Putin repeats assertion that Russia did not start war in Ukraine

MicroWave@lemmy.world to World News@lemmy.world – 494 points – Putin repeats assertion that Russia did not start war in Ukraine
reuters.com

President Vladimir Putin on Thursday reiterated his position that Russia did not start the war in Ukraine but launched what it calls a "special military operation" to try to stop it.

In his yearly speech to the Valdai Discussion Club, being held in Sochi, Putin said Russia, the world's largest country by area, had no need to take territory from Ukraine.

He said the conflict was not therefore imperial or territorial but about the global order, and that the West, which had lost its hegemonic power and always needed an enemy, had lost touch with reality.

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Launching a "special military operation" is starting a war. You can call it a "pacifist peace offering operation", and it's still starting a war.

What Puta calls his starting of the war is irrelevant.

Nobody expected him to say the truth, or am I mistaken?

Sure, but now it’s in print (or at least digitally published), so later on there’s a mountain of journalism, this bit included, that says that he denies any wrongdoing. Every bit of getting his doublespeak out to the public helps

Peace is not war. As much as you should rightfully hate Putin for overstepping his boundaries and bullying Ukraine, he did not fucking start the war. Ukraine did. All the deaths, the destruction, everything? Ukraine's fault for not allowing a peaceful operation to happen that would have been eventually peacefully and justly resolved without the mass murder of innocents, including young children.

Sick of revisionist history, and the audacity of recent revisionist history. Putin is the bad guy here. Make no mistake. Do not think I am pro-Russia, pro-Putin here. But not a single bullet was fired, not a single person died before Ukraine decided to defend itself the only way a hateful, war-mongering, blood-thirsty country can.

Ok, not a single bullet was fired before Ukraine decided to defend itself? From what?

Bombs, missiles and artillery rounds.

The war started with long range weaponry so in a very strict and literal sense it's quite possible that Ukraine started defending itself before a single bullet was fired.

The previous commenter's imaginary universe might've actually crossed paths with reality by mere chance, a sort of propagand equivalente of "if you have an infinite number of monkeys typing a typewritters you'll end up with the complete works of Shakespear", i.e. "with enough derranged rambling, some of it might actually and by chance coincide with reality".

Was this supposed to be dark humor

According to his comment history that’s what he truly believes.

I never thought there would be such a thing as too much sarcasm. It bends reality and circles back on itself. Impressive.

I appreciate his integrity to not use /s but die to the social media mob like a real man.

Nah just look at his history. That’s not sarcasm.

I think I became dumber. This guy actually believes Putin didn't invade a country and cause the murder of Ukrainian children with his troops in the first place. He wins first prize for the Russia Propaganda Delusions Awards.

World War 2 was started by France and Britain declaring war, Germany merely did a peaceful operation in Poland.

The fuck are you on about?

If gang breaks into your home, starts destroying your things, and manhandling your family, you just gonna sit there and let them do it because it would be "eventually peacefully and justly resolved"?

If your answer isn't "no", then you're a liar. You'd defend your home and your family, because that's the right thing to do...

It wouldn't be "hateful", "war-mongering", or "blood-thirsty" it'd be heroic.

So how can you sit there and say to us that you expect the whole of Ukraine to just allow that to happen to themselves??

To watch this band of 100,000 men take everything away from them - their culture, their homes, their lives - and do jack shit about it?!

The war didn't start with a bullet, it started when Putin's army marched into Ukrainian soil to claim it as their own.

You sound like the type of person who blames the victim of a bully when they inevitably lash out. If you aren't, you're doing a bad job of proving it.

“No no no…. That convoy wasn’t tanks, it was FARM EQUIPMENT!” -Putin.
“Well, it’s farm equipment….now”- Ukrainian Farmers

..and how is that going, clown-shoes?

and that the West, which had lost its hegemonic power and always needed an enemy, had lost touch with reality.

Is the "West" in the room with you right now? No? Well you're going to be in a world of shit if the "West" ever bothers to show up, huh?

And speaking of hegemonic power, remind me again who's "traditional allies" are publicly & actively ghosting them?

Russia is going to have to start importing copium from North Korea soon.

BTW, Reuters, the word you're so desperately trying to forget exists when you're talking about Putin is lie. He lied. He's a lying liar.

Is the "West" in the room with you right now?

I heard that "the west" caused him to stub his toe this morning too. And mismatched his socks in the dryer.

The West and the Woke living rent free in dictator, and tyrannical supporter’s dreams.

Russian officials have literally said they're going to commit Ukrainian genocide and go after Poland next but sure they're the victim /s

Run that through the good old projection filter real quick...

