Putin links protests in the US to 'deep-rooted crises'
"I try very carefully to comment or better, not comment, on what is happening in the United States or other countries"
In Russian President Vladimir Putin's first comments on anti-racist protests that have spread around the US and worldwide he linked the protests that erupted after the killing of George Floyd to "deep-rooted crises" in the United States that also led the "losing side" in the 2016 election to question the legitimacy of Donald Trump's presidency.
"I try very carefully to comment or better, not comment, on what is happening in the United States or other countries," Putin said, according to an excerpt from an interview posted online by state television channel Rossiya 1 on Sunday, reports the CNN.
"What happened there is a manifestation of some deep-rooted internal crises. In fact, we have been observing this for a long time now, from the moment the incumbent president came to power, when he obviously won in an absolutely democratic way, and the losing side came up with all sorts of tales in order to question his legitimacy," Putin added.
In the interview, the Russian President's first major media engagement since coronavirus hit Russia, Putin said the pandemic "highlighted more broad problems" in the US and added that he thinks "partisan interests put above those of the people" are the main problem in American politics.
