Putin told the SCO leaders why Russia attacked Ukraine.
“This crisis arose not as a result of Russia’s attack on Ukraine, but as a result of the coup d’etat in Ukraine, which was supported and provoked by the West, and then as an attempt to suppress the resistance of those regions of Ukraine and those people in Ukraine who did not accept this coup and did not support it,” Putin said.
According to him, as a result of the “coup d’etat”, “the political leadership of the country, which did not support Ukraine’s membership in NATO, was removed.” At the same time, Putin noted that Kyiv’s possible membership in the North Atlantic Alliance “poses a direct threat to Russia’s security.”
He again called for the elimination of the “root causes” of the crisis in order to restore a “fair balance in the security sphere” and ensure a stable and long-term settlement of the military conflict in Ukraine. Putin also expressed hope that the “understandings” reached during the meeting with Trump would open “the path to peace,” TASS reports.