Quotes from Vladimir Putin

Democracy cannot be exported to some other place. This must be a product of internal domestic development in a society.

I have a private life in which I do not permit interference. It must be respected.

You know every stage of your life has an impact on you.

The Chechnya problem is a centuries-old problem. The thing is that today, fundamentalists and terrorists are exploiting those centuries-old problems to accomplish their own objectives that have nothing to do whatsoever with the interests of Chechnya.

You need to put drones under control; you need to lay out certain rules of engagement in order to prevent or minimize collateral casualties. It is extremely important.

Where in the world have you seen construction people who do everything on time, with good quality and at minimal prices? Just give me one country like that. A country like that doesn't exist in the world, you know. There's not one such country anywhere in the world.

We must stop using the language of force and return to the path of civilized diplomatic and political settlement.

The Russian people have unilaterally made their choice in direction of democracy in the early '90s. They will not be led astray. Nobody should be having any doubts.

The path towards a free society has not been simple. There are tragic and glorious pages in our history.

We see Serbs as our spiritual brothers. And that is what is at the base of our relations today and in the future.

I consider it to be the meaning of my whole life and my obligation to serve my fatherland and our people.

Of course, it's always bad to lose, of course it's always a hardship when you lose to yesterday's miners or yesterday's tractor drivers. But life is life. It'll surely go on.

Life would be boring without gossip.

Yes, life in Chechnya so far looks more like a life after a natural disaster.

Sometimes it is necessary to be lonely in order to prove that you are right.

In almost any country, probably in Russia in particular, it's fashionable to criticise people in power. If you come out in support of someone like me, you're going to be accused of trying to ingratiate yourself.

The democratic choice Russian people made in the early 90's is final.

Whoever does not miss the Soviet Union has no heart. Whoever wants it back has no brain.

Some experts believe that somebody is deceiving WikiLeaks, that its reputation is being undermined in order for it to be used for political purposes.

Between major countries, there certainly always are some common ground and points of tension.

I believe that the presidential term should be limited.

What is a uni-polar world? No matter how we beautify this term, it means one single centre of power, one single centre of force and one single master.

There are both things in international law: the principle of territorial integrity and right to self-determination.

No references to the need to fight terror can be an argument for restricting human rights.