Putin's meeting with ambassadors is disgrace - diplomat Ohryzko

Volodymyr Ohryzko, diplomat and Ukraine's Foreign Minister (2007-2009), believes that the Russian Federation has showed diplomatic savagery and ill-manneredness of the highest level at the meeting with the ambassadors

The diplomat commented to Espreso TV on the April 5 meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and ambassadors of 17 countries at the ceremony of presenting credentials.

“The degree of Putin's disconnection from reality is actually cosmic, if we recall what he said about the Americans. As for the ceremony itself, it's just a disgrace, because I've been to hundreds of such events and seen how it's all done. It is known how important it is for a newly appointed ambassador to have at least a 10-minute conversation with the president. And to stand a few meters away, to have these ambassadors stand like boys in front of him and listen to his lectures, Putin disgraced not only himself but also the state he still represents. This is diplomatic ill-manneredness of the highest level,” the former Ukrainian Foreign Minister emphasized.

Volodymyr Ohryzko noted that the Russian Federation does not understand this, because it's used to lying and saying things that do not exist.

“This should not be analyzed from the point of view of common sense, because this is Russia and people there do not live by civilized rules, but by their own wild ones. This is diplomatic savagery and does not fit into a normal diplomatic head, but in Russia it is normal,” Ohryzko summarized.

• On March 31, Russian President Vladimir Putin approved a new foreign policy concept, which calls Russia a civilized state and recognizes the United States as its main adversary.