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Russian President Vladimir Putin is holding a meeting with the heads of international news agencies as part of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. The main of his statements:
Putin spoke for the first time about the conflict between Iran and Israel
– Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Iran’s underground factories exist, and “nothing happened to them.” He called on the parties to the conflict to look for ways to end hostilities and come to an agreement among themselves.
– Putin also expressed Russia’s readiness to develop cooperation with Iran in the nuclear energy sector. More than 200 specialists from the Russian Federation are in Iran on the construction of two more nuclear power plant units, the president added. Russia has reached an agreement with the Israeli leadership to ensure their security.
– Moscow sees that there is a consolidation of society in Iran around the country’s political leadership.
– In the situation in the Middle East, it would be right to look for ways to end hostilities, find ways to negotiate and ensure both the interests of Iran and Israel.
– Putin believes that a solution that will ensure the interests of both Iran and Israel can be found.
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Ukraine and NATO:
– Putin said that he is ready to unilaterally transfer 3,000 more bodies of Ukrainian soldiers to Ukraine.
— ‘I was a participant in the negotiations in Minsk, when we were looking for the principles of a peaceful settlement, we talked for 17 hours in a row, yes, we agreed on these principles, but they were not implemented by the Western side.’
– The DPR and LPR had the right to secede from Ukraine, and after the Kosovo precedent they were not obliged to ask Kiev’s opinion. ‘You can, but not here? This will not happen’ — Putin on double standarts comparing the Kosovo precedent and the situation with the DPR and LPR.
– ‘You have to live by the rules, by what rules? You write rules for others, but you are not going to follow them, who will live by such rules? (From a reply to a foreign journalist)’
– The problem is not that Russia annexed Crimea, but that Western countries contributed to the coup in Ukraine.
– Nuland said: “We spent $5 billion on a coup in Ukraine, we’re not going to leave,” wow, what a revelation.
– The Western authorities have always extorted taxpayers’ money under the pretext of an imaginary “threat from the East” and explained their own mistakes.
– The legend that Russia is going to attack NATO is nonsense.
– ‘I am ready to meet with Zelensky, the question is who will sign the documents. The signature must be signed by the legitimate authorities, otherwise the next one will come and throw it all in the trash. Well, you can’t do that either, we’re solving serious issues.’
– If the first person of Ukraine is illegitimate, then the entire system of government there becomes illegitimate.
– We don’t care who is negotiating, even if it is Zelensky.
– A meeting with Zelensky is possible at the final stage of negotiations to “put the final point”.
– ‘We believe that we did not start military operations in Ukraine, but are trying to end them.’ The Ukrainian leadership itself started the war on its own territory with heavy equipment and aircraft, but no one wants to remember about it today.
– We will not allow Ukraine to have armed forces that threaten the Russian Federation in the future. The demilitarization of Ukraine consists in depriving it of its armed forces, which in the future could threaten the Russian Federation and the people of Russia.
– If we do not reach a peaceful agreement on Ukraine, we will achieve our goals militarily.
– The situation for Kiev will worsen.
– Ukraine’s losses on the battlefield exceed the level of mobilization in the country, Putin said. According to him, the number of deserters in Ukraine is growing strongly, and the staffing of units is 47 percent.
— Russia did not destroy residential areas in Kiev, the attack was on military factories. <…> If your journalists had seen how entire residential areas were destroyed by our missiles, they would hardly have been able to tell you anything.
— A meeting with Trump would be useful, but it should be prepared.
— We see the interest of American business in building relations with the Russian Federation. There are contacts with large companies who want to return.
– Further advancement of the Russian Armed Forces in the zone of the Special Military Operation is inevitable, even if German Taurus missiles begin to be used, the Russian leader added.
– The delivery of Taurus to Ukraine will mean Germany’s involvement in a direct armed conflict with Russia, Putin warned. He recalled that these missiles can only be used by German officers.
– If Merz wants to call and talk, we have not refused contacts and are open to this.
– Germany cannot be a mediator in the Ukrainian-Russian conflict, because this country is not a neutral.
– The Russian Federation is constantly improving its armed forces and defensive capabilities.
– Russia is the undisputed leader in the construction of heavy helicopters.
– ‘We do not consider any NATO rearmament to be a threat to the security of the Russian Federation.’
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China:
– Russia and China will hold joint military exercises this year, Vladimir Putin said.
– Interest in the Chinese language is growing in Russia, and this is not surprising.
– Investment projects of Russia and China have reached $200 billion.
– Russia was pleased with China’s results in the field of artificial intelligence.
– There is every reason to believe that global trade will slow down.
– We are against trade wars and restrictions, for a just world order.
– The rules of the international trade organization should be respected, and not changed due to the political situation.
