MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin stated on Friday (Jun 14) that plans by Western international locations to supply Ukraine with loans utilizing curiosity from Russian belongings frozen overseas was theft and wouldn’t go unpunished.
Putin, talking at a gathering with International Ministry officers, stated the way in which the West had handled Moscow confirmed that any nation might fall sufferer to an identical Western asset freeze.
“Regardless of all of the chicanery, theft will definitely stay theft. And it’ll not go unpunished”, Putin stated.
“Now it’s turning into apparent to all international locations, firms (and) sovereign funds that their belongings and reserves are removed from secure in each the authorized and financial sense of the phrase.
“Anybody might be subsequent in line for expropriation by the US and the West.”
Putin was talking a day after the leaders of the Group of Seven main democracies agreed on a top level view deal to supply US$50 billion of loans for Ukraine utilizing curiosity from Russian sovereign belongings frozen after Moscow despatched tens of 1000’s of troops into Ukraine in 2022 in what it referred to as a particular navy operation.
WEST NEEDS TO FIND A WAY TO WORK WITH RUSSIA: PUTIN
Putin additionally stated that the West’s present mannequin of world safety had collapsed and it wanted to discover a technique to work with Russia.
He stated the world had reached a degree of no return on account of what he stated was the collapse of the “Western mannequin” of world safety, and it was time to create a brand new and extra steady system as an alternative.
“Clearly, we’re witnessing the collapse of the Euro-Atlantic safety system. In the present day it merely doesn’t exist, it must be primarily created anew,” Putin stated.
“All this requires us, along with our companions, with all international locations, and there are numerous of them, to work out our personal choices for guaranteeing safety in Eurasia, proposing them then for wider worldwide dialogue.”
Putin stated it was time to debate a brand new system of safety in Europe and Eurasia, and Russia was open to dialogue on that with everybody, together with NATO.
“It is very important proceed from the truth that the long run safety structure is open to all Eurasian international locations that want to participate in its creation. ‘To all’ means European and NATO international locations too, in fact,” he stated.
“We stay on the identical continent. It doesn’t matter what occurs, you can’t change the geography, we should coexist and work collectively a technique or one other.”
UKRAINE PEACE TALKS
Putin added that Russia would stop fireplace and enter peace talks if Ukraine dropped its NATO ambitions and withdrew its forces from 4 Ukrainian areas claimed by Moscow.
Putin stated Russia was prepared to ensure the secure withdrawal of Ukrainian models to be able to allow this to occur.
Russia controls practically a fifth of Ukrainian territory within the third 12 months of the warfare, and Ukraine says peace can solely be primarily based on a full withdrawal of Russian forces and the restoration of its territorial integrity.
He was talking on the eve of a summit in Switzerland the place greater than 90 international locations and organisations are on account of talk about a doable path in the direction of peace in Ukraine. Russia has not been invited and says the gathering is a waste of time.
