“If someone thinks that it is possible to send weapons to the conflict zone to strike our territory, our response can be stronger,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a press conference at the International Economic Forum (SPIEF).
Russian President Vladimir Putin held a press conference at the International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in St. Petersburg. During the meeting attended by foreign journalists, Putin touched upon many issues ranging from the war in Ukraine to the tensions with the Western countries, and especially touched upon the military losses in the conflicts with Ukraine.
Giving information about the number of mutual prisoners, Putin said, “There are 1,348 Russian soldiers and officers in Ukraine and 6,465 Ukrainian soldiers and officers in Russia.” Claiming that Ukraine continues to suffer great losses during the conflicts, Putin said, “According to our calculations, Ukraine loses nearly 50 thousand soldiers every month, including those who cannot return to the conflict. The rate of Russia’s irrecoverable losses is one fifth of Ukraine’s.”
Putin also stated that Ukraine recruits an average of 30 thousand people a month, and in recent months, the number of people mobilized in Ukraine has reached 50-52 thousand. Putin also said that the mercenaries of Western countries were also lost in the conflicts in Ukraine, referring to the figures about the Russian journalists who lost their lives in Ukraine, “At least 30 of our people, our journalists lost their lives. And no one gives us the opportunity to investigate what happened to them.”
“They will say ‘Goodbye’ to Zelensky after making him do everything”
Putin argued that the US is putting pressure on Ukraine to take new decisions in the face of military losses and said, “The US administration insists on gradually lowering the age of military service in Ukraine from 25 to 23, then to 20 and 18. After the US administration takes the decision to lower the age of mobilization in Ukraine to 18, it will want to get rid of Zelensky.”
Noting that it is not an easy scenario to realize all of these, Putin said, “Some steps need to be taken. We are now in June 2024. For this, it is necessary to wait for the Fall. They will tolerate him this year. When he does everything, they will say ‘Goodbye’ to him (Zelenskiy). They have several candidates for this,” he said.
Speaking about the influence of the US in the war in Ukraine, Putin said, “If they want the conflict in Ukraine to stop, they should stop supplying weapons. In this case, the conflict will end in 2-3 months.” Putin also added that the US should not be involved in the possible negotiations with Ukraine.
“The response to arms supplies to Kiev could be stronger”
The Russian leader also criticized the long-range weapons support provided by Western countries to Ukraine, saying, “Such actions will be final and have reached the highest level of conflict. They will also destroy international relations and undermine international security. If someone thinks that it is possible to send such weapons to the conflict zone in order to strike our territory and cause us problems, why don’t we have the right to supply weapons of the same class to the regions where it is possible to attack the sensitive facilities of the countries that are doing this against Russia? So the response can be stronger,” the Russian leader said.
Noting that they are considering supplying weapons to the groups fighting the countries that caused the attacks on Russian territory, Putin said, “The same kind of weapons, weapons that will hit sensitive targets.”
“No one says that the tragedy in Ukraine started with a coup”
Emphasizing that they are not threatening anyone against Germany’s arms supplies to Ukraine, Putin said, “Why do you think we are threatening anyone? We are not threatening anyone, especially the leader of a country. This is not a good approach. We have a stance on some issues.”
On Ukraine, Putin said that some countries, including Germany, believe that Russia started the war in Ukraine and added, “But no one says that the tragedy in Ukraine started with a coup.” Putin also commented on the deterioration of relations with Germany over the Ukraine issue as “sad”.
“We will work with the US president-elect”
Russian President Vladimir Putin also commented on the US presidential elections. Stating that whoever is elected in the elections in which Biden and Trump will compete, Putin said, “My previous statements about Mr. Biden were met with a smile and seen as a secret attack against Biden. Mr. Trump’s claim of Russia’s secret candidate is completely absurd. We have always perceived it as an element of the internal political struggle in the U.S. Later, all this was confirmed by various investigations in the United States,” he said.
Noting that Trump started to impose some kind of major sanctions against the Russian Federation, Putin said, “He withdrew from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. I sincerely believe that after the elections, something will change in favor of Russia in US politics. We believe that the final result is not very important for us. We will work with any president elected by the American people.”
“We are protecting both Blue Stream and Turkish Stream”
“The unmanned boats provided by the West to Kiev pose a threat to the gas pipelines from Russia to Turkey,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said, recalling the attacks on the Nord Stream pipelines.
Stating that they are trying to protect the pipelines against this, Putin said, “We have made several attempts. We are protecting both Blue Stream and Turkish Stream.”
Referring to the trade relations between Turkey and Russia, Putin said, “Turkey’s economic management has recently focused on getting loans, investments and grants from Western financial institutions. This is probably not a bad thing. But if this is due to the restriction of trade and economic relations with Russia, then the Turkish economy will lose more than it gains.”
“What is happening in Palestine does not resemble war, but the destruction of civilians”
Speaking about the Israeli attacks on Palestine, Putin said, “Russia’s position is the same and does not depend on the conjuncture. We have recognized the Palestinian state as such for a long time since the Soviet era, and our position in this sense has not changed.”
“The situation in Israel and Palestine is caused by the actions of the United States, which monopolizes politics in this region,” Putin said, reiterating that the conflict in the region is caused by the United States.
“President Erdogan is making great efforts to solve the ongoing problems”
Putin also harshly criticized the Israeli attacks on Gaza and said, “What is happening now in Gaza, in Rafah is not like a war, it is like the total destruction of the civilian population.” Putin also reiterated that the only way to achieve peace is the establishment of a Palestinian state and said, “There will be no peace in the region without the establishment of a Palestinian state.”
Emphasizing that President Erdoğan is making great efforts for peace in the region, Putin said, “President Erdoğan is making great efforts to solve the ongoing problems. Given his authority in the region, in the world and in the Islamic world, we hope that his contribution will be significant. If necessary, we will do our part,” Putin said.
