 "Tucker Carlson interviews Vladimir Putin: 5 key things Russian Prez said")
Vladimir Putin recently gave an interview to former Fox News host Tucker Carlson in Moscow. The video of the full interview was released by Carlson on Friday. Notably, this is Putin's first interview with a Western journalist since Russia invaded Ukraine around two years ago.
Tucker Carlson interview with Putin: Key facts
Putin said he was ready to negotiate with Ukraine and end the war, but the Ukrainian side rejected the negotiations.
"We prepared a huge document in Istanbul that was initiated by the head of the Ukrainian delegation. He (Ukraine's President) affixed his signature to some of the provisions, not to all of it. He put his signature and then he himself said we were ready to sign it and the war would have been over long ago. However, Prime Minister Johnson came and talked us out of it. And we missed that chance," Putin said.
Putin also referred to the expansion of NATO, the declaration of Ukraine as a sovereign state and the presence of US bases in Ukraine.
"Let me get back to furthering history. I already told you this. We were just discussing. Let us go back to 1991, when we were promised that NATO would not expand to 2008, when the doors to NATO opened to the declaration of state sovereignty of Ukraine, declaring Ukraine a neutral state," Putin said.
"Let us go back to the fact that NATO and US military bases started to appear on the territory of Ukraine, creating threats to us. Let us go back to the coup d'etat in Ukraine in 2014. It is pointless, though, isn't it? We may go back and forth endlessly, but they stop negotiations. Is it a mistake? Yes. Correct it. We are ready."
Putin also said that the peaceful resolution of the war would be possible if the US stopped supplying Ukraine with weapons.
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"I will tell you what we are saying on this matter and what we are conveying to the US leadership," he said, according to Al Jazeera. "If you really want to stop fighting, you need to stop supplying weapons. It will be over within a few weeks, that's it, and then we can agree on some terms. Before you do that, stop."
On the release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who was detained in Russia in March 2023 on charges of spying, Putin said an "agreement can be reached".
He also mentioned that Moscow had wanted Germany to release Vadim Krasikov, who was convicted of the murder of a Chechen dissident in 2019 in Berlin.
"We are willing to solve it but there are certain terms being discussed via special services channels. I believe an agreement can be reached...There have been many successful examples of these talks crowned with success. Probably this is going to be crowned with success as well but we have to come to an agreement," Putin said.
Putin also said that he has no interest in expanding the war in Ukraine to other neighbouring countries like Poland or Latvia.
According to The Independent, on being asked if he would send Russian troops to Poland, Putin said, "Only in one case, if Poland attacks Russia. Why? Because we have no interest in Poland, Latvia or anywhere else. Why would we do that? We simply don't have any interest."
(With agency inputs)