all over the world embrace America as never before. I don't like it that neo-conservative politicians bully their so-called allies while playing to the worst, racist instincts of their own bewildered electorate. I don't like it that we live in an era where to be anti-war is to be anti-American, to be pro-Palestine is to be anti-Semitic, to be critical of Blair is somehow to be supportive of Putin and Chirac. All anybody is asking for in this so-called age of terror is some leadership. Yet everywhere you look in public life there is no truth, no courage, no dignity to speak of. ~ Charles Cumming

It is no accident that I mention our American friends, as they are always influencing our relations with our neighbors either directly or behind the scenes. Sometimes you don't even know who to talk to - the governments of certain countries or directly to their American patrons, ~ Vladimir Putin

We've been saying Putin is a dictator for years who doesn't care about the law. ~ Garry Kasparov

In the modern world, those who are weak will get unambiguous advice from foreign visitors which way to go and what policy course to pursue. ~ Vladimir Putin

Life would be boring without gossip. ~ Vladimir Putin

I believe Putin is a man of Russia's past, haunted by lost empire, lost glory, and lost power. Putin potentially can serve as president until 2024. As long as he remains in that office, I believe Russia's internal problems will not be addressed. Russia's neighbors will continue to be subject to bullying from Moscow, and while the tensions and threats of the Cold War period will not return, opportunities for Russian cooperation with the United States and Europe will be limited. It's a pity. Russia is a great country too long burdened and held back by autocrats. ~ Robert M. Gates

I can't believe that OMON [Russia's riot police] would hit a girl. I simply can't imagine it. ~ Vladimir Putin

Vladimir Putin and Russia. 'When a bear wakes up from hibernation, he doesn't eat a few blueberries and then go back to sleep.' They have their eyes on Eastern Europe, and if NATO is not willing to stand up forcefully to this threat today, it will only become more difficult to do so down the road. ~ Seth Moulton

Inna Bohoslovska is scaring everyone by repeating that Putin wants war. ~ Andrey Kurkov

As the 2018 World Cup Championship in Russia draws to a close, President Trump scores a hat-trick of diplomatic faux pas - first at the NATO summit, then on a UK visit, and finally with a spectacular own goal in Helsinki, thereby handing Vladimir Putin a golden propaganda trophy. For as long as this moron continues to queer the pitch by refusing to be a team player, America's Achilles' heel will go from bad to worse. It's high time somebody on his own side tackled him in his tracks. ~ Alex Morritt

Putin is playing the long game. He has a strategic plan in mind: the Eurasian Union, which would be in competition to Europe. ~ Hillary Clinton

If you want to lower the significance of Russia in the world, you actually just want to elevate your own country. That is a mistake. ~ Vladimir Putin

Putin and his colleagues were reduced mainly to collecting press clippings, thus contributing to the growing mountains of useless information produced by the KGB. ~ Masha Gessen

When it comes to trade, when it comes to standing up to countries like North Korea, when it comes to standing up to guys like Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump is not a conservative. ~ Bret Stephens

My family suffered very major losses during the Second World War, that's true. In my father's family, there were five brothers. I think four of them died. On my mother's side the picture was pretty much the same. Russia has suffered great losses. And of course we can't forget that. ~ Vladimir Putin

It is a very big exaggeration to say I am a friend of Mr. Putin. ~ Alexei Mordashov

Gay people represent art. Start allowing gay people to be beaten in the street then you allow art to be beaten in the street. History has taught us where that leads. ~ Robert Black

If you want to become an Islamic radical and have yourself circumcised, I invite you to come to Moscow ... I would recommend that he who does the surgery does it so you'll have nothing growing back afterward. ~ Vladimir Putin

My personal position is that society must keep children safe. ~ Vladimir Putin

Ukraine is going through a difficult time. There is nothing extraordinary of the resignation of the Ukrainian government ahead of the upcoming parliamentary elections ~ Vladimir Putin

Russia has not taken part and is not going to take part in any actions aimed at removing legitimate government. ~ Vladimir Putin

I consider it to be the meaning of my whole life and my obligation to serve my fatherland and our people. ~ Vladimir Putin

I think what Secretary Ash Carter is seeing, and I'm glad he is, is that we got to get NATO back working for the common defense. We've got to do more to support our partners in NATO, and we have to send a very clear message to Putin that this kind of belligerence, that this kind of testing of boundaries will have to be responded to. The best way to do that is to put more armor in, put more money from the Europeans in so they're actually contributing more to their own defense. ~ Hillary Clinton

America's development began with a large-scale ethnic cleansing, unprecedented in human history. ~ Vladimir Putin

