...Second and fourth President and sixth of the Russian Federation and the first to remain sober. Putin is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law, which occasionally results in somebody dropping dead from polonium poisoning. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to Putin. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile or dead...has accused the West of hatching a plot to destabilize the whole region through its intervention in Ukraine.
Putin made the remarks over Russia's foreign policy during a meeting with the diplomatic service, including Russian ambassadors, at the Foreign Ministry in Moscow on Tuesday.
"Events provoked by the West in Ukraine are a concentrated manifestation of a containment policy against Russia," Putin warned, dubbing Western sanctions regarding Russia a "policy instrument."
The Russian president highlighted underlying ethnic and social contradictions in troubled countries, which he said can pave the way for illegitimate regime change.