President Vladimir Putin took part in the Russian Energy Week forum in Moscow on Wednesday, where he spoke about North Korea, his relationship with U.S. President Donald Trump and electric cars.
Here are some of the highlights:
On the elections next year
— “I haven’t decided whether I’m going to run at all. Because by law I think the presidential election campaign will be officially announced at the end of November, beginning of December. By that point, I believe that the main contenders will probably come out and state their intentions as well as their election programs.”
On U.S. President Donald Trump
— “There are almost no personal relations. We saw each other just once. Yes, we had a couple of phone conversations on various issues of mutual interest, including Syria.”
— “Regarding bilateral relations, you can judge for yourself. They have become hostage to the domestic political situation in the U.S. Certain forces are using Russian-American relations to address internal political issues. We are patiently waiting for this internal political process to end.”
— “I do hope that the fundamental mutual interests — which are the nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction, combating cyber-crime, energy cooperation, cooperation in addressing regional conflicts, anti-terrorism — will ultimately change the nature of Russian-American relations for the better.”
— “I believe that a personality like Trump, with his character, will never be hostage to anyone.”