Photo courtesy of TASS
MINSK, 19 June (BelTA-TASS) - Russian President Vladimir Putin met with the heads of international news agencies on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF). The meeting was held as a Q&A session and was devoted to topical aspects of the domestic and foreign policy of the Russian Federation, as well as key international events.
A meeting with heads of international news agencies is a traditional part of the SPIEF program. This year, the conference featured the heads of TASS, BelTA, Associated Press, Reuters, Xinhua and other news agencies.
On Russia-Belarus relations and sanctions pressure
The Union State of Belarus and Russia will succeed, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in response to a question from BelTA Director General Irina Akulovich on whether the two countries had Plan B if the pressure of sanctions continued rising.
Vladimir Putin said: “The first option is Plan A. It stipulates what and how we should do in order to develop our relations and our economies. Then Plan B. If something doesn’t work out, refer to Plan A. We will manage to accomplish everything. There is no doubt about that.”
The Russian leader added that mutual trade testified to a vibrant development of relations between the two countries. “Belarus-Russia trade has reached $50 billion. It is a serious figure. The growth continues. Including thanks to manufacturing cooperation,” Vladimir Putin said.
He also noted that Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko had retained a number of industries that became highly demanded in condition of sanctions. “Aleksandr Grigoryevich [Lukashenko] has preserved some economy branches, demand for which has never been higher than now. Particularly in conditions of tough sanctions. Including enterprises operating in the field of microelectronics. Certainly, it is necessary to achieve different figures. A lot needs to be done. And other countries spent decades doing it. But we still have an opportunity to make a good step. A fast, powerful large step. Together,” Vladimir Putin said.
Moscow and Minsk also have opportunities for cooperation in various areas, including aircraft production, Vladimir Putin added.
On possible solution to Iran-Israel conflict
Vladimir Putin stated during the meeting that he had offered a “possible way out of the situation” around Iran and Israel, adding that the decision was up to Tehran and Tel Aviv.
According to him, Iran and Israel need to come to an agreement in a way that would respect the interests of both states. The possible settlement should take into account Iran's right to its peaceful atomic program, and not only in the energy sector, and Israel's right to unconditional security.
He also said that Moscow is ready to ensure Iran's interests in peaceful nuclear energy, while removing Israel's concerns regarding security.
“I will not go into details now. There are many of them. We discussed all these details with both Israel and the USA. In this way, we sent certain signals to our Iranian friends. In general, it is possible to ensure Iran's interests in peaceful nuclear energy. It is also possible to remove Israel's concerns regarding its security,” Vladimir Putin said.
He also recalled that in Iran “despite the complexity of political processes, there is a consolidation of society around the leadership of the country.” Vladimir Putin added that despite the missile strikes, “Iran's underground factories still exist, nothing has happened to them.”
On NATO rearmament and imaginary “threat from the East”
The Russian leader called the assertions that Moscow wants to attack Europe and NATO “an incredible lie and nonsense”. According to Vladimir Putin, the authorities in the West have always used the pretext of an imaginary “threat from the East” to squeeze out taxpayers' money and thus explain their own mistakes. NATO countries spend $1.4 trillion on defense, which is more than all the countries in the world combined, the Russian leader stressed.
Russia does not consider any rearmament of NATO a threat to itself, since it is capable of countering all these threats. Russia, according to him, is self-sufficient in terms of ensuring its security. Vladimir Putin is also convinced that increasing the defense spending of the alliance countries to 5% of GDP does not make sense.
On further talks with Ukraine and possible meeting with Zelensky
Speaking about Ukraine, the Russian leader recalled the reasons of the conflict and stressed that Russia wanted to end it “as quickly as possible”, preferably in a peaceful way. “We need to find a solution that would not only put an end to the current conflict, but would create conditions to avoid such situations in the long-term perspective,” Vladimir Putin said.
Moscow is ready for negotiations, taking active humanitarian steps. “We have returned the bodies of more than 6,000 fallen servicemen, and got back 57 bodies of Russian soldiers,” the Russian president said. Vladimir Putin confirmed Russia's readiness to hand over to Kyiv another 3,000 bodies of Ukrainian servicemen, calling it “sad and tragic figures”. He also said that the Russian and Ukrainian delegations agreed to hold the next round of talks after 22 June.
The Russian president said that his meeting with Vladimir Zelensky was possible in the final phase of peace talks. At the same time Moscow believes that the key issue is who is expected to sign the peace agreement on behalf of Ukraine. According to Vladimir Putin, the documents must be signed by legitimate authorities, otherwise they will be “thrown in the trash”.
On relations with Germany and its role in Ukraine conflict
Russia views Germany and other EU countries not as neutral in the Ukrainian conflict, but as Kyiv's accomplices in the hostilities, the Russian president said.
He added that European leaders had stopped contacts with Russia after they decided to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia.
Answering a question from a German journalist, Vladimir Putin said that he was open to contacts with German Chancellor Merz if the latter would like to call him. According to the Russian president, Germany is unlikely to be able to play the role of mediator on Ukraine better than the USA.
“Can Germany contribute more than the USA as a mediator in our negotiations with Ukraine? I doubt it. A mediator must be neutral. When we see German Leopard tanks on the battlefield and already know that the Federal Republic of Germany is considering Taurus supplies for attacks on Russian territory using not only the military hardware, but also Bundeswehr officers, of course, this raises big questions,” the Russian leader said.
He added that the supply of German Taurus cruise missiles to Kyiv would not change the course of the Ukrainian conflict, but Berlin's relations with Moscow “will be completely damaged”.
On Trump’s role and restoration of relations with the USA
The Russian leader agreed with U.S President Donald Trump when he said that the Russian special military operation would have never happened if he had been the U.S. president then.
The Russian president believes that his meeting with Trump would be useful, but such a meeting must be properly prepared. He added that he had great respect for his U.S. counterpart's intention to resume USA-Russia relations in various areas.
Vladimir Putin also noted that trade between Russia and the USA increased last year, while Russia’s trade with Europe decreased.
“We have contacts with Mr. Marco Rubio, the Secretary of State, and with Vice President Mr. J. D. Vance. In general, the relations are gradually restoring. At least, conditions are created for the restoration of relations. We hope that this trend will continue. We are ready for this,” the Russian president said.
Photos courtesy of TASS, screenshots of the video on smotrim.ru
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