Russian President Putin: The U.S. Has to Cancel the Sanctions against Us

Russian President Vladimir Putin, speaking at a September 5 press conference for Russian-speaking journalists in China, said: "If the [U.S.] wants to restore relations, all they need to do is cancel [the sanctions]. That's it."

Following are excerpts

Reporter: Let me ask you about Obama, because after all, he is a "key partner," and so on. What if Obama had said: "I went a bit too far, with regard to sectoral sanctions or sanctions against individuals. Was there something that hurt you or seemed unfair to you?" What if he had said - as a human being, not as the leader of a country: "Yes, I went a bit too far there"?

Russian President Vladimir Putin: You mean if he had said: "I've imposed sanctions, but in a human way"... C'mon... Human or not... As diplomats say, our relations have substance. If the [US] takes steps to worsen our relations, we cannot escape it. The decisions regarding the sanctions, for example, [are such steps]. But if they want to restore relations, all they need to do is cancel those decisions. That's it.

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