The President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, again today sharply criticized Western liberalism, saying that policies such as the acceptance of migrants harm the interests of the people.
Speaking after the Group of 20 summit in Osaka, Japan, Putin critically assessed that the victory of Donald Trump in the 2016 US presidential elections and the decline in the popularity of traditional parties in Europe are the consequences of growing public fear of dominant liberal politics.
He hailed his meeting with Trump on Friday on the sidelines of the G-20 summit as "businesslike and pragmatic".
"We considered almost the entire list of issues of common interest," Putin said.
"Of course, we discussed the situation in various parts of the world. All in all, those consultations were useful".
He said that allegations of Russian interference in the US election were part of the agenda of his conversation with Trump.
At the start of that meeting on Friday, the Russian leader laughed when a reporter called Trump a question about Russian meddling, and he "threatened" Putin not to meddle in the 2020 US presidential election.
Asked on Saturday whether the issue was discussed during the meeting, Putin said: "We discussed it," but did not elaborate.
He noted that he considers it necessary to "turn the page" in Russia-US relations, which have fallen to the lowest level since the Cold War.
Putin said that he and Trump agreed that the leading diplomats of their two countries should continue talks on the possible extension of the nuclear weapons agreement (New Start), which expires in 2021.
They also discussed the need to encourage the development of bilateral economic ties, Putin said.
He critically assessed that Trump's election victory in 2016 was a consequence of citizens' growing disillusionment with liberal politics.
"The liberal idea has begun to eat itself," Putin said at a press conference.
"Millions of people live their lives, and those who propagate these ideas are separated from them," Putin said.
He also assessed that the influx of migrants to Europe violated human rights. "People live in their countries, in accordance with their traditions, why should this happen to them?" Putin said.
The Russian leader said that although "liberal ideas are still attractive as a whole", the election results show that the people want change.
Putin also responded to criticism from singer Elton John who accused Putin of hypocrisy for criticizing the West's emphasis on LGBT rights.
"I deeply respect him, he is a musical genius and we all love his performances, but I believe he made a mistake," Putin said.
He asserted that Russia's ban on "propaganda" of LGBT culture among children is aimed at protecting against "aggressive proselytizing" of the LGBT community.
"Let's let a person grow up before making a choice," Putin said, adding: "Let's leave the children alone."
He said that "our attitude towards the LGBT community is absolute peace and impartiality", but added that "that part of the community aggressively imposes its opinion on others".
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