Putin warns that any external interference in Russia's affairs will be seen as act of 'aggression'

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - Russian President Vladimir Putin warned Tuesday that any interference in Russia's internal affairs will be regarded as an act of "aggression."

"We regard any outside interference, provocations with the aim of causing interethnic or interreligious conflicts as aggressive actions against our country, as an attempt to once again foment terrorism and extremism in Russia as a tool to fight us. We will respond accordingly," Putin said at a plenary session of the World Russian People's Council in Moscow.

“I believe we all remember, and must remember, the lessons of the 1917 revolution, the subsequent Civil War, and the disintegration of the USSR in 1991” which plunged Russia into chaos, caused massive casualties and destruction and a lot of suffering among the people, he added.

The conflicts that erupted after the dissolution of the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union are yet to be settled, Putin said.

He noted that modern Russia “is reclaiming, consolidating and augmenting its sovereignty as a global power.”

“We have many ambitious goals before us, and fulfilling them requires a truly concerted effort, which we are ready for. We have become stronger. Our historical regions have returned to Russia. Society is rejecting everything superficial and turning to true and genuine values,” he said.

Putin noted that although religion is separated from the state in Russia, it cannot be separated from society, to which it is an organic part.

Currently, Russia’s “fight for sovereignty and justice is, without exaggeration, one of national liberation,” defending its "historical right to be Russia -- a strong, independent power, a civilization state," he stressed.

“The West has no need for such a large and multi-ethnic country as Russia as a matter of principle. Our diversity and unity of cultures, traditions, languages and ethnicities simply do not fit into the logic of Western racists and colonizers, into their cruel plans for total depersonalization, separation, suppression and exploitation,” he said.

The real goal of the Western powers is "to dismember and plunder Russia," he emphasized, warning that such attempts will meet with a proportionate response.

The World Russian People's Council is an international public organization and forum for people who are united by concern over the present and future of Russia.