Statement from Putin regarding the protests in Europe: Administrations' own mistakes

Russian President Vladimir Putin made statements to the Russian state channel Vesti regarding the protests in Europe, migration problems and developments in energy markets.

Reacting to the accusations that Russia "provoked the protests in Europe", Putin said, "It is really an exaggeration to say that we provoked the mass demonstrations in the major cities of Europe. I think this is also clear for ordinary citizens in European countries."

Putin stated that administrators in European countries blame other countries instead of taking responsibility for the problems experienced, and said, "This shows the weakness of some European leaders and their inability to take responsibility for what happened."

Arguing that the protests were caused by errors in European countries' own policies, Putin noted that in some countries the ratio of public debt to Gross Domestic Product exceeded 100 percent, and in Italy it reached 139 percent.

Putin pointed out that immigrants and children who came to Europe in the past years could not adapt to society and said, "The number of immigrants from these countries has reached such a level that they cannot adapt to society anymore. States are not in a position to ensure their adaptation. Resources are insufficient. It is necessary to take care of their education and make them adopt local traditions and customs."

Putin also criticized Europe's immigration policies and stated that some immigrants cannot speak the language of the countries they have lived in for many years, and that the policies of European countries towards the Middle East also affect the reactions of immigrants coming from the region.

Putin pointed out that Russia is also a multinational country and emphasized that the problems in Europe should not be mocked and that his country will give more importance to its policies on relations between national communities.

Evaluating the energy policies of European countries towards Russia, Putin said that his country has never refused to supply energy resources to Europe.

Reminding that the decision not to purchase Russian energy resources such as oil, natural gas, coal and uranium was taken by European countries, Putin said, "We have not refused to supply anyone. They have given up and are still planning to give up the products they continue to purchase from Russia."

Pointing out that the supply continues despite Europe's restrictions on Russian energy resources, Putin said, "Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) constitutes 20 percent of the European market. This is an important part of the market."

Putin criticized the policy of European countries to ban everything coming from Russia and said, "Life has shown that it does not work. The policy of banning everything coming from Russia is stupid, completely stupid."

President Putin added that some foreign companies had to leave the Russian market due to pressure from European governments.