MOSCOW: On Friday, President Vladimir Putin smiled at Ukraine's military launching a swift retaliation, but he also issued a warning that Russia would retaliate more strongly if the situation worsened.
Speaking in the Uzbek city of Samarkand after a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, Putin justified the invasion as a necessary precaution, which he claimed was a Western conspiracy to isolate Russia from the rest of the world. .
He claimed that Moscow was taking its time in Ukraine. And its purpose remained the same. The Kyiv authorities announced that a counter-offensive had been launched and was being actively pursued. Let's see how it progresses and how it turns out, Putin said with a smile.
His first public reaction to the humiliation of his army in the Kharkiv region of northeastern Ukraine a week ago was an unusually vigorous public criticism from Russian military commentators.
In retaliation, Russia attacked Ukrainian infrastructure, including a reservoir dam and power supplies. According to Putin, these attacks could be even more serious.
"Recently, the Russian military has made some delicate strikes. Treat them as a warning. If the situation continues in this direction the reaction will be more severe, he warned. Putin said that Russia is gradually occupying new territories of Ukraine.
When asked whether "special military operations", as they call it, needed to be fixed, he replied, "The plan is not subject to adjustment." According to Putin, despite the general staff's view that some things are more important than others, the core work is still being done. The main objective is the liberation of the entire Donbass region.
The Russian President's remarks come at a time when leaders of China and India have expressed their concern over the situation in Ukraine.
It was "not a time for war," Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday. Cooperation between India and Russia has a long history.
Putin caused controversy a day earlier when he referred to the "concerns" of Chinese President Xi Jinping, considered Russia's most important ally internationally.
According to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, such concerns put pressure on Putin to end the conflict.
Blinken told reporters, "I believe what you are hearing from China and India reflects concerns about the effects of Russia's aggression on Ukraine, not just on the people of Ukraine, who are around the world." shared by people.
This, in my opinion, puts more pressure on Russia to curb its aggression. Putin said that despite the conflict in Ukraine, Moscow had the means to mediate a dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan after a border conflict.
Fighting ended in a truce two days ago, after more than 200 people were killed in attacks related to the long-running conflict on the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh. Armenia wants friendly relations with Azerbaijan and Russia as a military ally.
"Under Russian influence, this conflict was contained. I hope this will be true in the future," Putin said.
Given Moscow's focus on the conflict in Ukraine, he was asked whether Russia had the resources to maintain its influence in the region. He replied, "As you can see, that's enough." According to the Interfax news agency, a senior Armenian official said, however, that a military coalition led by Russia reacted to Yerevan's appeal for aid, indicating potential difficulties.
Armenia asked to join the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), which is governed by Moscow, but so far it has sent only one fact-finding team.
“Of course, we are extremely dissatisfied. According to Interfax, Parliament Speaker Alan Simonian likened the CSTO to a pistol that did not fire on national television. “The expectations we had were not justified,” he said.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan spoke on Friday with French Presidents Emmanuel Macron and Blinken to discuss the conflict.
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