VLADIVOSTOK, September 3. /TASS/. It is unacceptable to forcefully impose democracy on other countries, Russian President Vladimir Putin said, addressing Friday’s plenary session of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF).

"If a nation needs democracy, it will end up establishing it so there is no need to do that by force," Putin emphasized.

"I have heard many of my colleagues say in relation to Afghanistan: ‘Yes, it was a mistake, we acted in the wrong way, we shouldn’t act like this in the future.’ However, this kind of behavior dates back to the so-called educational activities of Catholic priests who arrived in China, for instance, and civilized the local population, guided by certain achievements in the fields of science, education and medicine. But their main goal was to promote Catholicism," the Russian president added.

According to him, those principles haven’t changed much over the years, only today, "it’s not about spiritual and economic colonization but attempts to preserve their influence disguised as efforts to promote democratic principles." In this regard, Putin stressed that unlike the pullout of US troops from Afghanistan, the Soviet troop withdrawal had been well organized. "Notably, the regime that remained there after the withdrawal of Soviet troops managed to last for several years and if the Soviet Union hadn’t halted economic assistance to Afghanistan right before its own collapse, it’s hard to say how that would have turned out in Afghanistan. Perhaps, the opposing parties would have been able to come an agreement," the Russian leader noted.

"However, the Americans exited by way of air bridges, while Soviet troops crossed over into their own border. It is another story, it was easier for the Soviet Union in this respect," Putin concluded.