Putin hails the fall of United States as a moral leader around the globe in annual speech

Russian President Vladimir Putin used his annual address to hail the end of the United States' influence on the world.

According to a write-up from the Financial Times, Putin told his country "luckily this monopoly is disappearing. It’s almost done."

Putin went on to claim that Russia isn't creating any problems for anyone and he has done his part to help create a dialogue with President Donald Trump. When Russia annexed Crimea the US began to enact repercussions on the country, but since Trump's administration, Russia has had more flexibility to begin their own effort to influence the world.

He noted that Trump listens to what he says.

“Empires often think they can make some little mistakes," Putin said. "Because they’re so powerful. But when the number of these mistakes keeps growing, it reaches a level they cannot sustain.”

“A country can get the sense from impunity that you can do anything,” he continued in a speech at the annual Valdai Discussion Club at a ski resort near Sochi. “This is the result of the monopoly from a unipolar world . . . Luckily this monopoly is disappearing. It’s almost done.”

In the speech, Putin also blamed ISIS for kidnapping 700 people in Syria.

Read the full report at the Financial Times.