Vladimir Putin

It is wrong to make anyone into an enemy; it is wrong to scare the people of one’s own country with that enemy and try to rally some allies on that basis.

The state security bodies should not be seen as an institution that works against society and the state; one needs to understand what makes them work against their own people.

For Russia, there is not and there may not be another political option but democracy. However, Russian democracy is… not at all the realization of standards imposed on us from outside.

I swim almost every day, a thousand meters.

The worst thing for a politician is to try and cling to power by every possible means, and focus only on that.

There are big countries and small countries, rich and poor, those with long democratic traditions and those still finding their way to democracy.

We are not going to close anything… I also worked in the security services and know it is easiest to ban, and harder to find civilized solutions. Therefore, I’m going to urge all my colleagues to take this route, the route of security and law enforcement agencies using modern methods to combat offences, including terrorism, without restricting freedoms including on the Internet.

I am not a puppet. I was not made by the West to go to the West or to any other country.

Why does the world dislike Russia? I do not think that we are unloved or considered to be ignorant.

If people can just pour into the country illegally, you don’t have a country.

In our democracy every young person should have an equal opportunity to obtain a higher education, regardless of his station in life or financial means.

It’s perfectly obvious that there is some genetic factor that distinguishes humans from other animals and that it is language-specific. The theory of that genetic component, whatever it turns out to be, is what is called universal grammar.

Socialism means keeping account of everything. You will have socialism if you take stock of every piece of iron and cloth.

Equality of the general rules of law and conduct…is the only kind of equality conducive to liberty and the only equality which we can secure without destroying liberty.

How could this Y2K be a problem in a country where we have Intel and Microsoft?

Labour Party members must all be free to criticise and oppose injustice and abuse wherever we find it.

We need a president with tremendous intelligence, smarts, cunning, strength and stamina.

It’s better not to argue with women.

I don’t think I’m going to lose, but if I do, I don’t think you’re ever going to see me again, folks. I think I’ll go to Turnberry and play golf or something.

I consider it completely unimportant who in the party will vote, or how; but what is extraordinarily important is this-who will count the votes, and how.

While Trump’s antics occupy the attention of the media, his associates in Congress have been working intensively to advance the interests of their actual constituency-extreme wealth and corporate power-while dismantling what is of value to the general population andfuture generations.