Russia has no intention of attacking NATO member states and will retaliate only if attacked first, President Vladimir Putin told American journalist Tucker Carlson in an interview aired on Thursday.
Western countries are “trying to intimidate their own population with an imaginary Russian threat,” Putin said. He added that “smart people understand perfectly well that that is false.”
Carlson asked the president if he can “imagine a scenario where you send Russian troops to Poland.”
Putin replied: “Only in one case: if there is an attack on Russia from Poland. Why? Because we have no interests in Poland, Latvia or any other [NATO member].”
Asked if he has “territorial aims across the continent,” Putin said that “it is absolutely out of the question.”
“You don’t need to be an analyst to understand that getting involved in a global war goes against common sense. A global war would bring all of humanity to the brink of destruction.”
Putin further argued that Western governments are using “scare tactics” to convince their taxpayers to provide more money to “weaken Russia” in Ukraine and elsewhere.
Moscow has repeatedly cited NATO’s continuing expansion eastward and its support for Kiev as one of the root causes of the current conflict in Ukraine. Russian officials have also warned that the delivery of weapons and other military equipment to Ukraine only leads to further escalation.