US President Barack Obama has openly criticised Russia, saying he has ‘no patience’ for countries that mistreat GLBTI people. In an interview with The Tonight Show he said: "I have no patience for countries that try to treat gays and lesbians and transgendered persons in ways that intimidate them or are harmful to them." Obama added that Russia and President Vladimir Putin will have a big stake in making sure the Olympics work. "I think they understand that for most of the countries that participate in the Olympics, we wouldn't tolerate gays and lesbians being treated differently.” He added: "One of the things I think is very important for me to speak out on is making sure that people are treated fairly and justly because that's what we stand for, and I believe that that's a precept that's not unique to America. That's just something that should apply everywhere." The White House has since announced Obama has cancelled a meeting with Putin that had been scheduled to take place next month in Moscow. While the Kremlin’s decision to grant temporary asylum to National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden was listed as a key reason, a White House official has told the Washington Blade that Russia’s LGBT rights record also played a role in Obama’s decision to cancel the talks between him and his Russian counterpart. In other developments, actor Stephen Fry has written to British Prime Minister David Cameron and the International Olympic Committee calling for the Winter Olympics to be moved somewhere other than Sochi. "An absolute ban on the Russian Winter Olympics of 2014 on Sochi is simply essential. Stage them elsewhere in Utah, Lillyhammer, anywhere you like. At all costs Putin cannot be seen to have the approval of the civilised world," he says. You can read Fry's full letter here
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Thursday, 8th August 2013 - 9:36am