Putin: Russia has not achieved its goals in war against Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin has stated that Russia "has not achieved its goals" in the war against Ukraine and claimed that Russia was "forced to take Crimea under its protection" in 2014.

Source: Putin in an interview with infamous former TV host Tucker Carlson

Details: Speaking about the war against Ukraine, Putin said that Russia has not yet "achieved the goals of the special military operation" [as the war against Ukraine is called in Russia – ed.], one of which is "denazification", i.e. the "banning of all neo-Nazi movements".

The Russian president also stated that "Ukraine started the war, and Russia's goal is to stop it". 

On the question of Russia's occupation of Crimea, Carlson stated that Putin would not return Crimea to Ukraine for the sake of peace.

Quote from Carlson: "Crimea was already in Russia's hands at the beginning of this war. So, if you truly believe that Putin must give up Crimea as a condition for achieving peace, then you are insane."

Details: In the interview, Putin claimed that Russia had been "forced to take Crimea under its protection" in 2014 because the peninsula was "under threat". 

Putin repeated all the well-known narratives of Russian propaganda, including those related to the war in Ukraine, in his interview with Carlson.

Note: Carlson hosted the Tucker Carlson Tonight show on Fox News from 2016 to 2023, but last April, he was fired without an official explanation from his employer.

CNN noted that Carlson was "a top promoter of conspiracy theories and radical rhetoric" at the channel.

Background: In the same interview, Putin accused Ukraine of being unwilling to negotiate.

Previously:

• Carlson announced that he would be interviewing Russian President Vladimir Putin – the reason for his trip to Moscow. He said he had also requested an interview with President Zelenskyy.
• In November, former US president Donald Trump said that he was considering anti-Ukrainian TV host Tucker Carlson as a potential running mate and vice president.

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