MOSCOW. Dec 18 (Interfax) - In spite of the aggressive policy of the United States, Moscow is in favor of dialogue with Washington, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.
"Who plays nice and who's aggressive? Not us, we're not aggressive. If we don't play nice, then at least we're rather comely, set to pursue dialogue and achieve compromise solutions. I'd like to say what [the character named] Leopold Cat from one of our [Soviet-era] cartoons said: "Let's live as friends!" Putin said during his annual press conference on Thursday.
Putin went on to recall that Russia "agreed to free those nations and peoples that wanted to develop independently from certain Soviet diktat." But the U.S. responded by expanding NATO eastward, he said.
"Shouldn't we react to that? Was it Russia who withdrew from the missile defense treaty? It wasn't us. And we're forced to respond by creating new weapons systems, which ameliorate the threats we face," Putin said.
Russia has to react to aggressive moves by the U.S. However, this country stands for dialogue with Washington, he said.