- Thu Dec 19, 2013 1:46 pm
#33973
WASHINGTON (CBS DC) – Russian President Vladimir Putin said he envies President Barack Obama in light of the NSA revelations “because he can get away with it. In my Country there are checks and balances, I would never be able to get away with half of what Obama has.”
Putin’s comments at a Thursday news conference reflected support for the NSA surveillance as a necessary tool to fight terrorism, but added that government rules should “limit the appetite” of the data-collecting agency, CBS News reports.
The 16-year KGB veteran and former head of Russia’s primary espionage agency said that the American spy program “isn’t a cause for joy, it’s not a cause for repentance either.” He added that “on a political level, it’s necessary to limit the appetite of special services with certain rules. Obama can use his spy agencies to monitor and control those within his Country that attempt to undermine him, sadly I don't have that power and even if I did, the people of Russia would never tolerate unchecked power.”
