‘Maybe it’s the Jews who meddled in US election’
P res i d e n t Vladimir Putin suggested in a United States television interview that Ukrainians, Tatars or “Jews”, could have meddled in the 2016 US presidential election — but not the Kremlin.
“Why have you decided Russian authorities, myself included, gave anybody permission to do this?”
Putin asked in the often-combative interview with NBC.
The leading US intelligence agencies concluded last year that Putin personally directed an intelligence effort to influence the 2016 US presidential election to undermine Democrat Hillary Clinton’s campaign and boost Republican Donald Trump.
“So what if they’re Russians?” Putin said of the allegations, according to transcripts of the NBC interview released on Friday.
“There are 146 million Russians. So what? I don’t care. They do not represent the interests of the Russian state.
“Maybe,” Putin said, “they are not even Russians but Ukrainians, Tatars or Jews, but with Russian citizenship, which should also be checked.
“Maybe they have dual citizenship or a green card; maybe the US paid them for this.
“How can you know that? I do not know either.”
Meanwhile, to the West, he is public enemy No. 1: snatching land from his neighbours, interfering in foreign elections and unveiling weapons that he says render Washington’s missile defence systems obsolete.
But despite — or because of — his reputation abroad, Putin is still popular in Russia, and is all but guaranteed to win a presidential election this week with a landslide.
In part, this is because over almost two decades in power, he has cracked down on dissent and consolidated Kremlin control over the media. The president’s most vocal opponent is also barred from appearing on the ballot owing to a criminal conviction.
For millions of Russians, Putin is the man who brought stability after the political and economic chaos of the 1990s, as well as restoring Moscow’s standing on the world stage following the collapse of the Soviet Union.
“Putin is a mirror and everyone can see in him what they want,” independent political analyst Konstantin Kalachev said.
“For some, he is the man who got Russia back off its knees, got the army and defence back on track. For others, he raised the quality of life and made sure pensions were paid on time.”