VLADIVOSTOK. Sept 12 (Interfax) - Russian President Vladimir Putin has wished success to Yandex co-founder Arkady Volozh, who left Russia, and said that relocated people like Volozh have to decide whether they are patriots or wish to play into the hands of Russia's geopolitical adversaries.
"This thin line must remain on the conscience of the people who make such statements. The usual reason is the wish of such people to keep their business and assets, especially if they move abroad and decide to tie their lives to a different country," Putin said at a plenary session of the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok.
Volozh lives in Israel, Putin said. "I assume that he has to make certain statements in order to live well and maintain good relations with the authorities. He used to sit still and keep silent, and now he decides to make statements. God bless him and may he have a good life, to be honest, this doesn't bother us," he said.
However, "a person who grew up on this [Russian] soil, was trained and became successful here must have a sense of conscience towards the country that gave them everything," Putin said.
"I am not speaking about Volozh now. He is a talented person who has built a good company, and, in general, does a person who disagrees with what the incumbent authorities are doing have the right to express one's stance? Of course! But there are lots of nuances. You can take the side of our geopolitical adversaries and play into their hands, thus damaging the home country. Or you can behave differently. A person decides for oneself whether he or she has a sense of national identity or wants to mimic and feel like he or she is no longer Russian," Putin said.
Average Russians "understand everything well," Putin said. "But if a person has chosen a different fate, let him try to achieve results there, as well. It is not a fact that results will be achieved, but it's their choice," he said.