Putin casts the Ukraine conflict as a fight for Russia's survival as he seeks reelection
President Vladimir Putin on Friday described Moscow's military action in Ukraine as a battle for Russia's survival as he campaigned for reelection next month in balloting that he's all but certain to win.
Speaking at a meeting with arms industries workers in the city of Tula south of Moscow, Putin declared that the vast majority of Russians support his course.
“If the public hadn't felt that way, nothing would have happened,” he said. “We are doing what people expect us to do.”
He again argued that sending troops into Ukraine was necessary to protect Russian speakers in eastern Ukraine and stop what he described as attempts by Washington and its NATO allies to encroach on Moscow's vital security interests. Ukraine and its Western allies have denounced it as an unprovoked act of aggression.
“If we hadn't protected our people ... we would have turned into a weak country lacking self-sufficiency that no one cares for,” he said. “They would have patronizingly patted us on the shoulder and given us rotten potatoes as humanitarian assistance while thinking how to chip away pieces from us.”
Putin said that despite Western expectations Russia would collapse quickly under the brunt of sanctions, its economy has grown and military industries have sharply increased output.
Putin, 71, is running as an independent in the March 15-17 vote, relying on a rigid control over Russia’s political landscape that he has established during 24 years in power.
His reelection appears all but assured with prominent opponents who could challenge him either jailed or living abroad and most independent media banned. He faces only token opponents from Kremlin-friendly parties.
Under a constitutional reform that he masterminded, Putin is eligible to for two more six-year terms, potentially allowing him to remain in power until 2036. He is already the longest-serving Kremlin leader since Soviet dictator Josef Stalin, who died in 1953.
Anti-war Russian rockers held in Thailand arrive in Israel
Thai officials said members of Bi-2 were arrested for performing without the correct work permits and transferred to an immigration detention centre in Bangkok
A Russian-Belarusian band that denounces Moscow's Ukraine invasion arrived in Israel Thursday after being held in Thailand on immigration charges that had sparked fears they could be deported to Russia and face prison.
The band, Bi-2, have criticised Russian President Vladimir Putin and left Russia in protest over the war in Ukraine.
Their arrest in Thailand last week sparked fears they would be sent to Russia, which harshly punishes public criticism of its Ukraine campaign.
Russian independent media reported that Moscow's diplomats were demanding the band be sent to Russia.
"We're free!" Bi-2 said on its Facebook page on Thursday, ending almost a week of uncertainty over the band's fate.
"Thank you to everyone who fought for and supported us," it added.
Russia's independent TV Rain outlet posted a video of the band at an Israeli airport.
Several members of the band have dual nationalities, including Israeli and Australian.
Thailand's National Security Council, chaired by Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, took charge of the case on Wednesday.
The band said Wednesday that singer Egor Bortnik, known by his stage name Lyova -- had already left Thailand to fly to Israel.
After landing in Israel they met with Foreign Minister Israel Katz, who said in a statement that the episode showed "the music will win".
Human rights advocates in Thailand cautiously welcomed the news.
"Even though they (are) all safe, we still want Thai authorities to respect arrest procedures strictly," human rights lawyer Pornpen Khongkachonkiet told AFP.
"It could (have) happened to me, you, and others without international attention as this case got."
Pornpen said the band's detention was another sign of creeping transnational repression within the kingdom.
The case had alarmed Russians critical of Putin living abroad. Thailand is a popular destination for both Russian holidaymakers and emigrants.
- 'Only disgust' -
Phil Robertson of Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Thailand was "vulnerable to effective manipulation by larger states pursuing transnational repression".
However, he said international pressure -- and global economic concerns -- had played a significant role.
"Thailand realised that they didn't need to make a lot of enemies by doing Russia's bidding in this case," Robertson told AFP.
"Russia may be a transnational repression superpower but they're an economic weakling, and Thailand knows that."
The band were held last week after they played a gig on Phuket, a southern island popular with Russian holidaymakers.
Thai officials said they were arrested for performing without the correct work permits and transferred to an immigration detention centre in Bangkok.
The organisers of the band's Thailand concerts -- which also included a show in Pattaya -- said all the necessary permits were obtained, but the band had been issued tourist visas in error.
