Putin voices willingness to cooperate, denying Russia being isolated

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday expressed Moscow's willingness to develop friendly relationship with other countries.

In his annual live Q-and-A session with the Russian public, Putin stressed that Russia is not isolated internationally, saying his country has "very friendly relations" with the overwhelming majority of countries worldwide.

Russia currently has good cooperation with the United States on the fight against terrorism, he said, expressing the hope that the cooperation can lead to positive results on the Syria crisis.

Speaking of U.S. President Barack Obama, Putin said in a positive tone that it is a good thing that Obama admitted failing to make any plans in the wake of Washington's intervention in Libya that has been left in chaos since the toppling of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

Putin said that he has maintained constant contact with Obama and that this trend would continue till the end of Obama's presidency.

He also promised that Moscow is willing to cooperate with any new U.S. president who would respect Russia.

"If they speak to us respectfully and seek compromises as we do, then we will always find a solution that would satisfy both," he said.

However, the Russian leader said that Russia is not to be in a kneeling position in the face of Western sanctions imposed to punish Moscow's role in the Ukraine crisis.

Reiterating tough stance against the West, Putin promised trade policy reforms to offset the damage of Western sanctions, and urged the West to repeal the restrictions "in their own interests."

When asked by a 12-year-old girl during the phone-in whom he would choose to save first if Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko were both drowning, Putin said his country would like to help any partner in difficulty, while stressing that it is impossible to save those who choose to drown.

Commenting on a possible visit to Moscow by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Putin voiced his confidence in the ultimate settlement of their long-standing territorial dispute.

On Russia's economic situation, Putin admitted that the country's economy is unsteady, but he said there are reasons to be optimistic and he expected the country's GDP to grow positively in 2017.

This is Putin's 14th Q-and-A session, dubbed "Direct Line with Vladimir Putin," which was launched in the year of 2001 and held annually with exceptions only in 2004 and 2012.

This year's session lasted three hours and 39 minutes, during which he answered some 80 questions from across the country on domestic issues and foreign relations.

Source: XINHUA