Mr Putin said that “one-gender families” and exaggerated political correctness were leading countries into degradation and a deepening moral crisis.
The annual meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club of Russian specialists with President Vladimir Putin is usually held behind closed doors. This year, to mark the 10th anniversary, it was a show specially tailored for television.
Centre stage was Mr Putin, flanked by slightly awkward looking dignitaries from Germany, France, Italy and the United States.
Facing them was a crowd of foreign guests, plus several rows of Russians, including an Orthodox priest in flowing robes, two white-turbaned Russian Muslim spiritual leaders, and a rumbustious handful of Russian opposition leaders – most of whom got a chance to put a question to Mr Putin.
The president likes marathon sessions and this was no exception: three hours of questions back and forth with a packed auditorium, all broadcast live on Russia’s rolling TV news channel. It was a very public occasion, but nonetheless revealing.
On getting rid of Syria’s chemical weapons, President Putin was surprisingly cautious. “Will we manage to convince Assad? I don’t know,” he mused aloud.
“Will we be able to see everything through? I cannot be 100% sure.”
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