... Ah, shit.

This "article" is three sentences with line breaks so they look like paragraphs.

This is what passes for journalism these days.

I’m guessing that Reuters request for an interview was turned down. Sometimes all you need is three lines. If this was a CNN article or Fox News it would be 10 paragraphs of saying nothing but recapping Russia’s invasion of Ukraine while also adding this in. I find it to be a fine article to point out how Putin is interacting with his international cohorts. It’s to the point and says what needs to be said

Can we collectively start down voting all the headlines that boil down to "world leader makes meaningless propaganda statement"

The admins would remove it as an opinion piece if a reporter made such a claim but it's somehow different if they hold office?

If a reporter had millions of soldiers, thousands of nuclear weapons, a submarine fleet, the world's largest standing tank deployment.. at their beck and call, to enforce their every whim, then yes the mad reporters ravings would be newsworthy.

"If I keep repeating the lie, then eventually someone will believe me" - Putin

The more often a stupidity is repeated, the more it gets the appearance of wisdom

More Voltaire wisdom.

He might have convinced himself already. That doesn't change the facts though.

I don’t get it why people still even gives a damn to what he has to say. He’s a war criminal and he DID start a war, no matter how much him and his bots blame NATO.

He deserves to be arrested together with his supporters.

so we did pushed your tanks over the border? Did you take your medicine today Vlad? Does telling a lie again and again really works that well in Russia?

Worlds biggest bull shitter spews more shit, news at 11 lol. Don't need more territory then I guess can give Crimea back.

Putin isn't going to have a choice in that matter.

Of course not. They started a special military operation. Ukraine started the war when they fought back!

This is the best summary I could come up with:

Oct 5 (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin on Thursday reiterated his position that Russia did not start the war in Ukraine but launched what it calls a "special military operation" to try to stop it.

In his yearly speech to the Valdai Discussion Club, being held in Sochi, Putin said Russia, the world's largest country by area, had no need to take territory from Ukraine.

He said the conflict was not therefore imperial or territorial but about the global order, and that the West, which had lost its hegemonic power and always needed an enemy, had lost touch with reality.

The original article contains 100 words, the summary contains 100 words. Saved 0%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!

Gaslighting

I don't think this lie is anywhere sophisticated enough to "rise" to the level of gaslighting.

Only a complete total moron (or somebody living in an environment of total information control) would believe this and start to question his or her reality.

Despicable piece of human excrement.

Russia did not start the war in Ukraine but launched what it calls a "special military operation" to try to stop it

[...]

He said the conflict was not therefore imperial or territorial but about the global order, and that the West, which had lost its hegemonic power and always needed an enemy, had lost touch with reality.

That lie is about the same level as kid caught with their fingers in the cookie jar. "No, I wasn't going to eat the cookie, I was saving it from you eating it in the future!".

Up is down, grass is blue, the sky is green. Bla bla bla. It's high time we just started treating anything Putin says as the equivalent of farts in a paper bag.

If someone gives my farts in a paper bag I just kick them in nuts. When this guy speaks, I just want to see him ended.

Uh huh. Last time I checked, peacekeeping didn't involve shooting at and bombing innocent civilians, or raping and pillaging towns.

Next thing he'll be wanting condolences for all the people he's had put down via "falling" out of buildings.

"Russian" peacekeeping involves all of that, always did.

I’m usually all for inclusion in most chases, but I really think that the mentally handicap have no business in politics. Between this guy and trump… they need to be in padded rooms and medicated.

Poor Putin. No one believes you that all these hospitals, kindergardens and playgrounds were in the way to make peace in Ukraine.

I totally believe it. And I think that all the people who don't believe you, should accidentally fall out of windows or down the stairs.

Picture the generic Russian nesting doll, except inside each layer of the head of state is his own most useful idiot

He also insists he is 7 feet tall, has a 7 inch dong, and isn’t gay.

He said the conflict was not therefore imperial or territorial but about the global order, and that the West, which had lost its hegemonic power and always needed an enemy, had lost touch with reality.

I'm a little confused, how does one separate actions towards global order from imperial actions? Aren't imperial actions typically in relation to attempting to establish or maintain a nation's position in, or as, the global order? In a similar vein, does anyone believe the West is a genuine, political entity that is altogether united, rather than a basic academic concept to help differentiate some elements of the world from others?

Last I looked around, the West is about as much of a real political entity that's wholly united about as much as the East is, which is to say, it isn't.

plot twist, Putin have suffered from dyslexia all his life and made "some" questionable decisions in good faith.