Putin vows to strengthen ties with partners

Russian President Vladimir Putin promised Tuesday to strengthen ties with foreign partners while defending its interests and principles.

"We are planning to actively strengthen ties with foreign partners. We will also defend Russia's national interests as well as ideals of peace, goodwill and fairness on the international arena, including the UN and all influential regional organizations," Xinhua quoted Putin as saying.

Meanwhile, Putin told the meeting of the presidential human rights council that events in Ukraine showed that the international law is in deep crisis as many international human rights organisations turn a blind eye to crimes against civilians in Ukraine.

"They [the events in Ukraine] have demonstrated a large-scale crisis of the international law, violating the basic norms of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the convention to prevent genocide," Putin said.

"We can't watch the people dying of hunger or lack of medicine and medical help."

The problem of delivering humanitarian aid to Ukraine is complicated due to legal issues, but humanitarian factors must prevail over other concerns, Interfax news agency quoted Putin as saying.

From August to September, Russia sent three batches of humanitarian cargo to the insurgents-occupied territories of eastern Ukraine without Kiev's consent.

Moscow will patiently work with everyone to solve these issues in non-confrontational manner, Putin said.

"Ways to overcome the crisis must be sought," he stressed, adding Russia will try to do that in coordination with Ukrainian authorities.