The illegitimate president of the aggressor country of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, said that the letter addressed to him by the President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky contained “elements of rudeness,” which, in his opinion, interfere with the creation of conditions for personal meetings and negotiations. He stated this while answering questions at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on June 5, broadcast by the propaganda newspaper Soyuznoye Veche.
During his speech, Putin almost did not use the last name of the Ukrainian president, instead repeatedly calling him “the author of the letter.”
In a letter dated June 4, the head of the Ukrainian state proposed ending the war and holding a personal meeting of leaders on neutral territory with international security guarantees and the involvement of mediators. In addition, Zelensky pointed out that during Putin’s 26 years in power, Russia spent almost half of this time in the war against Ukraine, and the Russian President himself, due to his age, began to lose control over the situation (“old age began to take its toll”).
Commenting on this letter, Putin devoted special attention to the topic of age, which Zelensky mentioned. According to the illegitimate Russian president, mentioning his age in an address is not a matter of principle, and the main criterion for politicians, as he believes, should not be age characteristics, but capacity and performance.
“And some of my colleagues, who, I repeat, are older, but they demonstrate sufficient energy. They do good, bad – that’s different, this is a political assessment, but on the whole they work actively,” Putin said.
He also said that political leaders should not be afraid of elections and act exclusively within the framework of the constitution, noting that holding power outside its norms is “usurpation” and a “criminal offense.” Although Putin himself, who has effectively ruled Russia since 2000, has not ruled out running in the 2030 elections.
“And this letter, it really has elements of rudeness. What is this? Is this a way of creating conditions for personal meetings and negotiations? Or is it creating an environment in which it is actually impossible to hold any personal meetings? I think it’s the second,” Putin emphasized.
At the end, he said that “he doesn’t yet see the point” in meeting with Zelensky, and ordered the Russian troops to “work.”
