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Canadian PM says Putin behind 'terrible things'

Ottawa - PM Justin Trudeau cites examples of Russia's attempts to destabilize democracies.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Wednesday Vladimir Putin is responsible for "terrible things," but wouldn't go so far as US President Joe Biden in calling the Russian leader a "killer."

Trudeau, unaccustomed to criticizing other world leaders in public, was questioned during an interview on SiriusXM radio's The Bridge with Peter Mansbridge about Biden's remarks.

"I'm sure (Putin) is responsible for all sorts of terrible things because his behaviour continues to demonstrate that," he said.

He cited as examples Russia's annexation of Crimea, "significant cyber attacks he's responsible for and the attempts to destabilize our democracies."

Trudeau said his impression of Putin in their rare meetings at international forums over the past five years was that "he will look at you and say whatever is convenient to him at any given moment.

"He is not particularly interested in what the Western world or what Canada thinks of him," he added.

But when asked if he shared Biden's view of Putin as a killer, expressed last week in an ABC News interview, Trudeau responded: "I don't have the information to make that assertion."