MOSCOW, December 14. /TASS/. Russia is ready to resume full-fledged relations with the United States but insists that a fundamental groundwork must first be laid down to facilitate this, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.
"When certain fundamental changes take place [in the United States], they will begin to respect other people, other countries, to look for compromises rather than using sanctions and engaging in combat operations in a bid to resolve their own problems. In this case, the fundamental conditions will be created for the resumption of full-fledged relations. So far, there are no such conditions. But we are ready for that," he said during his combined Direct Line Q&A session and year-end press conference when asked by TASS to comment on the prospects for normalizing the dialogue with the United States.
Moscow, according to Putin, believes that the "United States is an important and necessary country in the world," so it "is ready to build relations" with it. "But they are getting in their own way with their imperialist policy. Not in our way, but their own. Why? Because in the public conscience they must act like an empire. And once they agree on anything with anyone or make any concessions, the voters take it as a failure. That is why the ruling elite has to behave this way," Putin added.