Russian President Vladimir Putin, during a speech at the Valdai discussion club, told the Russians about his origin "from the bottom", the "golden billion", Russia's relations with the West and threats of nuclear weapons. The broadcast is conducted by Russian media.
The President's speech was scheduled for 16:00, but it was postponed an hour later. As a result, he began his performance after 17:00 Moscow time.
On relations with the West and NATO
In his speech, Putin quoted Soviet philosopher Alexander Zinoviev as saying that the West needs all the resources of humanity to survive.
“The task was understandable to strengthen the unconditional dominance of the West in the world economy and politics. To do this, put at the service of natural and financial resources, intellectual, human and economic opportunities of the entire planet, do it under the sauce of the so-called new global interdependence. I would like to recall another philosopher – Alexander Alexandrovich Zinoviev, whose centenary we will celebrate just the other day, on October 29. Even more than 20 years ago, he said that for the survival of Western civilization at the level reached by it, the whole planet is necessary as an environment for existence, all the resources of mankind. This is what they claim. And there is".
Putin also said that Russia had offered several times to Western countries to improve relations:
"The message was the same: let's stop being enemies, let's live together" – but in all the main directions they received the answer "No"
He again spoke of NATO's desire to expand the alliance at the expense of Ukraine, stressing that this was "unacceptable" for Russia. One of the reasons for the war in Ukraine, Putin called the “coup d'état” in Ukraine in 2014.
Putin claims that last year Russia was "simply sent" during another attempt to negotiate a non-expansion of NATO.
The West in recent months, according to Putin, has taken a number of steps to aggravate: "This is incitement of war in Ukraine, these are provocations around Taiwan, destabilization of the world food and energy markets."
Speaking about the West, Putin could not ignore the topic of "traditional values".
“Traditional values differ from Western values in that they are unique. Traditional values cannot be imposed. They must be respected."
He added that there could be “dozens of genders and gay pride parades” in the West, but that this should not be the case in all countries.
About the war in Ukraine
Putin claims that he thinks about the losses during the "special military operation" all the time. Despite the declaration of martial law in the occupied regions and "partial" mobilization in the Russian Federation, the shelling of Russian border regions, Putin continues to call the war "SVO" or "special military operation." Putin also mentioned the phrase about “eight years” used by propagandists.
“People have been living under shelling for eight years, what could we decide – to recognize independence? This is unacceptable. They won't survive alone."
According to him, it was not necessary to carry out a "bloody anti-state coup" in Ukraine in 2014. Putin said that people in Crimea and Donbas “did not want to recognize” the results of this coup, so everything has come to what is happening now.
About the economy
Putin said that Russia has faced economic losses associated with the "special operation" but there are "huge gains". Ultimately, this is for the benefit of Russia and its future, and is associated with the strengthening of sovereignty in all directions, he said.
“Until recently, we economically turned into a semi-colony. It seemed that if the West clicked, everything would fall apart. Didn't collapse. Russia's economic opportunities turned out to be stronger than we ourselves expected.
At the same time, the president is confident that the “peak of difficulties” in the economy associated with sanctions has been passed. The goal of the sanctions was to “bring down the Russian economy,” but it turned out to be more flexible and adaptive, the president said. Among other things, he promised that the authorities would extend the cancellation of scheduled business inspections until 2023. According to him, it remains to create supply chains and reduce costs.
He again referred to the now-meme expression "tsap-scratch", claiming that the West "pocketed" Russia's gold and foreign exchange reserves. However, in 2019 he used this expression in a different context.
"I associate myself with the lower classes"
In addition, Putin spoke about his origins, saying that he associates himself with the "bottom".
“Of course I associate myself with the bottom, I'm from the bottom. My family was working – my father was a worker, he was a foreman recently, he graduated from a technical school. Mom didn’t even have a secondary education, she was just a worker, she worked as a nanny in a hospital and didn’t work with anyone – and worked as a janitor, a night watchman. She didn't want to leave me in kindergarten. Therefore, of course, I always feel very subtly. Thank God, until recently it was and is, I hope it will continue, I very subtly feel the pulse of what an ordinary person lives with.”
About future
“We are standing on a historic frontier. Ahead is probably the most dangerous, unpredictable and at the same time important decade since the end of World War II.”
Putin said that the future world order is "forming before our eyes" and again mentioned the West.
“The West is incapable of single-handedly governing humanity, but it is desperately trying – and most of the peoples of the world no longer want to put up with this, this is the main contradiction … The situation is revolutionary – the tops cannot, and the bottoms do not want to, to use the words of a classic."
"Golden Billion"
This is not the first time Putin has voiced this idea of a "golden billion". In July, at the forum "Strong Ideas for a New Time", he stated that in the West there is allegedly an unfair "model of the total domination of the so-called golden billion."
“Well, why should this “golden billion” of the entire population of the planet dominate everyone, impose its own rules of conduct based on the illusion of exclusivity? It divides peoples into first and second grade, and therefore is inherently racist and neo-colonial, and the globalist, supposedly liberal ideology underlying it is increasingly acquiring the features of totalitarianism, holding back creative search, free historical creation.”
One gets the impression that the West simply cannot offer the world its own model of the future. Yes, of course, it was no coincidence that this “golden billion” became “golden”, achieved a lot, but took its positions not only thanks to some implemented ideas – to a large extent, it took its positions due to the robbery of other peoples both in Asia and in Africa."
The Insider drew attention to the fact that neither in the West, nor anywhere else, except for the post-Soviet space, this idea is not known. For the first time, the expression “golden billion” probably appeared in 1990, when an article by Soviet economist Anatoly Tsikunov (pseudonym – A. Kuzmich) was published in the little-known publication “Voskresenye” “What is the “golden billion” of people on Earth and why are Soviet people impoverished? »
About nuclear weapons
Putin spoke about nuclear weapons while answering questions after his speech. When asked about the possibility of a nuclear war, Putin said that Russia knows "about where the Ukrainians are preparing a dirty bomb." He also said that he himself asked Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu to call Western leaders and warn about "Ukraine's plans."
The President of Russia said that the United States was the first in the world to use nuclear weapons against a non-nuclear state, while now, according to him, in some textbooks they write that the weapons were used by the allies.
“Well done Americans, we should probably take an example from them in some way.”
Putin himself emphasizes that Russia has never spoken openly about the use of nuclear weapons, but only “answered with hints”:
“The dictate of the Western countries, their attempt to put pressure ends in nothing. And they are trying to convince everyone that it is necessary to resist Russia together. Forcing around the thesis about the possible use of nuclear weapons by Russia itself has one goal – to influence neutral states. We have never said anything on our own initiative about the possibility of using nuclear weapons, but only answered with hints. Liz Truss blurted out there (the girl is a little crazy), but in Washington they could dissociate themselves. What are we supposed to do, pretend we didn’t hear anything?”
Earlier, press secretary Dmitry Peskov said that Putin's speech, which he will deliver at Valdai, will need to be "studyed and reread."
“Today is the main event of the day, which will probably be analyzed later, its content is to be studied, read and re-read.”
The event of the Valdai International Discussion Club is taking place in Moscow from 24 to 27 October. This year the theme was announced: "The world after hegemony: justice and security for all". Putin has been meeting with meeting participants since its inception in 2004. The event is attended by experts, politicians, diplomats and economists from different countries. RIA Novosti writes that in 2022 the list of participants was influenced by the "changed geopolitical situation and the renewal of Russia's partnership system." According to the propaganda agency, there were many more participants from the countries of the Middle East and the Maghreb, Asia, Latin America, Africa and the CIS at the Valdai meeting.