MOSCOW, February 23 (RIA Novosti) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that the state was responsible for the situation around human rights in the country.
"We proceed from the assumption that the state is first of all responsible for the human rights situation," Putin said at a meeting with UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour.
Putin said Russia attached great significance to international cooperation and especially the activity of international organizations like the United Nations.
"I am glad to see you again in Moscow; I know you have made a tour of Russian regions," he told Arbour, adding that he hoped to discuss with her the human rights situation in those regions.
Louise Arbour arrived in Russia February 19. She has visited the North Caucasus republics of Ingushetia, Chechnya and North Ossetia.
