ST. PETERSBURG, June 19. /TASS/. Leaders of European countries that have stopped contacts with Russia may resume cooperation if they want to, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting with the heads of the world's leading news agencies organized by TASS.
"A year and a half or two years ago, conversations with [former German] Chancellor [Olaf] Scholz and other European leaders were regular. But at some point, when our European partners plotted to inflict a strategic defeat on us on the battlefield, they stopped these contacts themselves. They stopped them, so they should be the ones to resume them. We are open," he said.
TASS traditionally organizes a meeting between the president and representatives of news agencies on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF). Last year, the event was held for the eighth time and was attended by media heads from half a dozen countries.
The SPIEF is taking place on June 18-21. This year, the event is held under the theme "Shared Values: The Foundation of Growth in a Multipolar World." The Roscongress Foundation is the organizer of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. TASS is its information partner.