Putin how many languages

Merkel is from the old East Germany, but any mild provincial accent is less significant than her controlled, unflashy tone with its slightly extended vowels. Deputy PM Nick Clegg , a toff like Cameron but - despite his name - a foreign one, deploys a regionless middle class tone that at least has the benefit of sounding authentic.

Language of diplomacy : The Lib Dems may be preparing to haemorrhage seats at Westminster, but at least their leader is top of the language class. Unsurprisingly as the leader of a third and shrinking party, he milks his talents: he gave an interview in Dutch to Dutch TV ahead of the election, and can happily negotiate in German. Aides say he switches with ease between his languages, speaking by phone to wife Miriam in Spanish, a diplomat in German and then his mum in Dutch, all in the same car journey.

After all, for an operative working in East Germany with the KGB, fluency in the local language would have been an absolute prerequisite. Check out this awkward video from , in which Merkel addresses Putin in Russian and receives a response from the President in German:.

He also gave a more relaxed and seemingly more off-the-cuff speech in Vienna in at the World Judo Championships, lavishing praise on the traditionalism of Vienna and the sport of judo itself. Watch below:. However, the little evidence available to us suggests that the Russian President is genuinely able to hold a conversation in English. When it comes to diplomacy, however, Putin opts not to take his chances. However, he practically understands English and sometimes even corrects the translators.

However, whether his refusal to speak English in diplomatic spheres unlike Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is down to astuteness or a lack of confidence is up for speculation. Swedish is somewhere in between — he will say something in Swedish, and I will answer in the same language. He also chose to address the Bureau of International Expositions in English, in When asked what languages he spoke during his annual televised answering of pre-screened questions from Russian, Putin was more modest, replying: "In Russia, thank God, I get by in German and I can express myself more or less in English.

President Barack Obama for his impressive English skills and a tendency to correct translators. Newsweek magazine delivered to your door Unlimited access to Newsweek.