Russian President Vladimir Putin said this Thursday that the world is entering the “most dangerous” decade since 1945 and that Russia, in the midst of a military offensive in Ukraine, is fighting for its “right to exist” against Western powers. , who “desperately” try to maintain their hegemony
“The next decade will probably be the most dangerous, unpredictable and at the same time important since the end of the Second World War,” Putin told members of the Valdai Discussions Club think tank in Moscow, adding that the situation is , “to a certain extent, revolutionary”.
The current military operation in Ukraine, he added, is just part of “tectonic movements across the world order”.
“Russia is not defying Western elites, Russia is just trying to defend its right to exist,” while Western powers are intent on “destroying, erasing from the map” Russia, he said.
According to Putin, Western powers are incapable of “ruling humanity alone”, even though they “desperately try to do so”.
“Most people can’t stand it anymore,” he insisted.
Responding indirectly to Putin’s comments, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Moscow was a threat to Western values.
“Putin’s reckless war against Ukraine, the worst threat to Europe’s security since the end of the Second World War, made it very clear to everyone,” he said.
At the end of February, Russia launched an offensive against Ukraine, which met with strong resistance, supported by Western countries.
In recent weeks, the Russian army has suffered several setbacks in the face of a counteroffensive in the east and south, although Russia has bombed infrastructure that left much of Ukraine without electricity.
Nuclear conjectures
In his intervention during the Russian discussion forum, Putin reiterated his accusation that Ukraine plans to drop a “dirty bomb” on its own territory with the aim of accusing Russia, and urged the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to send an “as soon as possible” mission to Ukraine.
This UN nuclear control organization said that this week it will carry out “an independent check” on two Ukrainian plants “to detect any diversion of nuclear material”.
A dirty bomb is a conventional device to which radioactive, biological and chemical materials are added, which spread with the explosion.
Ukraine suspects that Russia could drop this type of bomb to justify the use of conventional nuclear weapons, although Putin has said that using nuclear weapons in Ukraine would make “no sense (either) in political or military terms” for Russia.
The controversy was brought to a meeting of the United Nations Security Council, where Russia asked for an investigation into the alleged development of American biological weapons in Ukraine.
“We all know that these claims are pure fabrication without the slightest foundation,” said US Ambassador to the Council Linda Thomas-Greenfield.
Cereal export
The conflict and Western sanctions against Russia have caused food prices around the world and gas bills in Europe to soar, on the eve of winter in the northern hemisphere.
Both the United States and Ukraine have expressed concern about Ukrainian grain exports, which Kiev says are delayed due to Russian inspections of cargo ships.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said this delay would represent “a deterioration of access to food for millions of people” in Africa, Asia and Europe.
The pact between Kiev and Moscow to facilitate the export of grain ends on November 19 and there are doubts about its extension.
The head of US diplomacy, Antony Blinken, warned that if Russia “wants to cancel it, it will be met with great indignation by countries around the world that are benefiting from Ukrainian grain.”
Punished by the West, Russia continues to strengthen ties with China, which the United States has identified as its main rival.
In a conversation with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said he was willing to “deepen” cooperation “at all levels” and expressed his support “to overcome difficulties and eliminate external interference.” ”.
Kiev, in turn, has financial support from the United States and the European Union (EU), which should be sufficient for 2023 if the war with Russia does not escalate, the managing director of the International Monetary Fund told AFP ( IMF), Kristalina Georgieva.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday appealed to international donors to help his country cover a $38 billion budget deficit by 2023.
