Fugitive US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden on Thursday made an unexpected intervention in a televised forum involving Russian President Vladimir Putin, quizzing him over the extent of Moscow's surveillance activities. <\/p>\n
Putin, a former KGB agent, greeted Snowden as a fellow 'former agent' before assuring him that Russia's surveillance of the population was not on a mass scale and strictly controlled by laws. <\/p>\n
The questions were put to Putin during a televised QA aired on Thursday in which Russians were able to submit videoed questions to Putin using mobile phone apps. <\/p>\n
Snowden spoke against a dark background giving no clue to his location. His Russian lawyer, Anatoly Kucherena, told the RIA Novosti news agency that Snowden pre-recorded the video. <\/p>\n
The fugitive whistleblower asked the question in English. Putin appeared taken aback and was not provided with a translation through an earpiece, suggesting he was not expecting the question. <\/p>\n
'I'd like to ask you: does Russia intercept, store or analyse in any way the communications of millions of individuals?' Snowden asked. <\/p>\n
'And do you believe that simply increasing the effectiveness of intelligence or law enforcement investigations can justify our placing societies rather than subjects under surveillance?' <\/p>\n
Putin replied that the kind of 'mass eavesdropping' on the population that Snowden exposed in the United States was impossible as Russia's special services were under strict control. <\/p>\n
'Mr Snowden, you're a former agent, I also had something to do with this, so we'll talk in a professional language,' he greeted Snowden, drowned out by clapping from the audience. <\/p>\n
'We have strict legal regulation of the use of special surveillance by special services, including tapping phone conversations, surveillance on the internet and so on,' Putin said, stressing a court decision was necessary for this. <\/p>\n
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