Russia's Nord Stream pipelines suffered a coordinated sabotage attack last September, cutting off a key route for the delivery of Russian natural gas to Europe. Moscow has accused the US and its allies of involvement. US officials and media have attempted to deflect by blaming a mysterious 'pro-Ukrainian group' unaffiliated to any government.
"First, I will mention the sabotage of the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines which took place in September 2022. We hope, Mr. Ambassador, that the Danish side supports our proposal to set up an independent, international commission to establish all the circumstances of what took place," Putin said, speaking to Denmark's new envoy to Russia at a ceremony in the Kremlin on Wednesday.
Pointing to Russia and Denmark's long history of relations - which span some 530 years, Putin recalled how "at one time, the families of the monarchic ruling families were related. As you know, the wife of Emperor Alexander III - Maria Feodorovna, was Danish by birth. That is, our countries have always been close to one another historically, and behaved like good neighbors in the Baltic Sea."
Unfortunately, Putin said, today the situation in the body of water can be described as "literally turbulent" thanks to the attack on Nord Stream, which took place off the Danish island of Bornholm.
Russia-US Ties in Deep Crisis
During Wednesday's ceremony, Putin also received the credentials of Lynne Tracy, the new US ambassador to Russia. Unfortunately, he noted, relations between Moscow and Washington can't be described otherwise than being in a state of "deep crisis."
"Relations between the Russian Federation and the United States, upon whom global security and stability directly depend, are going through a deep crisis, unfortunately," Putin said. "Its roots lie in the fundamentally different approaches to the formation of the contemporary world order."
"I know that you may not agree with me, but I cannot help but say today that the US's use of such tools in its foreign policy as support for so-called 'color revolutions' - support in this regard for the coup d'etat in Kiev in 2014, ultimately led to the present Ukrainian crisis, and contributed in a negative way to the degradation of Russian-American relations," Putin said, addressing Tracy.
"Russia, Putin said, "has always advocated" for building ties with the US "on the principles of equality, respect for one another's sovereignty and interests, and non-interference in internal affairs. We will be guided by these principles in the future."
Issues With Norway
Many of the same problems stand in the way of good relations between Russia and Norway, the Russian president said.
"Today, bilateral contacts (between Russia and Norway) have been reduced to a minimum. Interaction on important international and regional issues, including in the Arctic - which is so significant for both countries, has been frozen. It is unlikely that all this is in the interests of our two peoples," Putin said, addressing new Norwegian Ambassador Robert Kvile.
The current trends are a reversal of decades of "constructive" ties, Putin added, recalling the "thousands of Soviet soldiers" who "gave their lives for the liberation of northern Norway from the Nazis in 1944."
Iraq Relations
Welcoming the new envoy from Iraq, Putin recalled that next year will mark the 80th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Moscow and Baghdad.
"Russian-Iraqi cooperation offers a wealth of experience in mutually beneficial joint projects in various areas, including oil and gas. I will point out that over the past two years, bilateral trade has shown steady growth, and the goal is to jointly maintain the positive dynamics, including through the diversification of economic cooperation," he said.
Alluding to Iraq's difficult, turbulent history in recent years, Putin emphasized that Russia "has consistently advocated unconditional respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Iraq," and "categorically condemns any external interference in the internal affairs of your country, Mr. Ambassador."
Mexico Ties
Putin also greeted Mexico's new ambassador to Russia - recalling the 130+ year history of relations, and the respect and mutually beneficial cooperation that serves as their bedrock. "We appreciate Mexico City's balanced approaches in settling global problems on the principles of multilateralism, non-intervention, respect for international law and the peaceful settlement of disputes," the president said.
On a personal note, Putin heartily congratulated Mexico's envoy, who celebrated his birthday Wednesday, wishing him "good health, well-being and success."
Russia Hopes to Restore Ties With EU
The Russian president also greeted the new EU representative, Roland Galharague, saying that as with the US, Moscow-Brussels ties have deteriorated significantly, "to our great regret." The principle cause of the downturn, in Putin's view, is that the EU left its original core functions of Europe's economic cooperation and integration to one side and "initiated a geopolitical confrontation with Russia."
As the EU's neighbor, Russia would like to gradually return to cooperation with Brussels, Putin said. "I would like to express the hope that all of the actions which are now damaging our relations can become a thing of the past, and we will do everything to build them in the correct way, both for Russia and the economies of the member countries. We hope that over time, the logic of mutual cooperation will prevail."
Syrian Alliance
Putin also offered a warm welcome for Bashar Jaafari, the Syrian ambassador to Russia, who previously served as deputy minister of foreign affairs, and Syria's permanent representative to the United Nations.
"Syria is our reliable partner, an ally in the Arab world and in the international arena as a whole. Russia helped the Syrian people defend their sovereignty and independence in the face of aggression by international terrorists at a difficult time," Putin said. Moscow will continue to assist Damascus in reconstruction following February's devastating earthquakes, as well as Syria's push to normalize its ties with its neighbors, the Russian president assured the veteran Syrian diplomat.