Hitler wanted to destroy Russia- everyone needs to remember how that ended ~ Vladimir Putin

All people here have political rights, social rights, rights to employment, and no one should face discrimination, but our strategic choice is for traditional families, healthy families and a healthy nation. One does not exclude the other and does not hinder the other. I think this is a balanced approach and is entirely the right approach. ~ Vladimir Putin

Economic activity is moving from the Atlantic ocean to the Pacific ocean ... Russia has a certain natural advantage because it also borders the Pacific Ocean. ~ Vladimir Putin

I would sooner want a strong partnership with the United States - even with (US President George W.) Bush, who I think is the worst president in a long, long time. I would sooner want a friendship with Bush than with (Russian President Vladimir) Putin. ~ Bernard-Henri Levy

Cromwell is just as much of a bloody dictator as was Stalin. ~ Vladimir Putin

Putin never wanted all of Ukraine. He wanted for historical purposes to take Crimea. He did. Then he wanted a part of Ukraine that he could always use to advance Russian interests. And he is now at a point where nobody in the West is shouting, hey, stop. Give us back Crimea. It's all accepted. And so he has won. ~ Marvin Kalb

for the existentialists, what generated anxiety was not the godlessness of the world, per se, but rather the freedom to choose between God and godlessness. Though freedom is something we actively seek, the freedom to choose generates anxiety. "When I behold my possibilities," Kierkegaard wrote, "I experience that dread which is the dizziness of freedom, and my choice is made in fear and trembling." Many people try to flee anxiety by fleeing choice. This helps explain the perverse-seeming appeal of authoritarian societies - the certainties of a rigid, choiceless society can be very reassuring - and why times of upheaval so often produce extremist leaders and movements: Hitler in Weimar Germany, Father Coughlin in Depression-era America, or Jean-Marie Le Pen in France and Vladimir Putin in Russia today. But running from anxiety, Kierkegaard believed, was a mistake because anxiety was a "school" that taught people to come to terms with the human condition. ~ Scott Stossel

Revenge for a terror attack is ideal for Putin's model. His propaganda machine will be filled with scenes of crash victims if [Vladimir] Putin sees the need for a larger war to stoke his domestic support again as the Russian economy teeters. ~ Garry Kasparov

I'm not going to wear rose-colored glasses when it comes to Russia, or Mr. Putin. ~ Mitt Romney

I do not know how Vladimir Putin will be esteemed by the future history, but I have no doubt that among his successes and advantages for Russia historians shall absolutely note the fact of his not altering the constitution, for he created a precedent. And afterwards, no matter who might become president, it shall be extremely difficult to alter the constitution exactly on that point. Extremely difficult. ~ Vladimir Posner

Putin has reversed all the liberalizing reforms carried out by his predecessor. ~ Alexei Navalny

It was far easier for me to see how the war in Syria was in part an unintended consequence of other American wars, no matter how well-meaning they might have been. The toppling of "Saddam Hussein had strengthened Iran, provoked Putin, opened up a Pandora's box of sectarian conflict that now raged in Iraq and Syria, and led to an insurgency that had given birth to ISIL. The toppling of Muammar Gaddafi had made plain to dictators that you either cling to power or end up dead in a sewer. Syria looked more and more like a moral morass - a place where our inaction was a tragedy, and our intervention would only compound the tragedy. Obama kept probing for options that could make a positive difference, finding none. ~ Ben Rhodes

The transfer of power is always a test of the constitutional system, a test of its strength. ~ Vladimir Putin

If there are people who act outside the law, then the state must use legal means to impose law in the interests of majority. That's the way it's done in the U.S., and that's the way it's done in Russia. ~ Vladimir Putin

People in Russia say that those who do not regret the collapse of the Soviet Union have no heart, and those that do regret it have no brain. ~ Vladimir Putin

All attempts to appease the Nazis between 1934 and 1939 through various agreements and pacts were morally unacceptable and politically senseless, harmful and dangerous. ~ Vladimir Putin

I believe that the Europeans, first and foremost, the Germans, will also understand me. Let me remind you that in the course of political consultations on the unification of East and West Germany ... some nations that were then and are now Germany's allies did not support the idea of unification. Our nation, however, unequivocally supported the sincere, unstoppable desire of the Germans for national unity. I am confident that you have not forgotten this, and I expect that the citizens of Germany will also support the aspiration of the Russians, of historical Russia, to restore unity. ~ Vladimir Putin

