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Disarmament DocumentationBack to Disarmament Documentation Putin Press Conference & Interview, June 21 - 22, 2003I. Putin Press Conference, June 21, 2003'Press conference by russian President Vladimir Putin with Russian and foreign journalists', June 21, 2003 ... Question (U.S. television channel NBC): President Putin, as you know, Washington is still preoccupied by Iran's desire to manufacture nuclear weapons. Have you received new assurances from Iran that Tehran will observe the International Atomic Energy Agency protocols? And do you think that work on the nuclear power station should stop until Iran signs these protocols? Vladimir Putin: The issue of Iran came in for particular attention during the meeting with President Bush in St. Petersburg and at the summit in Evian. We looked very closely at the question. I must say that the respective positions of Russia and the United States on this issue are a lot closer than they seem at first glance. Our position of principle is that we are categorically against the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and we support strengthening the non-proliferation regime. This concerns all participants in the international dialogue, and above all, of course, it concerns the countries that have signed the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. Iran, as we know, has signed this treaty. As for your question on whether I have received new assurances from Iran that it has no plans to build its own nuclear weapons, yes, I have. Two days ago, I spoke by telephone with President Khatami on his initiative, and he once again assured me that Iran has no plans to make nuclear weapons. What's more, we have information that the Iranian leadership plans to sign all the protocols as demanded by the IAEA for IAEA supervision over Iran's nuclear programmes. Our position is not something new for the Iranian leadership. We will build our relations with any country, including Iran, based on how open they are in their relations with the IAEA. In case you're not aware, I can tell you that a meeting of the IAEA's directors has just taken place, and no resolutions condemning Iran were passed. The meeting decided that the IAEA must pursue its joint work with the Iranian leadership on ensuring that all Iran's programmes will be transparent in the future. This corresponds to the position of the Russian Federation, and we will continue to work in this direction. I would once again like to say that we will work together with the members of the international community on this problem. The only thing we are against is having the nuclear card used as a pretext for unfair competition on the Iranian market. That's the only thing... Question (Egyptian television): ... if I may, coming back to the question of weapons of mass destruction, why does the whole world talk about Iran, Iraq and North Korea, but no one talks about Israel? After all, Israel has nuclear weapons. What do you think of the Arab countries' initiative on this question? Vladimir Putin: ...The second part of your question brings up a very complex problem - the problem of proliferation and non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. This is a key issue today, and it is also a very difficult one. I think that the fact that one country may or may not possess nuclear weapons should not be a pretext for other countries to acquire these weapons. Rather, it is a pretext for us to think about what we can do to regulate the situation and reduce the arsenal of weapons of mass destruction in the world. This includes the arsenals of countries that have legitimately or illegitimately acquired nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction, or are trying to acquire them... Question (ITAR-TASS): It looks as though the differences of opinion with the United States over Iraq are now a thing of the past, but do you think there is a risk of the Iraq scenario repeating itself in Iran or North Korea? And do you think there is a mechanism in the world that can prevent events from developing in this way? Vladimir Putin: Yes, the situation with Iraq really was a serious test for Russian-U.S. relations, and I agree that we have managed to emerge from this situation with minimal losses. I think that we managed to find compromise solutions through the United Nations Security Council and have got the United Nations much more involved in this issue again. We discussed this question in detail with the U.S. president, and we also discussed the situation with Iran, North Korea and other hot spots on the planet. If we're looking at a mechanism for settling complicated issues such as these, our position is clear: this mechanism exists in the form of the United Nations and its Security Council. There is no other such universal mechanism in the world today. I believe that only through the United Nations can we resolve these kinds of problems, by being patient, working together, taking each other's interests into account and acting in accordance with international law... Question (Korean television, Republic of Korea): The United States and many other countries are attempting to resolve the North Korean problem through economic and military means. What do you think about such action with regard to North Korea? Vladimir Putin: As far as the United States goes, it would be better to put the question to the U.S. president. As far as I know from my meetings with President Bush and my discussions with him, he does not have plans to resolve the North Korean problem by military means. On the contrary, we discussed this issue in detail and our positions are drawing closer. We will work together and work with everyone who has an interest in resolving this problem - the Republic of Korea, Japan, the People's Republic of China, Russia. We will do all that depends on us to settle this problem. Our position is clear: we oppose proliferation of nuclear weapons, and this also goes for the Korean Peninsula. We would like to see a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula. We think that the matter should be settled through negotiations that take into account the legitimate interests and concerns of North Korea. We should not back North Korea into a corner and aggravate the situation. If North Korea has concerns over its security and is worried that someone might try to attack it, then we should provide it with security guarantees. We have a good basis for being able to resolve this matter, and there is good will from all the participants in this process. I know that the leadership of the Republic of Korea, with whom I am in constant contact, also supports this approach... II. BBC Interview ('Breakfast with Frost'), June 22, 2003'Interview with the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin by the British BBC television and radio company', Moscow, June 22, 2003 Question: When discussing Iraq, it is impossible not to mention North Korea and Iran as well. This no longer concerns Iraq, but at one stage George W. Bush called these three countries the "axis of evil". Do you agree with this term, and are Iran and North Korea really part of the "axis of evil"? Vladimir Putin: I just said that partnership does not imply complete agreement on everything. We, for example, cannot agree with this terminology. We really do have a common understanding of the threats of the 21st century. This unites us. The question is only in the means used to attain the common goal - neutralising these threats. As for terminology, we are opposed to drawing up any blacklists. We proceed from the fact that the problems need to be dealt with. The problems are not only concentrated in the countries that you have mentioned. If we are talking about the main threat of the 21st century, I think that it is the problem of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. And here, of course, we should not only mention North Korea, not only the Middle East, we should also mention South Asia. We should always remember that the problem of proliferation