In his speech, the Russian leader, as usual, criticized the West, but did not forget to praise Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and the populist Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico.
In the first part of this marathon, a lot of attention was paid to Russian aggression, which V. Putin calls a “special military operation in Ukraine”.
His opening thoughts focus on the importance of Russian sovereignty.
“The existence of our country is impossible without sovereignty. It simply won’t exist,” he noted to Yekaterina Berezovskaya, host of the state-controlled First Channel.
“Peace will come when we achieve our goals. They don’t change. I will remind you what we talked about: the de-Nazification and demilitarization of Ukraine, its neutral status,” the head of the country quickly turned to talking about the war.
The word “denazification” is related to Russian accusations that the Ukrainian government is heavily influenced by radical nationalist and neo-Nazi groups. This claim is ridiculed in the West and Ukraine.
V. Putin also demanded that Ukraine remain neutral and not join NATO.
VIDEO: V. Putin at the staged conference: there are no conditions for improving relations with the West
“What is mobilization for us?”
According to him, 1,500 men are accepted into the army every day across the country. V. Putin was proud that so far about 486,000 people have voluntarily signed up for the army. soldiers, and last year 300 thousand were invited to it. people.
“The flow of our men, who are ready to defend the interests of the homeland with weapons in their hands, is not decreasing,” V. Putin emphasized. – In total, by the end of this year, there will be slightly less than half a million men. Why do we need mobilization?”
“The length of the front line is more than 2 thousand. kilometers. There are 617 thousand people in the conflict zone. people,” he added.
SPUTNIK / via REUTERS/ Russian President Vladimir Putin
A declassified US intelligence report this week indicated that 315,000 people had been killed or wounded since the start of the war. of Russian soldiers – which, according to American intelligence, is almost 90 percent. personnel of the Russian army at the beginning of the invasion.
As this annual Putin press conference is connected to the “Direct Line” – which allows Russian citizens to ask the president questions – a reporter for the Russian publication Izvestia, based in the temporarily occupied Luhansk in eastern Ukraine, asked the country’s leader a question about Ukraine’s recent seizure of a forward bridgehead in the Russian-occupied on the eastern bank of the Dnieper River.
“I don’t know why they are doing this, they are forcing their own people to die, it is a one-way ticket for Ukrainian forces. The reasons for this are political, because the leaders of Ukraine are asking for help from foreign countries.”
Describing Ukraine’s military success in a “small area” as Ukraine’s latest attempt to push into Crimea, Putin explained that Russian forces had decided to retreat a few meters into wooded areas “to save their guys.” He went on to assume that the main motive behind such actions is Kyiv’s desire to show the West that it needs more military funding.
“I don’t know why they are doing this, they are forcing their own people to die, it is a one-way ticket for Ukrainian forces. The reasons for this are political, because the leaders of Ukraine are asking for help from foreign countries.”
Putin continues to assert that Russian forces have the upper hand on the entire front line in Ukraine.
“On virtually the entire front line, our armed forces are improving, to put it modestly,” he stated.
There has been very little movement on the front line in recent months, but Russia is targeting two eastern towns in the Donetsk region: Marinka and Avdijivka.
IMAGO/Scanpix/Russian soldiers
Sanctions do not stop Russia
V. Putin also noted that Russia, despite Western economic sanctions and political isolation due to Moscow’s attack in Ukraine, can continue to move forward.
“We can not only rely on ourselves, but also move forward,” the country’s leader noted, adding that the strengths of his country are the strength of Russian society, the endurance of the financial and economic system, and the growing capabilities of the country’s military.
V. Putin seeks to assure Russians that the protracted conflict will not affect their lives, but admitted that inflation is growing.
Last week, V. Putin announced that he will seek a fifth term in the presidential elections to be held in March. On Thursday, he said the main goal of his fifth term will be to strengthen Russia’s sovereignty.
“This means strengthening the country’s defense capabilities and external security,” he said.
Another priority, according to him, will be the protection of citizens’ rights.
Blames the West for ‘ruining relations’
V. Putin stated that he is ready to restore relations with Europe and the United States, but he also pointed out that Russia did not do anything wrong by invading Ukraine, and accused the West of “damaging relations” with Russia.
“We believe that the United States is an important and necessary country in the world. But their imperial policies stand in their way.”
“We have not damaged relations with the West,” he said, beginning a long lecture on the Kremlin’s approach to Ukrainian history. “They ruined our relationship and always tried to put us in second or third place, ignoring our interests.”
At one point, he added, speaking in 2014. the history of the Ukrainian revolution, “they left us no choice.”
V. Putin expressed his desire for Moscow and Washington to find a solution to the release of American journalist Evan Gershkovich and US citizen Paul Whelan.
“There is communication and dialogue on this issue, but it is not simple,” he said.
“I hope we can find a solution. However, the Americans should also hear us and make a decision that suits the Russian Federation,” added V. Putin.
He did not forget to praise Hungarian Prime Minister V. Orban and Slovak Prime Minister R. Fico
Scanpix/Sputnik photo/Viktor Orban and Vladimir Putin in Beijing
The head of the country did not forget to praise Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Slovakia’s populist Prime Minister Robert Fico.
As previously reported, Orbán has been putting considerable pressure on Brussels for some time to release billions of euros in aid that has been suspended over concerns about the rule of law. And before the meeting of the European Council, he strictly stated that the European Union cannot discuss the issue of Ukraine’s membership, because it allegedly did not fulfill the membership conditions.
“They are not politicians in favor of Russia,” V. Putin assessed the European leaders. “They are pro-nationalists.”
Condemning the “imperialist” behavior of the United States, he explained that Moscow is ready to establish relations with them.
“We believe that the United States is an important and necessary country in the world. But their imperial policies stand in their way.”
While the Russian leader spoke live, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg held a press conference at the alliance’s headquarters in Brussels, during which he warned: “If Putin wins in Ukraine, there is a real threat that his aggression will not end there.”
Earlier it was reported that more than 1.5 million were presented to V. Putin. queries, and the country’s state news agencies indicated that most of the questions were related to the war in Ukraine, housing and public services.
V. Putin’s “Direct Line” lasted almost four hours.
Alexander Zemlianichenko / AP/ Russian President Vladimir Putin
The Kremlin’s website was attacked
In the channels of the messaging platform “Telegram”, quoted by the news agency “Unian”, it is announced that before the broadcast of V. Putin’s annual press conference, which was decided to be combined with the “Direct Line” this year, hackers attacked the official website of the Kremlin.
The site is said to be experiencing significant disruption at this time.
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2024-08-06 16:38:14
