Vladimir Putin will not send New Year wishes to American Presidents Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, the Kremlin said on Friday amid a crisis between Moscow and the West since Russia’s offensive in Ukraine.
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“These colleagues don’t send us any wishes. In fact, we have no contact with them. And given the unkind acts they are constantly undertaking, the President will not send them greetings,” Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for the Russian presidency, told reporters.
Conversely, Vladimir Putin has already sent Happy New Year 2023 wishes to several leaders close to the Kremlin.
According to a list published by the Russian Presidency on Friday, Vladimir Putin notably congratulated Chinese President Xi Jinping, Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Syrian Bashar al-Assad, Venezuelan Nicolas Maduro and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
According to the Kremlin, he also sent greetings to two former Western leaders, Italian Silvio Berlusconi and German Gerhard Schröder.