Chinese state run Xinhua News Agency reported the following on October 3:
Russian President Vladimir Putin, speaking at the 22nd annual meeting of the Valdai International Discussion Club in Sochi on October 2, responded to U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent claim that Russia is a “paper tiger.” Putin remarked that even if Russia were a “paper tiger,” it would be a tough one, adding pointedly that NATO “doesn’t even qualify as a paper tiger.” He said, “Well if we are fighting with the entire NATO bloc, we are moving, advancing, and we feel confident, and we are a ‘paper tiger’, then what is NATO itself?”
Trump made his “paper tiger” remark late September, suggesting that Russia’s prolonged war in Ukraine made it appear weak. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov countered that Russia was not a “paper tiger,” but a “real bear.” Although Trump later walked back his comment, saying he would stop calling anyone a “paper tiger,” he repeated the phrase days later while addressing U.S. military officers.
At the same event, Putin dismissed Western accusations that Russia was behind recent sightings of unidentified drones over Danish airspace, calling them a NATO ploy to “stoke tensions and push for higher defense spending.” He criticized the alliance for “hysterically” warning of conflict while supplying Ukraine with intelligence, weapons, and training. “I just want to say: Cool down, sleep calmly, and take care of your own problems,” Putin said.
Source: Xinhua, October 3, 2025
http://www.news.cn/world/20251003/047831289d014fd6a9f9eed247bc7147/c.html