Vladimir Putin: His speech at the Munich Conference was timely but not taken seriously
Russian President Vladimir Putin said that his speech at the Munich Conference in 2007 was timely, but it was not taken seriously.
Putin told reporter Pavel Zarubin of "Russia 1" television: "I am not saying this to argue with anyone, nor to somehow set Russia against the West - we simply cannot survive any other way. Russia is either independent or it does not exist at all, which is the message I wanted to convey to our partners, hoping they would listen and adjust their attitude toward Russia in some way."
He said that since the 1990s, promises were made to Russia that NATO would not expand eastward. However, Putin pointed out that Western countries "lied, deceived, and pretended that nothing had happened."
Putin said: "Therefore, I thought it was time to tell my colleagues: we should coexist peacefully, respect each other in some way, not impose our will, not try to suppress others' will, and take into account the interests of all participants in international communication. However, you see, since they often mention it, obviously, it was timely, that's what I want to say. But unfortunately, my words were not heard."
At the same time, he emphasized that Russia has been trying to sort out relations to avoid the situation reaching its current state and to establish some unified rules.
Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1837539878737028/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author himself.