Russian President Vladimir Putin talks during his meeting with local residents and governmental officials, March 18, 2019 in Simferopol, Crimea. Image by Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images

(JTA) — Russian President Vladimir Putin made a joke invoking the anti-Semitic trope about Jews and money during a visit to Crimea.

During a visit with local residents and religious leaders on Monday in Crimea, a local Jewish leader made a comment about financial difficulties.

Putin replied “So the Jews have problems with finances! Only such a thing could happen in Crimea.” He also said to the bearded ad black-hatted Jewish man in Hebrew “todah rabah,” or thank you very much.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

The exchange was first reported in English in a tweet by Washington Post Moscow correspondent Anie Ferris-Rotman, who included a video of the exchange.

Putin today, responding to a Jewish community member in Crimea: “So the Jews have problems with finances! Only such a thing could happen in Crimea” (forced laughter all round) He also tells him, in Hebrew, “thank you very much” https://t.co/fWNvW6wxFt

— Amie Ferris-Rotman (@Amie_FR) March 18, 2019

Also on Monday in Crimea, Putin proposed inviting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the opening of a synagogue in Sevastopol, after offering to invite Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to the opening of a Crimean Mosque.

Putin also said that the Jewish community in Russia was making a large contribution to his country’s development.

“I hope that Jews in Crimea will play the same positive role,” he said. “Judaism is also among our traditional denominations, traditional religions, and I am very pleased that religious life is developing here in Crimea.”

Some 10,000 Jews live in Crimea, and the community has been deeply supportive of Russian annexation of the peninsula.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$90 $180

$360

Other amount