Putin will not use nuclear weapons in Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday denied having anyone Intentions to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine But described the conflict there as part of perceived efforts by the West to secure its global dominance, which he insists are doomed to fail.

Speaking at a conference of international foreign policy experts, Mr Putin said it was pointless for Russia to attack Ukraine with nuclear weapons.

“We see no need for that,” Mr Putin said. “It makes no sense, neither political, nor military.”

Mr Putin said his early warning of his readiness to use “all means available to defend Russia” was not a nuclear saber-rattle, but a reaction to Western statements about his possible use of nuclear weapons.

He specifically referred to Liz Truss in August, saying she would be willing to use nuclear weapons if she became Britain’s prime minister, a remark she worried the Kremlin.

“What should we have thought?” Mr Putin said. “We saw that as a coordinated situation, an attempt to blackmail us.”

In a lengthy speech filled with rhetoric against the United States and its allies, Mr Putin accused them of trying to dictate their terms to other countries in a “dangerous, bloody and dirty” game of domination.

Ultimately, Mr. Putin said, the West will have to talk to Russia and other major powers about the future of the world.

Mr. Putin, Joe sent his army to Ukraine on 24 Februaryhas given Western support for Ukraine as part of wider efforts by Washington and its allies to enforce its will on others through a rules-based world order. He argued that the world had reached a turning point when “the West is no longer able to direct its will to mankind, but nevertheless tries to do so, and most nations no longer want to tolerate it.” Huh.”

The Russian leader claimed that Western policies would create more chaos, adding that “he who sows the wind will reap the whirlwind.”

Mr Putin claimed that “humankind now faces a choice: accumulate a load of problems that will inevitably crush us all or try to find solutions that may not be ideal but can work.” and can make the world more stable and safer.”

“We stand at a historic threshold: ahead is perhaps the most dangerous, unpredictable and, at the same time, crucial decade since the end of World War II,” he said.

Without presenting evidence, the Russian leader reiterated Moscow’s unproven allegation that Ukraine was plotting a false flag attack that involved a radioactive dirty bomb It will try to pin on Russia.

Ukraine has strongly rejected the claim, and its Western allies have dismissed it as “blatantly false”. Ukraine argued that Russia could make unfounded allegations to serve as a cover for its possible plot to detonate a dirty bomb.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters on Thursday that the US still has not seen anything to indicate that Mr Putin has decided to use a dirty bomb.

Mr Putin said he personally ordered Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu to call his foreign counterparts and tell them about the alleged conspiracy. He added that Russia knows Ukrainian facilities working on the project.

He mocked accusations from Ukraine and the West that Russia was firing in the area of ​​the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine as a form of “insurgency”. Russian troops have occupied Europe’s largest plant since the early days of the conflict.

Russian relations with China appreciated

Mr Putin also expressed surprise about Washington’s policy on China, noting that tensions from a recent visit by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan came amid US-Russian protests over Ukraine.

“Why spoil relations with China at the same time?” Mr Putin said. “It seems to defy logic and common sense. It looks like annoyance.”

He praised Russia’s ties with China, but said he had not warned Chinese President Xi Jinping of his intention to send troops to Ukraine when he went to Beijing to participate in the 2022 Winter Olympics.

Asked about Washington’s threat to re-evaluate its ties with Saudi Arabia over the Riyadh-led OPEC+ coalition’s move to cut oil production, Mr. Putin argued that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is the best friend of his country. interests and the need to stabilize global energy. Market.

“They need to respect the Crown Prince and Saudi Arabia, and they will respond in kind,” Mr Putin said. “And if they’re spoken in a rough manner, they’ll respond well too.”

The Russian leader said that Russia was not an enemy of the West, but would continue to oppose the supposed decrees of the Western neo-liberal elite, accusing them of trying to subjugate Russia.

“Their goal is to make Russia more vulnerable and turn it into a tool to carry out their geopolitical tasks, they have failed to achieve this and they will never succeed,” Mr Putin said.

Ukraine labeled ‘artificial state’

Mr Putin reaffirmed his long-held claim that Russians and Ukrainians are part of the same people and again denigrated Ukraine as an “artificial state” that had lost historical Russian lands during the Soviet era from communist rulers. received.

In that context, he acknowledged that fighting in Ukraine effectively equated to a civil war, although the Kremlin calls its actions in Ukraine a “special military operation”.

Mr Putin said he thinks “all the time” about Russia’s casualties in Ukraine, but insisted that NATO’s denial of Ukraine’s possible membership and Kyiv’s peace agreements to the country’s east of the separatist conflict Refusal to comply has been denied. Moscow was left with no other choice.

He denied underestimating Ukraine’s ability to fight back and insisted that his “special military operation” had proceeded as planned.

Mr Putin also acknowledged the challenges posed by Western sanctions, but argued that Russia has proven resilient to foreign pressure and has become more united.

US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby responded to Mr Putin’s speech as it went on.

“We do not believe that Mr. Putin’s strategic goals have changed here. He does not want Ukraine to exist as a sovereign, independent nation,” Mr. Kirby said.

(With inputs from Reuters.)