Oliver Stone: The Putin Interviews

OS:Yes, he didn’t complete his fourth term, but he obviously was immensely popular. And obviously you’re criticized for many things. And we can get into that later, but you’re criticized for cracking down on the press, among other things, but I’m not going to get into that tonight. I realize that you have been president now for almost 15 years. Which is unbelievable.

VP:No, just first two terms—that’s eight years—four and four. And now starting from 2012—it’s 10 years.

OS:Okay. Well you worked hard when you were prime minister, too.

VP:Yes, I worked hard and quite successfully too on the whole. But back then, Russia’s president was a different person. I know the assessments given to this period abroad. I have to tell you that President Medvedev performed independently all his functions. There was this division of functions according to the Constitution. I never interfered within his domain. [13] Claim: “I have to tell you that President Medvedev performed independently all his functions. There was this division of functions according to the Constitution. I never interfered within his domain.” A clear division of functions does indeed exist between the president and prime minister positions in Russia. See, “FACTBOX: Russian president and prime minister: who does what?,” Reuters (May 7, 2008). Retrieved at: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-russia-inauguration-president-duties-idUSL0718325420080507 However, the question remains how independent the Putin-Medvedev relationship actually was from 2008 to 2012, when Dmitry Medvedev served as President and Vladimir Putin served as Prime Minister. Western media consistently portrayed the two as friends, who at times experience tension regarding reforms proposed and implemented by President Medvedev, however, more specifically, western sources concurred that Prime Minister Putin was the one who called the shots in Russia. See, “Vladimir Putin Is Medvedev’s Friend – And Boss,” Dmitry Sidorov, Forbes (February, 23, 2009). Retrieved at: https://www.forbes.com/2009/02/23/russia-president-prime-minister-opinions-contributors_medvedev_putin.html There were certain issues when he deemed it possible to consult me on this or that matter. But that was quite a rare occurrence. He did almost everything as he deemed necessary. Furthermore, I can tell you a curious story. During the inauguration of President Medvedev, [14] Background Information: Dmitry Medvedev served as Russian President from 2008 to 2012, while also serving as Russian Prime Minister during Vladimir Putin’s terms as President. “Dmitry Medvedev, Fast Facts,” CNN (Aug. 30, 2016). Retrieved at: http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/26/world/europe/dmitry-medvedev---fast-facts/ we met here—just a handful of those who were close to him—and one of the Russian dignitaries said some kind words to me. And he said, “We all understand everything—that you’re still our president,” he told me. And I told everyone, “Thank you for the kind words, but please, do not send false signals to society. Only one person can be the president of the country—the one who is elected by the people.”

OS:Fair enough. Five assassination attempts, I’m told. Not as much as Castro, whom I interviewed—I think he must have had 50—but there’s a legitimate five that I’ve heard about. [15] Claim: “Five assassination attempts, I’m told. Not as much as Castro, whom I interviewed—I think he must have had 50—but there’s a legitimate 5 that I’ve heard about.” Assassination attempts on Putin’s life are unclear and unverifiable. However, Cuban officials claim that the number of assassination attempts, also unverifiable, on Fidel Castro’s life reach upwards of 638. See, “Fidel Castro survived 600 assassination attempts, officials say,” Patrick Oppmann, CNN (November 26, 2016). Retrieved at: http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/12/americas/cuba-fidel-castro-at-90-after-assassination-plots/

VP:Yes, I talked with Castro about that and he said to me, “Do you know why I’m still alive?” I asked him, “Why?” “Because I was always the one to deal with my security personally.” Unlike Castro, I do my job and the security officers do theirs and they are still performing quite successfully. I was quite successful in performing my functions and they in theirs.

OS:So you are saying you did not follow the Castro model?

VP:I don’t see there is a need for that.

OS:In other words, you trust your security and they’ve done a good job.

VP:Yes.

OS:Because always the first mode of assassination, from when the United States went after Castro, you try to get inside the security of the president to perform assassination.

VP:Yes, I know that. Do you know what they say among the Russian people? They say that those who are destined to be hanged are not going to drown.

OS:What is your fate, sir? Do you know?

VP:Only God knows that. Only God knows our destiny—yours and mine.

OS:To die in bed, maybe?

VP:One day this is going to happen to each and every one of us. The question is what will we have accomplished by that time in this transient world and whether we’ll have enjoyed our life.

OS:I have about 10 more minutes of questions and then we can wrap it for tonight.

In a Russian documentary I saw about you, they described the Iceberg Theory, which is in foreign affairs most people see one-seventh of the iceberg, the top only, they don’t see the six-sevenths below the surface of the water. And that all foreign affairs are very treacherous and different than what they appear to be.

VP:That’s very complicated.

OS:Well, I’d like to go there tomorrow and the next day. I mean it’s almost impossible to tell what’s going on in the world unless you look below the surface.

VP:You know, it’s sufficient just to closely monitor what’s going on in the world always and then you’ll understand the logic behind what is going on. Why do ordinary people often lose touch with what is going on? Why do they consider these things complicated? Why do they think that something is concealed from their eyes? This is simply because ordinary people live their lives. On an everyday basis they go to work and earn money, and they are not following international affairs. That’s why ordinary people are so easy to manipulate, to be misled. But if they were to follow what’s going on in the world on an everyday basis, then despite the fact that some part of diplomacy is always conducted behind closed doors, it’s still going to be easier to understand what’s going on and you’ll be able to grasp the logic behind world developments. And you can achieve it even without having access to secret documents.

OS:I’ve read about your prodigious work habits. You read, you study. And I wanted to tell you a story that I recently read about John Kennedy. He was an exciting and glamorous president, but he also worked very, very hard. His brother Robert Kennedy wrote a book, Thirteen Days , about the crisis in Cuba between Khrushchev and Kennedy and in the book it was amazing that Robert Kennedy described that his brother read every document, every speech by a foreign leader that he could. He knew what the speech was, he didn’t take the extract of the information from the CIA, from this intelligence agency, because he didn’t trust them. And as a result, he was able to reach his own conclusions with Khrushchev and solve this crisis.