- Putin stated Wednesday that Russia has always respected Ukraine’s culture and people.
- Russian president repeatedly rejected Ukraine’s right for independent statehood.
- According to the UN’s estimates, Russia’s invasion also caused the deaths of nearly 5,800 Ukrainian civilians.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday said he has always respected the people and culture of Ukraine — a neighboring country his forces invaded without provocation earlier this year, starting a war that has claimed thousands of civilian lives.
Putin stated that he had always held great respect for Ukrainian culture, language and literature and spoke at a ceremony to award teachers. Reuters’ translation.
Putin continued to state that Russia cannot allow what is happening in Ukraine to Russian culture and Russian language. According to a video of Putin’s comments, shared by Ukraine World. Putin appeared to be making reference to his previous claim that Ukraine had committed genocide against ethnic Russians. This assertion has never been supported by evidence.
—UkraineWorld (@ukraine_world) October 5, 2022
Putin repeatedly denied the country’s rights to exist, despite his comments about Ukrainian culture. When Justification for his invasionIn February, Putin erroneously claimed that Ukraine wasn’t a country and was created by Soviet Union. It had no legal right to statehood.
This assessment has been rejected by many historians, who cite There is overwhelming evidence that Ukraine has a rich history and culture long before the Soviet Union.It was founded in 1922.
History of Russia and Ukraine is intertwined. Parts of Ukraine were once part of the Russian Empire. Cliff Kupchan (chair of the political Eurasia Group), a political risk consulting firm, said that. The New York TimesIn February: Putin’s argument that Ukraine was historically subsumed under Russia is simply not true.
Kupchan stated that “the breadth of his pursuit of all things Ukrainian was extraordinary.”
Putin also claimed that Russia gave Ukraine the right for independence after the fall of the Soviet Union. In reality, Ukrainians overwhelmingly voted in 1991 for independence. Around 84% of eligible voters went on the ballots. More than 90% of voters voted for independence.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2004 has resulted in the United NationsMore than 14,000 civilian casualties have been confirmed, with 5,767 of them being killed as of September. The true number is believed to be higher. Officials from UkraineAccording to August, about 9,000 Ukrainian soldiers had also been killed during the war.
Russian forces have been repeatedly involved in attacks on residential areas of Ukraine, killing civilians.Even though the Kremlin denied ever targeting any other assets than military assets, A UN investigation concluded last month that Russian forces had carried out war crimes, including killing civilians, torture, and rape.
Putin said Wednesday that he would stabilize four regions in Ukraine that he claims are now Russians. Annexation deemed invalid and illegalUkraine and the west
