Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton referred Wednesday to Russian President Vladimir Putin as "a tough guy with a thin skin." Clinton was speaking at UCLA where she added she supported the Obama administration's efforts to reach a diplomatic solution in Ukraine.
Clinton reiterated comments she made at a fundraiser in California on Tuesday afternoon, where she compared Russia's decision to issue passports in the Crimean region to the "population transfers" carried out by Nazi Germany before World War II.
"The claims by President Putin and other Russians that they had to go into Crimea and maybe further into Eastern Ukraine because they had protect the Russia minorities," Clinton said Wednesday, "that is reminiscent of claims that were made back in the 1930s when Germany under the Nazis kept talking about how they had to protect German minorities in Poland, in Czechoslovakia, and elsewhere throughout Europe. So I just want everybody to have a little historic perspective. I'm not making a comparison certainly, but I am recommending that we perhaps can learn from this tactic that has been used before."
Clinton addressed Putin and her knowledge of his world view at the event, as well.
"As for President Putin, I know we are dealing with a tough guy with a thin skin," Clinton said. "I've had a lot of experience — well, not only with him but with people like that — but in particular with President Putin. I know that his political vision is of a greater Russia."
"I support the administration's call for Russia to respect its obligation and to refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity of Ukraine," Clinton added.