Zelensky’s illegitimacy, NATO ‘bulls**t’ & Russia’s ‘asymmetric’ response: Key takeaways from Putin’s foreign press briefing

By admin On Jun 5, 2024

The Russian president has discusses how the Ukraine conflict began, and how it could end, with foreign media agencies

Russian President Vladimir Putin has offered an overview of how he sees the Ukraine conflict’s roots and where the crisis may be headed, as well as the prospects of peace and rumors of a full-fledged war with NATO, as he spent over three hours answering a wide range of questions from representatives of international news agencies on the sidelines of the St Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) on Wednesday.

Zelensky’s questionable legitimacy

Putin argued that the crisis stems from a US-backed coup d’etat that overthrew Kiev’s elected government in 2014. “Everyone believes that Russia started the war in Ukraine. But no one – I want to emphasize this – no one in the West, in Europe, wants to remember how this tragedy began. It began with a coup in Ukraine – an unconstitutional coup d’etat.”

Now Vladimir Zelensky’s legitimacy also came under question as according to Ukrainian laws his powers were supposed to be transferred to the country’s parliament after his term as president ended last month, Putin has argued. He suggested that Western backers may “tolerate” and keep Zelensky around long enough to force through more unpopular policies – like lowering the conscription age all the way down to 18 – then oust him, possibly as early as next spring. “They have several candidates to replace him.”

US election offers little hope

Putin said Russia has no expectation of serious policy changes resulting from this year’s US presidential election. Even if Biden loses to Republican challenger Donald Trump, relations with Moscow will likely remain antagonistic. “Basically, we don’t care (who wins),” the Russian leader said.

Biden’s administration is tearing down the US political system by using the courts to prosecute Trump, Putin added. “They are burning themselves from the inside.” In any case, he said, the new US administration would have to abandon Washington’s focus on “global liberalism” and hegemony – instead prioritizing the interests of the American people – to enable a major shift in foreign policy.
“No one is interested in Ukraine in the United States,” Putin said. “They are interested in the greatness of the United States. They are not fighting for Ukraine; they are fighting for their leadership in the world. They do not want Russia to be successful, to prevail, because they think it will be damaging for the leadership of the United States.”

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Zelensky’s illegitimacy, NATO ‘bulls**t’ & Russia’s ‘asymmetric’ response: Key takeaways from Putin’s foreign press briefing

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Zelensky’s illegitimacy, NATO ‘bulls**t’ & Russia’s ‘asymmetric’ response: Key takeaways from Putin’s foreign press briefing

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