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Putin calls Elton John - this time for real, says Kremlin Putin calls Elton John - this time for real, says Kremlin
(34 minutes later)
President Vladimir Putin has called pop star Elton John and suggested a meeting, his spokesman said, after the British singer was tricked last week by a prankster impersonating the Russian leader. Vladimir Putin has called Sir Elton John and offered to meet after prank-callers impersonating the Russian president fooled the singer earlier this month.
“Putin ... had a talk with Elton John,” his spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, according to the RIA Novosti state news agency. Putin spoke with John by phone on Thursday and asked forgiveness for the pair of famous Russian hoaxers who had previously called John in his name, presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
The Russian leader told the British singer not to be offended by the pranksters who called him last week pretending to be Putin and his spokesman, Peskov said. “Putin called him and said, ‘I know you were pranked by those telephone guys, don’t be offended by them, they’re harmless, but that of course doesn’t excuse them,’” Peskov said. “And Putin said he knows how popular a performer Elton John is. If in the future their schedules allow, he’s ready to meet with him and discuss any questions that interest him.”
“Putin called and said ‘I know that some guys played a phone prank on you. Don’t get offended at them, they’re harmless, but of course that doesn’t excuse them,’” Peskov said. The tumultuous story of John and Putin began after the singer said in an Instagram post earlier this month that the president had called him and he looked forward to meeting Putin “face-to-face to discuss LGBT equality in Russia”. John was coming off a trip lobbying for LGBT rights in Ukraine, during which he told the BBC that he wanted to meet with Putin to talk about his “isolating and prejudiced” and “ridiculous” attitude towards gay people.
The Rocket Man performer did not immediately confirm the call on his Instagram page, where he earlier announced the call from Putin that turned out to be a hoax. But last week Peskov denied that Putin had called the singer. That’s when Vladimir “Vovan” Krasnov and Alexei “Lexus” Stolyarov, a pair of hoaxers known for their prank calls to Russian and Ukrainian celebrities, admitted they had been the ones who phoned John. Krasnov said he had played Putin while Stolyarov pretended to be Peskov and interpret his co-conspirators words into English. A recording of the conversation was aired on a popular Russian late-night show.
Putin suggested a meeting with the pop legend to discuss any topic, Peskov said, while not specifically referring to gay rights, which John has said he wants to debate with the Russian president. In the 10-minute conversation, a heartfelt John complained to Krasnov-as-Putin about violence toward LGBT people in Russia and said it would be a “dream come true” to meet with him to discuss the issue. The faux Putin suggested John come to Moscow in November and participate in a gay pride parade, despite the fact that police and counter-protesters have broken up annual gay pride events there for the past decade.
“Putin said he knows what a popular performer Elton John is and if their schedules match in the future, he is ready to meet and discuss any questions that interest him,” Peskov said. The embarrassing incident has now apparently been smoothed out with Putin’s call. The president seems to be currying good will in the west before his speech at the United Nations on Monday, giving an interview to 60 Minutes in the US in which he says he admires America’s creativity and openness.
John last week said he had received a phone call from Putin after previously saying he wanted to meet the president to discuss Russia’s failure to respect gay rights. Putin has been trying to form an international coalition with Bashar al-Assad’s embattled government in Syria to fight Islamic State militants.
The Kremlin denied any call and it turned out that John had been on the receiving end of a trick call from a Russian prankster called Vladimir Krasnov, who then played a recording of the call on a television chat show. The news of Putin’s potential meeting with John nearly overshadowed the announcement on Thursday that he would meet with the US president, Barack Obama, at the UN next week.
John responded to the revelation that the call was a hoax by saying: “Pranks are funny. Homophobia, however, is never funny.” Putin signed a law in 2013 that banned the “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations among minors”, ushering in a wave of harassment and violence against gay people, including teenagers. John has campaigned for gay rights in Russia and in 2014 published an open letter condemning the gay propaganda law and offering to introduce Putin to members of the LGBT community.
In 2013, Putin signed off on a law banning the promotion or display of homosexuality in front of minors. John, who is gay, has raised more than £210m ($321m) through his foundation for Aids treatment and prevention. Related: Elton John should talk to Putin about gay rights. But will Russia listen? | Mary Dejevsky
Despite Putin’s call to John, the president seems to remain firm in stressing “traditional values” over minority rights. The day after John criticised his “ridiculous” attitude towards gay people, it emerged that Putin had awarded a state honour to Vitaly Milonov, a St Petersburg lawmaker known for his efforts to ban “gay propaganda” and prosecute western pop stars that support LGBT rights.
This week, a judge reportedly ordered Deti-404, an online support group for LGBT teens, to be shut down, although the site remained accessible as of press time. This summer, the group’s founder was fined under the gay propaganda law.