俄罗斯总统普京24日在莫斯科举行的一次电视直播的地理知识颁奖活动上开玩笑说，俄罗斯的边界“没有止境”。

英国广播公司报道，这次颁奖活动由俄罗斯地理学会组织，出席者包括一些科学家和政府官员。

活动中有两个男孩走上讲台，5岁的季莫费和9岁的米罗斯拉夫。

主持人介绍说，这两个男孩多次在电视地理节目中获奖。

普京问米罗斯拉夫：“俄罗斯的边界到那里为止？”

米罗斯拉夫回答说：“俄罗斯和美国的边界到白令海峡为止。”

普京则说：“俄罗斯的边界没有止境。”

俄罗斯在2014年3月兼并克里米亚，普京又在几个月后对俄罗斯的驻外大使们发表措辞强硬的讲话。

他说：“我想对你们明确表示：我们的国家将继续努力保护俄罗斯人和海外同胞的权利，我们将使用一切可能的手段，包括政治的和经济的手段，以及包括采取一切符合国际人道法律和自卫权利的手段。”

北约和西方国家领导人一直指责克里姆林宫向乌克兰东部派遣正规军并向当地的亲俄罗斯叛军运送重型武器，但俄罗斯对此予以否认，并声称在那里的任何俄罗斯军队都是志愿者。

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Russia's border "doesn't end anywhere"， addressing a televised awards ceremony for geography students.

"That was a joke，" Mr Putin said amid applause and laughter from the audience at the glitzy ceremony.

He was asking a nine-year-old boy: "Where does Russia's border end?" The boy had said "at the Bering Strait". Mr Putin then provided his own answer.

Mr Putin has pledged to defend ethnic Russians wherever they live.

In July 2014， three months after Russian troops annexed Ukraine's Crimea peninsula， he spelled out his doctrine to Russian ambassadors.

"I would like to make it clear to all: our country will continue to actively defend the rights of Russians， our compatriots abroad， using the entire range of available means - from political and economic to operations under international humanitarian law and the right of self-defence."

Nato and Western leaders accuse the Kremlin of sending regular troops and heavy weapons to pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine. The Kremlin has repeatedly denied that， insisting that any Russian troops there are "volunteers".

Just before his comment about Russia's border， President Putin asked five-year-old Timofey Tsoi to name the country whose capital is Ouagadougou.

Timofey correctly answered "Burkina Faso"， but struggled when asked what the country's old name was. Mr Putin helped him out， saying: "Upper Volta! Good lad!"

In its dying days， the Soviet Union was sardonically described as "Upper Volta with rockets".

Both boys had distinguished themselves in televised geography quizzes. The ceremony was staged by the Russian Geographical Society.