'Disgusting sight' if G7 leaders undressed - Putin fires back
Russian President Vladimir Putin fired back at leaders of the Group of Seven for mocking his macho image, saying the image of the Western leaders undressed "would be a disgusting sight anyway" regardless if it was "from top or from the bottom."
Speaking at a news conference during a visit to Turkmenistan on Wednesday (June 29), Putin hit back at world leaders and advised them to refrain from alcohol abuse and to do exercise.
The comments came after G7 leaders poked fun at their absent adversary at a meeting in Germany, where British Prime Minister Boris Johnson could be heard asking colleagues if they should keep their “jackets on, or jackets off? We’ve got to show them we are tougher than Putin.”
Despite the noise in the room from members of the press and officials, Canada’s Prime Minister and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, could be heard joking about bare-chested horse riding, referencing macho photo opportunities of the Russian leader.
"We are not having the best period of our relations, this is understandable. Nevertheless, they are all world leaders, it means they have character. And if they want to, they can certainly achieve the desired success. They just need to work on themselves," Putin told journalists.
"The fact that they are talking about it, it is already good, I praise them for it."
The Russian leader also rejected Boris Johnson's charge that if he were a woman he would not have invaded Ukraine. Putin pointed to former British leader Margaret Thatcher's decision to send troops into the Falklands as a rebuttal of Johnson's theory.
Johnson on Tuesday dubbed Putin's decision to launch what Moscow calls a "special military operation" against Ukraine a "perfect example of toxic masculinity" and mocked Putin's macho posturing.
Hitting back, Putin told reporters: "I just want to recall the events of recent history, when Margaret Thatcher decided to launch military operations against Argentina for the Falkland Islands. So, a woman took the decision to launch military action.
Moscow repeatedly rails against Western military interventions in the likes of the former Yugoslavia, Afghanistan and Iraq as examples of Western imperialism and hypocrisy.
But during his two-decade rule, Putin himself has faced multiple charges of imperialism, wanting to forcefully expand Russia's borders and influence across the former Soviet space, and has himself said he wished he could reverse the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Russia's February 24 invasion of Ukraine has destroyed numerous cities, killed thousands of civilians and forced millions from their homes across Ukraine.