dChan - Q Origins Project Archive

Vladimir Putin: I would like to say openly that the positions of presidential candidates in any country, including a great power such as the United States, must be assessed by the voters. In this particular case, by the people of the United States.

We are the onlookers; we do not interfere in the process. What can I say about the exchange of tough statements and even direct accusations? It is proof of the standard of the political culture – or the lack thereof.

However, as I have already said, we do not interfere. Everything that is happening in the United States is the result of the country’s internal political processes and problems.

By the way, when anyone tries to humiliate or insult the incumbent head of state, in this case in the context you have mentioned, this actually enhances our prestige, because they are talking about our incredible influence and power. In a way, it could be said that they are playing into our hands, as the saying goes. But anyway, as I have already pointed out, this is none of our business. Let them settle scores with each other as they deem possible in the current context.

Speaking of preferences, what can I say? We know that the incumbent President Trump has repeatedly expressed interest in the improvement of Russian-American relations. And we certainly appreciate that very much. From the very beginning, when he said so during the first iteration of the fight for the White House, we certainly heard him.

But we must look objectively at what has been happening in recent years. Yes, indeed, we have achieved a lot on a bilateral basis. I must say this. Without having to list all the positive steps we have taken to build Russian-American relations, I can say that we have taken quite a few. But the intentions that President Trump spoke about earlier have not been fully realised.

I believe that this is largely due to a certain bipartisan consensus on the need to contain Russia, to curb our country’s development. Moreover, as they say, this is a comprehensive position, which means containment on all tracks. This is my first point. And this, as we understand it, essentially limits the current administration.

Furthermore, the greatest number of various kinds of restrictions and sanctions were introduced during the Trump presidency. Decisions on imposing new sanctions or expanding previous ones were made 46 times. The incumbent's administration withdrew from the INF treaty. That was a very drastic step. After 2002, when the Bush administration withdrew from the ABM treaty, that was the second major step. And I believe it is a big danger to international stability and security.

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Now the US has announced the beginning of the procedure for withdrawing from the Open Skies Treaty. We have good reason to be concerned about that, too. A number of our joint projects, modest, but viable, have not been implemented – the business council project, expert council, and so on.

Nevertheless, again, bilateral trade has grown during the Trump presidency. And it has grown noticeably, despite all the restrictions, even despite the pandemic. The pandemic might have introduced some adjustments, but in general, there is an upward trend in mutual trade. And this is good, because there are jobs behind it, business activity and so on.

Our joint work to stabilise the world energy market has been unfolding quite well, because the United States is definitely interested in maintaining a certain stability, in supporting its oil-producing companies, and so on. And we managed to achieve a really good cooperative result. So you know, there are upsides and downsides, of course.

As for the Democratic candidate, what can I say? We can hear rather sharp anti-Russian rhetoric as well. Regrettably, we have become used to this. But some things are worth mentioning. First, the Democratic Party is traditionally closer to the so-called liberal values, closer to Social Democratic ideas, if compared to Europe. And it was from the Social Democratic environment that the Communist Party evolved.

After all, I was a member of the Soviet Communist Party for nearly 20 years, or more precisely 18 years. I was a rank-and-file member, but it can be said that I believed in the party’s ideas. I still like many of these left-wing values. Equality and fraternity. What is bad about them? In fact, they are akin to Christian values. Yes, they are difficult to implement, but they are very attractive, nevertheless. In other words, this can be seen as an ideological basis for developing contacts with the Democratic representative.

It is a fact that African Americans constitute a stable electorate, one of the electorates of the Democratic Party. It is a well-known fact, and there is nothing new about this. The Soviet Union also supported the African Americans’ movement for their legitimate rights. Back in the 1930s, Communist International leaders wrote that both black and white workers had a common enemy – imperialism and capitalism. They also wrote that these people could become the most effective group in the future revolutionary battle.

So, this is something that can be seen, to a degree, as common values, if not a unifying agent for us. I am not afraid to say so. This is true.

Do you remember – well, you are a young man, but people of my generation remember a time when huge portraits of Angela Davis, a member of the US Communist Party and an ardent fighter for the rights of African Americans, were on view around the Soviet Union.

Therefore, we believe that this is something we can talk about and that can be used as the basis for mutual understanding but this is far by no means all there is. For example, candidate Biden has said openly that he was ready to extend the New START or to sign a new strategic offensive reductions treaty. This is a very serious element of our potential collaboration in the future.

Therefore, I would like to repeat what I have said more than once before. We will work with any future president of the United State, the one whom the American people give their vote of confidence.