Putin: 'Those who say that Russia wants to attack NATO are as dumb as this desk'

On June 5, Russian President Vladimir Putin held a meeting with heads of international news agencies as part of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF). Journalists from the USA, Germany, Spain, France, China, Japan and several other countries took part in the meeting. Putin's statements at the meeting made numerous headlines in world media. This is the first time, when Putin spoke to foreign journalists since the beginning of the special military operation in Ukraine.

Photo: kremlin.ru by press service of the President of the Russian Federation, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Below are some of the main theses from Putin's statements that he made during his conversation with foreign journalists.

"We have shown ourselves and the whole world that not only we talk about the need to protect our interests, but we are doing it and will continue doing it. Everyone will have to take this into account," Putin said.

"The first thing we did was to fulfill our duty to the people who suffered from the coup and the subsequent hostilities in the territories of south-eastern Ukraine."

• If the United States stops supplying weapons to Ukraine, the conflict will end in 2-3 months.
• Russia is interested in the neutral status of Ukraine.
• The Istanbul agreements generally suited both Russia and the Ukrainian side
• The West prevented the conclusion of the peace treaty between Russia and Ukraine in the spring of 2022. Kyiv was ready to agree to Moscow's conditions, initialing the draft agreement in Istanbul.
• The conclusion of a peace treaty was largely hindered by the desire of a number of countries to have Russia defeated, which did not materialize.
• Russia is not going to attack NATO. Those who say it are as dumb as this desk. This is nonsense, bullshit.
• Russia is not trying to revive the USSR, Russia has no imperial ambition.

Putin asked the journalists not to create the image of an enemy from Russia. Russia "has no imperial ambition” and those who made contrary statements are trying to deceive the population of Western countries and justify the need to transfer weapons to Ukraine, the Russian President also said.

Al Jazeera noted in its report after the meeting that Putin hinted at a possibility for tensions to grow even higher should Western countries supply Ukraine with weapons for attacks on Russian territory. The use of certain types of weapons, including advanced missile technologies, would be tantamount to participation in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, agency said.

About Russian and Ukrainian losses

"Our losses are several times less than on the Ukrainian side."

• Ukraine’s irretrievable losses are 5 times higher than those of Russia.
• The Armed Forces of Ukraine lose 50,000 people killed and wounded per month, the ratio is approximately 50/50. This is the most modest estimate.
• During total mobilization they grab Ukrainians in the streets; there are not many of those who want to fight there.
• Mobilization in Ukraine is only to make up for losses. They conscript about 30,000 people per month.
• The United States insists on lowering the call up age in Ukraine to 18 years.
• At least 30 Russian journalists were killed during the conflict in Ukraine.
• There are 6,465 Ukrainian soldiers in captivity in Russia, 1,348 Russian soldiers are held captive in Ukraine. 

About the roots of the conflict in Ukraine

“Everyone believes that it is Russia that started the war in Ukraine, but no one in the West, in Europe, wants to remember how this tragedy began. It began with an unconstitutional coup. That's when the war broke out."

About Russia's relations with the West

"By and large, we don’t care who we work with in the United States and who wins the presidential election there. Russia has never interfered and does not interfere in US domestic politics."

"Biden is predictable, he is an old-school politician. The prosecution of Trump in the United States is an element of political struggle."

• Nobody in the United States is interested in Ukraine; they are interested in their own leadership and greatness. If the US administration focuses on national interests, Washington may change its position towards the Russian Federation and the conflict in Ukraine.
• After 2014, Russia had made every attempt to resolve the Ukrainian conflict peacefully. They were fooling us with the Minsk agreements for eight years.
• The Russian Federation had the right to recognize the independence of the DPR and LPR in accordance with the decisions of the UN Court. Russia did not attack Ukraine, but defended itself and had the right to provide assistance to the Donbass republics and recognize their independence.

"Germany’s supplies of tanks and missiles to Kyiv finally destroys Moscow’s relations with Berlin. No one in the current German leadership defends the interests of the people of Germany."

"Western countries planned to undermine the Russian economy within 6 months, but now everyone can see that this is not happening."