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普京警告稱，美國“過於自信”可能會重蹈蘇聯覆轍
歐洲新聞和美聯社報道 • 2021 年 6 月 5 日
俄羅斯總統弗拉基米爾·普京於 2021 年 6 月 4 日星期五出席在俄羅斯聖彼得堡舉行的聖彼得堡國際經濟論壇。普京批評歐洲和美國對俄羅斯和白俄羅斯警方鎮壓抗議者的批評虛偽。
俄羅斯總統弗拉基米爾·普京周五指責歐洲和美國對俄羅斯和白俄羅斯反政府抗議活動的反應虛偽，並警告美國麵臨重蹈蘇聯覆轍的風險。
普京在聖彼得堡的一個經濟論壇上發表講話，在與總統喬·拜登會麵之前討論了俄羅斯與美國的關係，稱兩國關係“目前處於極低水平”。
他批評對俄羅斯的製裁以及莫斯科幹涉美國大選的指控，並表示華盛頓和歐洲在批評近幾個月警方鎮壓莫斯科和白俄羅斯抗議者時存在雙重標準。
“我們與美國沒有任何問題，但美國對我們有問題，”他說。
“它想要遏製我們的發展並公開談論它。經濟限製和試圖依靠他們認為是俄羅斯境內盟友的力量來影響我國的國內政治，都源於此。”
由於莫斯科 2014 年吞並克裏米亞、俄羅斯幹涉選舉的指控以及美國官員聲稱源自俄羅斯的網絡攻擊，俄羅斯和美國之間的關係已降至冷戰後的低點。
普京重申，俄羅斯否認幹涉美國總統選舉的指控，他批評了美國對國會大廈襲擊事件的反應，這次襲擊發生在國會準備證明拜登在 11 月擊敗時任總統唐納德·特朗普的時候。
“他們不僅僅是一群強盜和暴徒。 這些人是帶著政治要求而來的，”他說。
普京指出，盡管美國及其盟友強烈批評白俄羅斯鎮壓反政府抗議活動，但對數百名襲擊參與者提出了嚴厲指控。
他指責說，盡管西方批評俄羅斯當局對反克裏姆林宮示威活動的嚴厲反應，歐洲的抗議者卻麵臨著警方更嚴厲的回應，一些人的眼睛被他嘲笑的“民主橡皮子彈”擊中。
隨後，普京在與記者通話時批評美國過於自信，並將其與蘇聯相提並論。
“你知道問題是什麽嗎？ 我以一名前蘇聯公民的身份告訴你。 帝國的問題是什麽——他們認為自己非常強大，可以承受小錯誤和錯誤，”他說。
“但問題的數量正在增加。 總有一天，他們再也無法對付了。 而美國正以自信的步伐、堅定的步伐，沿著蘇聯的道路一直走下去。”
氣候變化和 COVID-19
在其他問題上，普京讚揚了俄羅斯對新冠病毒 (COVID-19) 大流行的反應，並呼籲全球對全球變暖采取更強有力的應對措施，以提升俄羅斯的國際地位。
普京在論壇上發表講話時讚揚了俄羅斯設計的疫苗的效率，並對一些國家“出於政治動機禁止”購買疫苗表示遺憾。
普京還強調需要加強國際應對氣候變化的力度，並指出永久凍土融化對俄羅斯北極地區構成重大挑戰。
“我們整個城市都建在永久凍土上，”他說。 “如果一切都開始融化會發生什麽？”
'Over confident' U.S. risks going down same path as Soviet Union, warns Putin
Putin also criticised European, U.S. criticism of police crackdown on protesters in Russia and Belarus as hypocritical.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday accused Europe and the U.S. of hypocrisy over criticism of the response to anti-government protests in Russia and Belarus and warned that America was at risk of following the path of the Soviet Union.
In a speech at an economic forum in St. Petersburg, Putin discussed Russia's relations with the U.S. ahead of a meeting with President Joe Biden, describing them as "at an extremely low level now."
He criticised sanctions against Russia as well as allegations that Moscow interfered in the U.S. election and said that Washington and Europe had double standards in criticising the police crackdown against protesters in Moscow and Belarus in recent months.
“We don’t have any issues with the U.S. But it has an issue with us," he said.
"It wants to contain our development and publicly talks about it. Economic restrictions and attempts to influence our country’s domestic politics, relying on forces they consider their allies inside Russia, stem from that.”
Ties between Russia and the U.S. have sunk to post-Cold War lows over Moscow’s 2014 annexation of Crimea, accusations of Russian interference in elections, and cyberattacks that U.S. officials allege had Russian origins.
Putin reiterated that Russia rejects accusations of interfering in U.S. presidential elections, and he spoke critically of the U.S. response to the Capitol attack, which took place as Congress prepared to certify that Biden had defeated then-President Donald Trump in November.
“They weren’t just a crowd of robbers and rioters. Those people had come with political demands,” he said.
Putin pointed out that the heavy charges against hundreds of participants in the attack were filed even as the U.S. and its allies strongly criticized Belarus’ crackdown on anti-government protests.
He charged that even as the West has criticized Russian authorities for a harsh response to anti-Kremlin demonstrations, protesters in Europe have faced an even tougher police response, with some shot in the eye by what he mockingly called “democratic rubber bullets.”
Later, during a call with journalists, Putin criticised the United States as being overconfident and drew a parallel with the Soviet Union.
“You know what the problem is? I will tell you as a former citizen of the former Soviet Union. What is the problem of empires — they think that they are so powerful that they can afford small errors and mistakes," he said.
“But the number of problems is growing. There comes a time when they can no longer be dealt with. And the United States, with a confident gait, a firm step, is going straight along the path of the Soviet Union.”
Climate change and COVID-19
On other issues, Putin praised his country's response to the COVID-19 pandemic and called for a stronger worldwide response to global warming as he sought to bolster Russia's international standing.
Addressing the forum, Putin lauded the efficiency of Russian-designed vaccines and bemoaned what he described as “politically motivated bans” on their purchase in some countries.
Putin also emphasized the need to strengthen the international response to climate change, noting that melting permafrost has posed a major challenge to Russia's Arctic regions.
“We have entire cities built on permafrost,” he said. “What will happen if it all starts melting?”