We all accuse Vladimir Putin of Cold War nostalgia, but Washington's elites - politicians and intellectuals - miss the old days as well. They wish for the world in which the United States was utterly dominant over its friends, its foes were to be shunned entirely, and the challenges were stark, moral, and vital. Today's world is messy and complicated. China is one of our biggest trading partners and our looming geopolitical rival. Russia is a surly spoiler, but it has a globalized middle class and has created ties in Europe. ~ Fareed Zakaria

Indeed, Russia and the U.S. were allies during the two tragic conflicts of the Second and the First World Wars, which allows us to think there's something objectively bringing us together in difficult times, and I think - I believe - it has to do with geopolitical interests and also has a moral component. ~ Vladimir Putin

The Chechnya problem is a centuries-old problem. The thing is that today, fundamentalists and terrorists are exploiting those centuries-old problems to accomplish their own objectives that have nothing to do whatsoever with the interests of Chechnya. ~ Vladimir Putin

We in Russia have always considered Russians and Ukrainians to be one people. I still think so. ~ Vladimir Putin

It's alarming that military intervention in internal conflicts in foreign countries has become commonplace for the United States. ~ Vladimir Putin

I go to the gym, I swim daily and from time to time I meet with friends and do extra-curricular stuff. ~ Vladimir Putin

Russian democracy is the power of the Russian people with their own traditions of national self-government, and not the realisation of standards foisted on us from outside. ~ Vladimir Putin

Any attention to them (terrorists) on the part of the media, any double-standard interpretation of their motives and results of their activity means nothing but a political and administrative support of terrorist acts ~ Vladimir Putin

In almost any country, probably in Russia in particular, it's fashionable to criticise people in power. If you come out in support of someone like me, you're going to be accused of trying to ingratiate yourself. ~ Vladimir Putin

The more Mr. Putin extends the fighting in eastern Ukraine, the more the financial markets will ratchet up their own pressure on Russia. ~ Roger Altman

I spend a little time every day to play sports. ~ Vladimir Putin

Let us resolve the internal political problems of Russia ourselves ~ Vladimir Putin

Vladimir Putin shot out of obscurity in 1999 by exploiting growing nostalgia for the USSR, fueled by the disappointment, uncertainty and crisis that brought Yeltsin's reform era to a shuddering halt. Once in power the following year, Putin set about building an authoritarian regime whose control would expand for more than a decade, until soaring corruption on top of another economic downturn - a much smaller one, triggered by the global financial crisis of 2008 - prompted another backlash. ~ Gregory Feifer

Putin's invasion of Ukraine isn't a staring contest. It's a land grab, the first of this scale since World War II. But when asked about it, instead of walking up to the plate and swinging at the softball (crack! more sanctions!), Drumpf put down his bat, walked down the third-base line, and kissed the opposing team's head coach. ~ Katy Tur

President Putin continues to call for new peace plans as his troops roll through the Ukrainian countryside and he absolutely ignores every agreement that his country has signed in the past and he has signed recently, we, the United States, and Europe as a whole, have to stand with Ukraine at this moment. Ukraine needs our financial assistance and support as it pursues reforms and even in the face, in the face of this military onslaught. ~ Joe Biden

To understand what ended up happening in the 2016 presidential election, you have to understand this: When protests toppled the Ukrainian government, Putin interpreted that as the United States coming into Russia, akin to an act of war; when he launched his counterattack - annexing Crimea, creeping into eastern Ukraine - he weaponized information and showed a willingness to lie, using traditional media like television, and new media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube, to spread disinformation into open, Western societies like a virus. Eventually, the Russians would come into America, as they believed we'd gone into Ukraine. They took advantage of the fact that we were worn down by decades of political polarization and the balkanization of our media. America's antibodies to the sickness of Russian disinformation were weak, if they were there at all. ~ Ben Rhodes

It's better not to argue with women, ~ Vladimir Putin

Hard men present hard choices - none more so than Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia. ~ Hillary Clinton

Even during the years of the Cold War, the intense confrontation between the Soviet Union and the United States, we always avoided any direct clash between our civilians and, most certainly, between our military. ~ Vladimir Putin

It could truly be the case that Vladimir Putin has miscalculated in the long term with his adventure in Syria. ~ Garry Kasparov

I've always felt fine about Putin. I think he is a strong leader, he's a powerful leader, he's represented his country the way - the country is being represented. ~ Donald Trump

In accordance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the issues of foreign policy and defense are fully in the hands of the president. ~ Vladimir Putin

Russia is a part of European culture. Therefore, it is with difficulty that I imagine NATO as an enemy. ~ Vladimir Putin

For me the game of love is much like hunting a man on foot with a knife. It's not over until the blade is clean. ~ Vladimir Putin

To forgive the terrorists is up to God, but to send them there is up to me. ~ Vladimir Putin