VPI Event accused the Russian consulate of having waged a campaign to cancel the concerts since December, and said they had faced "unprecedented pressure" as they sought the band's release.
Bi-2 is well known in Russia.
Several of their concerts were cancelled in 2022 after they refused to play at a venue with banners supporting the war in Ukraine, after which they left Russia.
One of the band's founders has openly denounced the Putin government, saying it makes him feel "only disgust" and accusing the long-serving leader of having "destroyed" Russia.
HRW earlier this week said the band would face "persecution" if returned to Russia -- pointing to comments by a Kremlin foreign ministry spokeswoman accusing the band of "sponsoring terrorism".
The rights group said Russia's foreign ministry last year designated frontman Bortnik a "foreign agent" for opposing the war in Ukraine.
Top UN court says Ukraine case vs Russia over invasion can proceed
The court is increasingly dealing with high profile cases.
The United Nations' top court said Friday a case brought by Ukraine against Russia over the brutal 2022 invasion could go ahead after ruling it had jurisdiction over most of the points made by Kyiv.
Ukraine dragged Russia before the International Court of Justice only a few days after the invasion, seeking to battle its neighbour on all fronts, legal as well as diplomatic and military.
When Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion on February 24, 2022, part of his argument was that pro-Russian people in eastern Ukraine had been "subjected to bullying and genocide by the Kyiv regime".
Ukraine filed a suit at the ICJ, "emphatically denying" this and arguing that Russia's use of "genocide" as a pretext for invasion went against the 1948 UN Genocide Convention.
In a preliminary ruling in March 2022, the ICJ sided with Ukraine and ordered Russia to halt its invasion immediately.
But Russia objected to this judgement, saying the ICJ, which decides on disputes between states, had no legal right to decide in this case.
The ICJ Friday tossed out Moscow's argument, saying it did indeed have jurisdiction to rule on Ukraine's argument that "there is no credible evidence that Ukraine is responsible for committing genocide," over which Russia justified its invasion.
However, Ukraine had also claimed in its submission that Russia's use of force during the invasion was itself in contravention of the Genocide Convention.
The ICJ said it did not have competence to decide on this part of the case.
The court also said it did not have the power to rule on another point raised by Ukraine -- that Moscow's recognition of the separatist regions of Lugansk and Donetsk breached the Convention.
Ukraine's lead lawyer Anton Korynevych declared the ICJ ruling a "victory for Ukraine" and hailed the fact that the case will now continue.
"It is important that the court will decide on the issue that Ukraine is not responsible for some mythical genocide that the Russian Federation falsely alleged Ukraine has been committing since 2014 in Donbas," he told reporters.
- 'Armed conflict' -
The ICJ's rulings are binding and cannot be appealed but it has no means to enforce its decisions.
The court noted that it had already ordered Russia back in March 2022 to "immediately suspend" its military operations but that "the armed conflict continues to this day."
"Every day of Russia's brutal war in Ukraine is a violation of this... order," said Korynevych. Those orders remain valid while the case continues.
Representatives from the Russian side declined to speak to media after the judgement.
Thirty-two allies of Ukraine also argued in support of Kyiv. The ICJ dismissed a bid by the United States to join the case.
This is the second major case at the ICJ concerning the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
The ICJ ruled Wednesday in a separate case filed by Ukraine alleging that Russia financially backed separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine for years before the invasion.
The court mostly sided with Russia in that case, rejecting most of Ukraine's requests and saying that Moscow had only failed to investigate possible breaches of terrorism financing law.
The ICJ is under heightened scrutiny at the moment with a high-profile case about the war in Gaza.
In a judgement beamed all around the world last Friday, it ordered Israel to take all action necessary to prevent genocide during its operations in response to the October 7 Hamas attack.
- Questions and Answers
- Opinion
- Story/Motivational/Inspiring
- Technology
- Art
- Causes
- Crafts
- Dance
- Drinks
- Film/Movie
- Fitness
- Food
- Игры
- Gardening
- Health
- Главная
- Literature
- Music
- Networking
- Другое
- Party
- Religion
- Shopping
- Sports
- Theater
- Wellness
- News
- Culture
- War machines and policy