Russian President
Vladimir Putin (RIA Novosti / Alexey Nokolskiy)
Source: Russia Today
Russia will not
go to war with the people of Ukraine, but will use its troops to protect
citizens, if radicals with clout in Kiev now try to use violence against
Ukrainian civilians, particularly ethnic Russians, Putin told the media.
Putin, who was
given a mandate by the Russian senate to use military force to protect
civilians in Ukraine, said there is no need for such an action yet.
Putin cited the
actions of radical activists in Ukraine, including the chaining of a governor
to a stage as public humiliation and the killing of a technician during an
opposition siege of the Party of Regions HQ, as justification for Russia to be
concerned for the lives and well-being of people in eastern and southern
Ukraine.
Incidents like
those are why Russia reserves the option of troop deployment on the table.
“If we see this lawlessness starting in
eastern regions, if the people ask us for help – in addition to a plea from a
legitimate president, which we already have – then we reserve the right to use
all the means we possess to protect those citizens. And we consider it quite
legitimate,” he said.
Russia is not
planning to go to war with the Ukrainian people, Putin stressed, when a
journalist asked if he was afraid of war. But Russian troops would prevent any
attempts to target Ukrainian civilians, should they be deployed.
“We are not going to a war against the
Ukrainian people,” he
said. “I want you to understand it unambiguously. If we do take
a decision, it would only be to protect Ukrainian citizens. Let anybody in the
military dare, and they’d be shooting their own people, who would stand up in
front of us. Shoot at women and children. I’d like to see anyone try and order
such a thing in Ukraine.”
Putin dismissed
the notion that the uniformed armed people without insignia who are currently
present in Crimea are Russian soldiers. He said they are members of the Crimean
self-defense forces and that they are no better equipped and trained than some
radical fighters who took part in the ousting of Yanukovich.
He assured that
the surprise military drills in Russia’s west which ended on Tuesday had
nothing to do with the Ukrainian situation.
Sanction threats are counterproductive
Asked about
criticism of Russia over its stance on Ukraine, Putin dismissed the accusations
that Russia is acting illegitimately. He stated that even if Russia does use
force in Ukraine, it would not violate international law.
At the same time
he accused the United States and its allies of having no regard to legitimacy
when they use military force in pursuit of their own national interests.
“When I ask them ‘Do you believe you do
everything legitimately,’ they say ‘Yes.’ And I have to remind them about the
US actions in Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya, where they acted either without any
UN Security Council mandate or through perverting a mandate, as was the case in
Libya,” Putin said.
“Our partners, especially in the United
States, always clearly and formulate for themselves their geopolitical and
national interests, pursue them relentlessly and then drag the rest of the
world in, using the principle ‘You are either with us or against us’. And
harass those refuse to be dragged in,”he added.
As for the
sanctions Russia faces over Ukraine, Putin said those threatening them should think
of the consequences to themselves if they follow that path. In an
interconnected world a country may hurt another country if it wishes, but it
would be damaged too.
Threats are
counterproductive in this situation, Putin warned. He added that if G8 members
choose not to go to Sochi for a planned G8 summit, that would be up to them.
(Reuters / David
Mdzinarishvili)
Putin sympathies
with Maidan protesters, rejects coup
Putin stressed that the Ukrainian people had a legitimate
reason to protest against Yanukovich’s power, considering the overwhelming
corruption and other faults of his presidency.
But he objected to the illegitimate way his ouster took
place, because it undermined the political stability in the country.
He said that while he personally was not fond of
months-long streets protests as a means to pressure the government, he
sympathized with the Maidan demonstration members, who were genuinely outraged
with the situation in Ukraine.
But at the same time he warned that what happens in
Ukraine now may be a replacement of one group of crooks with another, citing
the appointments of certain wealthy businessmen with questionable reputations.
Asked about the presence of snipers during the violent
confrontation in Kiev last month, Putin said he was not aware of any order from
the Yanukovich government to use firearms against the protesters. He alleged
that the shooters could have been provocateurs from one of the opposition
forces. He added that what he was sure of is the fact that police officers were
shot at with lethal arms during the confrontation.
Yanukovich is certainly powerless in Ukraine, but legally
speaking he is the legitimate president of the country, Putin said. The way the
new authorities in Kiev replaced him did not enhance their credibility.
At the same time Putin does not see any political future
for Yanukovich, which he told the ousted Ukrainian president himself. He added
that Russia allowed him to come to its territory for humanitarian reasons,
because if he remained in Ukraine he could have been summarily executed.
Ukrainian
president Viktor Yanukovych arrives for his press-conference in southern
Russian city of Rostov-on-Don, on February 28, 2014. (AFP Photo / Andrey
Kronberg)
Equal
participation in Ukraine's future for all Ukrainians
The Russian government is currently engaging with the
self-proclaimed govern of Ukraine with the goal of preserving economic ties
between the two countries. However, any normal relations would only be possible
after Ukraine has fully legitimate branches of government, Putin said. He
considers that he has no counterpart in Kiev now, so he personally has no
partner to communicate with.
The Russian president stressed that Russia wants to see
equal participation of all citizens of Ukraine in defining the future of the
country. The resistance to the authorities in Kiev, which is evident currently
in the eastern and southern Ukraine, shows clearly that currently Kiev does not
have a nationwide mandate to govern the country.
Russia will be watching the planned presidential election
in Ukraine, Putin said. If it is conducted in an atmosphere of terror, Russia
will consider it unfair and will not recognize its results, he warned.
Putin commented on the issue of Ukraine’s territorial
integrity, which Russia committed to preserve. He said that Western powers
reject Russia’s assessment of the events in Ukraine as a coup and insist on
calling it a revolution.
Some Russian experts, Putin warned that if Ukraine had
undergone a revolution, then the nation that came out of it is not the same
that it was before, similarly to how Russia transformed after the Bolshevik
Revolution in 1917.
If this is the case, Moscow may consider itself no longer
bound by any treaties it has with Ukraine, Putin warned.
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