Greta Thunberg delivered a powerful speech at the United Nations last week.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday dismissed environmental activist Greta Thunberg as a kind but poorly informed teenager manipulated into making unrealistic demands in her United Nations speech last month.

"Go and explain to developing countries why they should continue living in poverty and not be like Sweden," Putin told an energy conference, adding it was deplorable that Thunberg was being used by some groups - which he did not name - to achieve their own goals.