of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction is closely related to another threat - the threat of terrorism, because terrorists attempt to acquire certain means of mass destruction. This is particularly dangerous. This is why should see how terrorism is financed, where terrorists hide out, where they find refuge and where they are hiding and where they prepare their crimes; what is the reason for proliferation, where are the loopholes which give the terrorists the hope of acquiring weapons of mass destruction. And then we will understand that the geography of these problems is much wider. And the most important recent achievement is that we acknowledge these common threats, and have brought our positions closer together; we proceed from the fact that it is only possible to fight these threats together. And in this sense, our positions have a great deal more in common than the things that we disagree on at the moment. Question: What about the issue of non-proliferation, primarily Iran and its nuclear programme? At the G8 summit, it was stated that no one intends to ignore the development of nuclear weapons in Iran, and everyone supports increasing total control from MAGATE [IAEA], signing additional protocols etc. Judging from your talks with President Khatami, do you think that Iran will really agree to this? Vladimir Putin: You know, to determine whether a certain country will follow the obligations it has taken on, one telephone conversation is not enough, and neither are personal meetings. Iran is our neighbour, our traditional partner. We have a certain system and a level of inter-governmental relations. And we do not intend to lose our position in Iran. We plan to develop relations with this country. But we have several fundamental questions, and our Iranian partners know about these problems: we are opposed to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Iran has signed an agreement on non-proliferation, and taken on certain obligations. And in our last talk, President Khatami confirmed that Iran was prepared to adhere to all documents and put all its nuclear programs under control. And in this case, certain procedures and instruments of control will begin to take effect, which do not depend on our telephone conversations or good personal relations anymore. They depend on experts and specialists from MAGATE. And we will build our relations not just with Iran, but with other countries as well on nuclear problems, based on their openness towards this internationally acknowledged and respected organisations, whose specialists we all trust. Question: If that really happened, it would be a serious step forward. Because today, as you probably know, John Bolton, the U.S. Under Secretary of State on issues of weapons control, was recently in London. He was asked whether it was still likely there would be a military operation against Iran. He answered that "although we don't have this intention, this possibility should not be ruled out, as nuclear weapons represent a major threat, and when you compare the Iran nuclear program with their aggressive attempts to increase the radius of activity of ballistic rockets, more and more countries - our friends and allies - come into the radius of these rockets." Do you agree that this danger really exists? Vladimir Putin: I don't see that I should comment on anyone's statements, but we are aware of certain information which we receive, including from MAGATE circles, about Iranian programmes in the nuclear energy sphere. And of course, we have questions about this. We know that certain Western European companies actively cooperate with Iran in this sphere, and supply equipment which is at least equipment with a dual purpose. So we will protest against using the theme of nuclear weapons proliferation against Iran as an instrument for forcing Russian companies out of the Iranian market. But to fight the problem of proliferation actively, we should be more open with one another, we could act in a more corporate spirit. And the most important thing - I want to repeat this idea once more - is the readiness of Iran's leadership to put all its nuclear programmes under the control of MAGATE. Question: In the context of the topic of weapons of mass destruction... Recently there has been active discussion around the world as to which of the two countries - Iran or North Korea - represent the greater danger from this standpoint. Given what you said about Iran... Does this mean that North Korea causes the most alarm? Vladimir Putin: It's hard to say. I don't really even want to answer in the context of the question asked: who poses more danger, who poses less. At any rate, North Korea is in such a state (and we know the context of the historical development of North Korea), that I have no reason to believe that it has any aggressive intentions. At the same time, the situation is very complex. In our opinion, this problem may be solved by political and diplomatic means. If North Korea has certain concerns connected with its safety, then we must simply bear this in mind, and respond to them. I am firmly convinced that North Korea needs to be included in the system of international dialogue. This will inevitably lead to a certain change in the state of North Korean society itself, changes in state structures and principles of forming the state, because it will be caused by the necessity of integration into the international community. We are also prepared to provide our territory for possible meetings and talks, and we are prepared to provide assistance in any form in order to normalise the situation. We discuss this with our Japanese partners, with the leadership of South Korea, with the United States, and are in contact with the North Korean leadership. I should say that this is a very sensitive issue for Russia due to the country's immediate proximity to our borders... Question: As for Russia as such.... Three organisations come to mind: the European Union, the WTO and NATO. Which one will Russia join first? Vladimir Putin: You have named organisations which function in different areas and have different significance. NATO is designed to solve problems in the area of international security. We think that the head organisation here has been and should remain the UN Security Council. At the same time, we intend to develop our relations with the North Atlantic bloc. We see that there are common threats which we can effectively resist together. They are, as I have already said, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, sea rescue, peace-keeping and humanitarian operations and so on. I must say that we highly value the decision which was made, I mean the creation of the Russia - NATO "Twenty". In this matter, I would like once more to note the special role of Prime Minister Tony Blair. It was his personal idea, which he proposed here, at my house, during one of his visits. And, accordingly, he was also the main "engine", one of the main "engines" which brought this idea to its practical realisation. We are satisfied with the way our relations are developing with NATO. And we think that this is a significant element in the system of modern international security. As for the European Union, it is our major trade and economic partner. The EU accounts for 37% of Russia's external trade turnover, and after the expansion of the EU this will increase to 52%. Russia is a European country in its geography, history, culture and mentality of the population. And we, of course, count on and will aspire to broaden cooperation with the EU. This has the full understanding and support of all the leading countries of the EU and the head of the Commission of European Associations. Of course, we have certain problems at the moment, there are disputes, but on fundamental issues our positions virtually coincide. As for the World Trade Organisation, not only Russia itself is interested in joining the WTO, our main trade and economic partners are interested in this as well. I have absolutely no doubt in this at all. © 2003 The Acronym Institute. |