Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke over a range of issues spread across the entire Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. He met with several leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping and India Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Here are a few things Putin talked about at the summit.
Putin warns Ukraine: The war can get more serious
Putin brushed off a lightning Ukrainian counter-offensive and warned that Russia would respond more forcefully if its troops were put under further pressure. “Recently, the Russian armed forces have inflicted a couple of sensitive blows. Let’s assume they’re a warning. If the situation continues to develop like this, then the response will be more serious,” he said.
Speaking after the SCO summit in the Uzbek city of Samarkand, Putin cast the invasion as a necessary step to prevent what he said was a Western plot to break Russia apart.
Also Read | How Russia’s President Putin escaped five assassination attempts
Putin tells Modi: We want Ukraine conflict to end, but Kyiv wants to fight
He also told Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi that he wanted the conflict in Ukraine to end as soon as possible, but that Ukraine was set on achieving its objectives on the battlefield.
“We want all of this to end as soon as possible but the other party the leadership of Ukraine, as claimed that they refuse to engage in negotiations process. I know about your position on the conflict in Ukraine and I know about your concerns. I know that you share these concerns,” Putin told Modi.
Putin had made similar comments to Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Thursday, saying he understood Beijing’s concerns about the conflict. Russia controls around a fifth of Ukraine after sending its armed forces into its neighbor’s territory from several directions in February.
Putin says summit meeting with Xi was “normal”
Putin also had a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping and said that it had been “normal”. Speaking to reporters after the summit, Putin said he had discussed measures to boost Russia-China trade during his meeting with Xi, whose “concerns” about the war in Ukraine Putin publicly acknowledged for the first time during the session.
Putin tells Europe: If you want gas, open Nord Stream 2
Putin denied Russia had anything to do with Europe’s energy crisis, saying that if the European Union wanted more gas it should lift sanctions preventing the opening of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. He blamed what he called “the green agenda” for the energy crisis, and insisted that Russia would fulfil its energy obligations.
“The bottom line is, if you have an urge, if it’s so hard for you, just lift the sanctions on Nord Stream 2, which is 55 billion cubic metres of gas per year, just push the button and everything will get going,” Putin said.
Nord Stream 2 lays on the bed of the Baltic Sea almost in parallel to Nord Stream 1 and was built a year ago. However, Germany decided not to proceed with it just days before Russia sent its troops into Ukraine on February 24.
Also Read | SCO Summit 2022: Narendra Modi tells Vladimir Putin ‘today’s era is not of war’
SCO should stage major sporting event
Putin said at the summit that the group should consider staging its own major sporting competition. He said, “There are good opportunities to intensify sports cooperation with the prospect of holding major sporting events under the auspices of the SCO. To do this, we could think about creating an association of sports organisations under our association.”
Russia has enough resources to mediate in Azeri-Armenian conflict
He said that despite the Ukraine conflict, Moscow had enough resources to mediate in a conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan after a series of border skirmishes. The fighting ended in a ceasefire two days ago after more than 200 people were killed in fighting linked to a decades-old struggle over the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev told Putin on Friday that the conflict had “stabilised.”
“Under the influence of Russia, this conflict was localized. I hope this continues to be the case,” Putin told reporters.
Putin says he is yet to decide whether he’ll attend G20 summit
The Russian president also informed reporters that he had not yet decided whether he will personally attend a summit of the Group of 20 nations in Indonesia in November. However, Putin, said Russia would be represented at the meeting.
(With inputs from agencies)
