Speaking at Russia's security council, Putin said that the US is seeking to prolong the war in Ukraine and fuel conflicts elsewhere in the world.
ADVERTISEMENTRussian President Vladimir Putin accused the United States of trying to encourage extended hostilities in Ukraine as part of what he described Tuesday as Washington's alleged efforts to maintain its global hegemony.
Addressing a security conference attended by military officials from Africa, Asia and Latin America, Putin reaffirmed his long-held claim that he sent troops into Ukraine in response to Washington turning the country into an “anti-Russia” bulwark.
“They need conflicts to retain their hegemony,” Putin charged. “That’s why they have turned the Ukrainian people into cannon fodder. The situation in Ukraine shows that the United States is trying to drag the conflict out, and it acts in exactly the same way trying to fuel conflicts in Asia, Africa and Latin America.”
The speech represented the latest attempt by the Russian leader to rally support amid bruising Western sanctions that targeted the Russian economy and finance along with its government structures, top officials and businesses for Moscow’s action in Ukraine.
Putin also drew parallels between Washington backing Ukraine and a recent visit to Taiwan by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, charging that both were part of an alleged American attempt to foment global instability.
“The American adventure in Taiwan wasn't just a trip by an irresponsible politician. It was part of a deliberate and conscious US strategy intended to destabilise the situation and create chaos in the region and the entire world, a blatant demonstration of disrespect for another country's sovereignty and its own international obligations,” Putin said.