In a speech today before the senior figures of Russia’s Foreign Ministry, comprising Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and others of the ministry’s top leadership, President Vladimir Putin delivered a thoroughly composed, powerful review of global and regional affairs, focusing primarily on the historical background and “arrogant and reckless” role played by the West—the U.S. in particular—which led to Russia launching its special military operation (SMO) in Ukraine in February 2022.
The conclusion of his speech details his peace proposal for ending the war and restoring relations between Russia and Ukraine and eventually Europe (see separate slug), but he warns that the “self-centeredness and arrogance of Western countries have led us to a highly perilous situation today. We are inching dangerously close to a point of no return.” The “extreme recklessness” of Western leaders who call for a “strategic defeat of Russia” and its dismemberment, “either fail to comprehend the magnitude of the threat they are creating or are simply consumed by their notion of invincibility and exceptionalism. Both scenarios can result in tragedy.”
