European countries should be less beholden to military blocks and the US when considering issues concerning their own national interests, Russian President Vladimir Putin told the Swiss RTS TV channel.
“It would be great to see Europe show more independence and sovereignty, and the ability to stand up for its national interests, the interests of its peoples and countries,” Putin said on Monday, RT reported.
He added that he “hopes” another war in Europe is not on the cards.
The Russian leader said a certain level of sovereignty is undoubtedly lost when joining “any military-political organization (or) military-political bloc.”
Putin noted that “France withdrew from NATO in order to preserve its sovereignty to a greater extent than would have been possible had it been part of the organization,” referring to the French withdrawal from NATO in the 1960s. France fully returned to the military bloc only in 2009.
“It is not our business to analyze the foreign policy of European countries. But you must admit that if we have to discuss inter-European affairs with European partners in Washington, this is not very interesting.”
He also mentioned that the US has been “pursuing an imperial policy for a long time.”
