Putin: Russia sells arms to states only, keeps in mind regional situation

Russia maintains military-technological cooperation only with the legitimate authorities of foreign states and always analyzes the situation in the relevant region, Russian President Vladimir Putin said. "It is our principled position that arms deliveries to illegal entities undermine the security of a country, a region and the world as a whole. I am confident that many conflicts in various places of the globe could have been avoided if all arms makers of the world had adhered to the same principles as Russia does," he said at a meeting of the Russian Commission for Military-Technological Cooperation with Foreign States, Voice of Russia reported. Russia values its reputation as a responsible actor on the world arms market and fully complies with its commitments and non-proliferation and arms control regulations, he said. Russian laws allow for the delivery of armaments to foreign states exclusively within the framework of their legal regimes, Putin said. "Russia concludes such contracts only with legitimate authorities and only for the sake of the defense capacity and sovereignty of these states. The concrete situation in the region is always comprehensively analyzed," Putin said.