Let the people decide whom to vote for, who has more authority. And only people, only our citizens, are able to place the final emphasis, voting for this or that person or political force, or rejecting it. That's democracy.

Stability and a prosperous life cannot be set off against a set of political rights and freedoms.

I've never tried to measure myself on any scale. A person is more multifaceted than the label they often get stuck with. On the other hand someone's whole behaviour allows you to characterise them in a certain way. This person has liberal convictions, that person has conservative ones, this person is a radical socialist, and so on.

I always say that modernization is not an abstract thing; it's a very specific task.

I don't want to live in a militarised country behind an iron curtain. It's boring. Been there and seen the movie. I've done that.