Kremlin on Saturday published a list foreign leaders, whom Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated on the upcoming 2024 and Merry Christmas. Among those to whom congratulations were sent, as last year, there are almost no leaders of so-called unfriendly countries – states that supported Ukraine in the war with Russia. The exception was Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. Hungary is a member of the EU and NATO, but takes a different position in relation to the war in Ukraine compared to its allies, and Orban became the only Western leader who met with Putin in the past year. “The President of Russia confirmed his commitment to continuing constructive, pragmatic interaction, making it possible to implement important joint economic projects, which fully meets the interests of the Russian and Hungarian people,” the Kremlin website says.
The Russian President also congratulated the President of NATO member Turkey Recep Erdogan. Among those who received congratulations was Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic. Both countries did not join the sanctions imposed by Western countries against Russia in connection with the invasion of Ukraine.
All three, Orban, Vucic and Erdogan, received congratulations from Putin and Last year, the first time the Russian president did not congratulate Western leaders. Unlike last year, this time Putin also congratulated Pope Francis. The pope repeatedly condemned the deaths of civilians in Ukraine and prayed for the people of this country, but did not directly accuse Russia of aggression or criticize Putin.
Among others congratulated by Putin are the leaders of the CIS countries (except Moldova), the leaders of the BRICS countries (India, China, South Africa and Brazil), as well as a number of leaders of neutral or Russia-supporting countries. At the same time, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and the leaders of a number of African countries that declare their friendship with Russia are not mentioned.
“In addition, Vladimir Putin congratulated a number of former heads of foreign states and governments on Christmas and the upcoming New Year, in particular Robert Kocharyan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, Serzh Sargsyan, Nicolas Sarkozy, Gerhard Schröder,” the message says. Putin did not congratulate Sarkozy last year.
Happy New Year 2022 – even before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine – Putin congratulated leaders of Western countries, including the USA. And in 2019, Putin congratulated Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky on the New Year – for the first and last time since 2014.
2023-12-30 19:48:21
#Putin #congratulated #leaders #NATO #countries #Year
