It's a Vladimir Putin who shows his muscles but holds out his hand, who reveals the West's alleged hostile moves and then leaves an open window for peace. Interviewed by the main international newspapers, including Associated Press, on the sidelines of the International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg, the Russian president focused on the war in Ukraine – but not only – giving some food for thought on the future of the conflict. One of the most interesting passages concerns the presence of Western faces in Ukraine, especially in light of the proposals made to French President Emmanuel Macron regarding the sending of Western soldiers to Kiev. Putin said that Western advisers and instructors “are already present on the territory of Ukraine and, unfortunately for them, they suffer losses, I know this for sure. In European countries and the United States they prefer to keep everything quiet.”
Carrot and stick, straight back and openings, Putin's recipe is clear. If you first highlight that provide weapons in a conflict zone it is always a dangerous and serious step, Putin then defines as “senseless” the statements according to which the Russian Federation wants to attack the Born. “Who invented this nonsense?”. The line is clear: Russia “has no imperial ambitions” and there is no need to look for “some subtext” because “it does not exist”. If it is true that the Kremlin is ready to use all the means available in the event of a threat to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country, it is equally true that the doors for negotiations with the West “are always open”: “Our doors are always open for negotiations, meetings and discussions”. Will it be true? Will it be fake? Impossible to say. But it is certainly not just a violent j'accuse with no room for interpretation.
But that is not all. As already recorded a few months ago, Putin has spent important words for Italy, in the name of the very strong bond cultivated until some time ago. The Tsar remarked that Rome's position towards Moscow was “more moderate than other EU countries”, underlining that “cave-dwelling Russophobia does not spread”. Putin's hope is to restore relations with Italy, perhaps “even faster than with any other European country.” Everything will depend on the evolution of the war in Ukraine, but Putin was keen to clarify: to stop hostilities, we must stop supplying weapons. A warning to the United States but also to other Western countries: at this rate, he added, the fighting could stop within two-three months. Even in this case it is difficult to understand the sincerity of certain utterances, but some positive signs seem to emerge.
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