Moscow, Russia.
Though he acknowledged that few people desired such a situation, Russian President Vladimir Putin forewarned the West on Monday that a direct confrontation between his country and the NATO military alliance, which is led by the United States, would bring the world dangerously close to a third World War.
The conflict in Ukraine has led to the most severe crisis in Moscow’s ties with the West since the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962.
Although Putin claims he has never felt the need to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine, he has frequently warned of the dangers of nuclear war.
Following his statement last month that he could not rule out the possibility of foot soldiers being stationed in Ukraine in the future, several Western nations distanced themselves from the idea, while others, particularly those in Eastern Europe, voiced support.
When Reuters inquired about Macron’s statements as well as the dangers and potential for a confrontation between Russia and NATO, Putin jokingly responded, “Everything is possible in the modern world.”
“Everyone can see that we are just a few steps away from a full-scale World War Three. Putin told reporters after winning the largest landslide in post-Soviet Russian history, “I think hardly anyone is interested in this.”
Putin clarified, however, that NATO forces were already in Ukraine and that Russia had heard both French and English being spoken in the combat zone.
“There is nothing good in this, first of all for them, because they are dying there and in large numbers,” he stated.
ZONE OF BUFFER
Ukraine intensified its attacks on Russia ahead of the March 15–17 election in Russia. It shelled border areas and even attempted to breach Russia’s borders through proxies.
Putin responded that if the attacks persisted, Russia would establish a buffer zone out of additional Ukrainian territory to safeguard Russian territory when asked if he thought it was necessary to invade the Kharkiv region of Ukraine.
“I do not exclude that, bearing in mind the tragic events taking place today, we will be forced at some point, when we deem it appropriate, to create a certain ‘sanitary zone’ in the territories today under the Kyiv regime,” Putin stated.
He stated that such a zone could need to be large enough to prevent foreign-made weapons from entering Russian territory, but he declined to provide any more information.
After eight years of fighting between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian Ukrainians and Russian proxies in eastern Ukraine, Putin launched a full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022, sparking a massive European war.
Putin expressed his wish that Macron will contribute to bringing about peace rather than further escalate the conflict in Ukraine, saying, “It appears that France could play a role.” Nothing is lost just yet.
“I’ll say it again, as I have been repeating it repeatedly. Not merely because the enemy is low on ammunition, we support peace negotiations,” Putin stated.
“If they really, seriously, want to build peaceful, good-neighbourly relations between the two states in the long term, and not simply take a break for rearmament for 1.5-2 years.”
US PARTY DEMOCRACY
Putin rejected criticism of the election from the United States and the West, claiming that American elections were not democratic and criticizing the use of state power against Donald Trump. The White House said that the election was not free and fair.
Putin said, “The whole world is laughing at what is happening there,” in reference to the US. “It is just a catastrophe – it is not democracy – what on earth is it?”
Putin replied he had “passed away” when questioned about the whereabouts of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died inexplicably on February 16 at a Russian prison in the Arctic. This was Putin’s first public use of Navalny’s name.
Putin stated that he had decided to switch Navalny a few days prior to his passing. Shortly before Navalny passed away, a prisoner exchange agreement was reached, according to a February Reuters story.
Putin stated, “I said: ‘I am agreed.'” in reference to his endorsement of the prisoner exchange. “I had one condition – we exchange him but he never returns.”
Yulia, the widow of Navalny, has charged Putin with her husband’s murder. Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Kremlin, informed reporters that assertion was untrue.
(This news report is from a syndicated feed. THND team members did not write or edit the content except for the headline.)
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