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During a press conference in Saint Petersburg before foreign media, Russian leader Vladimir Putin warned this Wednesday that deliveries of Western weapons to Ukraine, a country that has been in conflict with Russia for more than two years due to an invasion ordered by himself , constitute a “very dangerous step”, especially if those who send them also “control” their use.
“Delivering weapons to a war zone is always bad,” said the Russian political leader, whose country receives – and has done so since the beginning of the fighting practically – Iranian drones to attack Ukrainian cities, just as it has agreed on support and assistance mutual agreement with North Korea on military issues. Furthermore, the Kremlin has veiled and always denied Chinese military advice, a fact persistently denied by the actors involved.
Returning to Putin’s words about weapons suppliers to kyiv, he explained that it is also “even more dangerous” if those who deliver them, “not only deliver weapons but also control them.” “That is a very serious and very dangerous step,” declared Putin, who also stated that if Germany were to send long-range Taurus missiles capable of hitting Moscow, Russian-German relations would be definitively destroyed. “Now when they talk about also sending missiles that will attack targets on Russian territory, that, of course, definitively destroys Russian-German relations,” he noted.
Putin recalled that the appearance of German tanks in Ukraine (the Leopard 2) at the time caused a “shock” in Russian society, “which had a very positive attitude towards Germany.” This point gave him the opportunity to openly criticize the German government, which he accused of “not defending the interests of Germany.” “It is clear that Germany is not completely sovereign, but the Germans exist. And we must think at least a little about their interests,” said the Russian autocrat.
Between cynicism and mischief
As part of his speech, Putin warned that Russia could deliver long-range missiles to third countries that could use these weapons to attack “strategic points” in the territory of Western allies that supply weapons to Ukraine, in what he described as a response “symmetrical.” The leader also used the conference to repeat his speech that “it was not Russia that started the war, but the West,” among other reasons for NATO expansionism.
In the opinion of the Kremlin leader, who at all times showed a relaxed and almost jovial attitude, the war began when the Ukrainian citizens rose up in 2014 against the decision of the Kiev government (which at that time was actually in charge of a ” puppet” of his), to move away from Europe towards Moscow. Precisely, the fall of that pro-Russian leader, Viktor Yanukovych, was followed by the Russian decision to illegally annex Ukrainian Crimea and then support a pro-Russian rebellion in eastern Ukraine.
“Everyone believes that Russia started the war in Ukraine,” said, with marked cynicism and some discursive mischief, the leader who ordered the invasion of another country under the label “Special Operation.” “I would like to emphasize that no one in the West, in Europe, wants to remember how this tragedy really began… no one,” he added. Furthermore, Putin assured that there are already instructors from Western countries in Ukraine and “they are suffering casualties” (without offering evidence of this), while adding that Ukrainian casualties in the conflict are at least five times greater than Russian ones, another time without offering evidence.
He also referred to Donald Trump, and attributed the former US president’s legal problems to an “internal political struggle” between Democrats and Republicans before the November presidential elections. “It is obvious around the world that the prosecution of Trump on charges based on events that took place years ago, without direct evidence, is a mere use of the judicial system in an internal political struggle,” he said.
“We must be prepared for a possible war in 2029”
The German Defense Minister, the social democrat Boris Pistorius, spoke with these words this Wednesday, when appearing at a session of the Lower House in Berlin. “It is necessary to strengthen the operational capabilities of the German Armed Forces so that they are prepared for an eventual war in 2029, for which it is essential to ensure finances, material and personnel,” argued the federal official.
“We must be prepared for war in 2029, but we must also act as a deterrent to prevent the worst from happening,” Pistorius emphasized. “In an emergency we need young men and women who can defend this country,” he said. For this reason, he considered it necessary to reformulate military service, which he has been volunteering since 2011.
Pistorius defended the creation of “a new form of military service”, which “cannot be completely free of obligations”, that is, it cannot be totally voluntary. Previously, the Minister of Defense had indicated his interest in reintroducing the obligation, at least partially, to ensure a military contingent in line with current defense demands.
In this way, Pistorius will present his plan for the reformulation of military service to Parliament next week. Despite a communications offensive, in 2023 the number of Armed Forces personnel was reduced again, reaching 181,500 soldiers. Given this, the minister seeks to test new ways to attract personnel, especially taking into account the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine. Despite this, he reiterated that Germany will not send soldiers to Ukraine.
