The Russian leader has held an in-depth sit-down with domestic media, days ahead of the country’s presidential election
Russian President Vladimir Putin gives an interview to Dmitry Kiselyov. © Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov
Russian President Vladimir Putin has spoken at length about Moscow’s confrontation with the West, in an interview with journalist Dmitry Kiselyov, the head of Rossiya Segodnya, released just days before the country’s presidential election.
Here are the key takeaways from Putin’s in-depth discussion.
Western ‘vampire ball’ is ending
Non-Western nations are striving for sovereignty and are watching with interest as Russia confronts the US and its allies, Putin stated.
Western elites have been “tearing to pieces [the] poor peoples of Africa” and have exploited Latin America and Asia for 500 years, he claimed, adding that the West remains desperate to protect its unfair advantage.
Hawkish recent rhetoric by French President Emmanual Macron may have been an emotional outburst after his country retreated from its former colonial domains in Africa, Putin suggested. Paris has accused Moscow of undermining it, although Putin insisted that Russia “did not squeeze anyone out” of the continent.
No ‘red lines’
Macron has argued that the West should have no “red lines” when it comes to confronting Russia, although Moscow will respond accordingly to any nations that adopt this policy, Putin warned. Such rhetoric, however, is merely down to politicians “fantasizing and riling themselves up,” he suggested.
Putin also claimed that sending Western troops to aid Kiev would threaten Ukraine’s statehood. Poland specifically bears a grudge over lands lost to the USSR after World War II, the Russian leader argued, meaning that if Warsaw deployed military forces to Ukraine, they “wouldn’t leave.”
READ MORE: Polish troops would never leave Ukraine – Putin
Moscow remains committed to peace with Ukraine, but won’t settle based on Kiev’s “drug-fueled wish list,” Putin stressed. Russian security must be guaranteed in a way that bridges the gap in trust created by the West’s broken promises, he added.
Kiev ‘slaughtering its own troops for PR’
Ukraine’s lack of frontline victories is pushing its government into reckless actions that have no military value, Putin argued, citing Kiev’s attempt to establish a foothold east of the Dnieper River.
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“They were sending their people into the meat grinder. Soldiers were literally barefoot recently [due to supply problems],” the president claimed.
Moscow believes Kiev is sacrificing men in the hope of concealing its desperate situation and obtaining more Western aid.
Russia ready for nuclear war
The US sending a significant military force into Ukraine would be a “red line” for Russia, Putin stated, adding that he believes this scenario to be implausible.
“For us [the Ukraine conflict] is a matter of life and death; for them it’s a matter of improving their tactical position [globally and in Europe],” the president said.
Putin insisted that Russia is ready if the US tries to “play chicken.” Moscow is prepared to use nuclear weapons and considers its arsenal “more advanced than anyone else’s,” he warned.
READ MORE: Putin outlines conditions for Russian nuclear test
Washington has enough experts in strategic deterrence, including President Joe Biden, to avoid a nuclear conflagration, the Russian leader suggested – but he added that if the US abandons its de facto moratorium on nuclear tests, Moscow will do the same.
US military bases ‘a black hole of corruption’
The Russian arms sector needs to “get the most bang for every ruble invested,” Putin insisted, stressing that the country is not the USSR, which failed to keep track of defense spending.
The US military is an example of mammoth spending undermined by poor efficiency, according to the Russian leader.
“They spend huge money on maintaining … military bases all around the world. It goes down the black hole, no accounting possible. That is where the graft happens,” he claimed.
READ MORE: Hypersonic weapons promised six years ago now in service – Putin
Russia’s development of the Avangard nuclear-capable hypersonic glider was a good investment because it “nullified” the US national anti-ballistic missile system, Putin argued.
Trump accused Putin of favoring ‘Sleepy Joe’
Kiselyov asked whether Putin actually preferred Joe Biden to Donald Trump in the US presidential race, or whether he was “trolling” the Americans when he named his favorite last month.
Putin revealed that when Trump was in office, the Republican had accused the Russian leader of favoring his Democratic rival.
The current presidential race in the US is increasingly “uncivilized,” proving that American democracy is flawed, Putin claimed.
