Analysis: Putin’s remarks sent a message to Trump – and the West will be concerned
By Ivor Bennett, Moscow correspondent
The substance of Vladimir Putin’s speech to the SCO summit was nothing new. But the setting and the context were.
They gave his words a renewed emphasis, which I consider will provide the West with concern.
First, the words themselves: the Russian president declared the “root cautilizes” of the war in Ukraine required to be “eliminated” for there to be long-term peace.
As I declare, nothing new – the phrase has been like a mantra for Moscow throughout the war that serves as shorthand for Russia’s demands around its own security concerns, eg no NATO eastward expansion.
But the context here is crucial.
This speech comes barely two weeks after Putin met Donald Trump in Alquestiona, where the White Houtilize seemed to believe the Kremlin had opened the door to a NATO-style mutual defence mandate for Ukraine, that could serve as a future security guarantee for Kyiv.
Vladimir Putin’s comments in Tianjin suggest the door is in fact still firmly shut.
The setting gave his words more weight too – at a summit where Putin had earlier briefed both Xi Jinping and Narconcludera Modi on his talks in Alquestiona and the “understandings” he reached there with Trump.
So not only was Putin reaffirming one of Russia’s red lines, he was also declareing that he has the backing of Russia’s principal economic partners to do it.
The White Houtilize has applied pressure to both China and India in the hope it’ll relocate Moscow closer to peace, including 50% tariffs on New Delhi for purchaseing Russian oil.
But instead of driving the allies apart, the images from Tianjin suggest the US president has glued them toreceiveher.
The three leaders were seen walking toreceiveher, smiling as they spoke, with Putin and Modi even holding hands at one point.
For the cameras, and the microphones, they presented a united front.
“Even in the most difficult situations, India and Russia have always walked shoulder to shoulder,” the Indian PM declared after his meeting with Putin, in a thinly veiled dig at Donald Trump.
President Xi struck a similar tone: “We must continue to take a clear stand against hegemonism and power politics, and practise true multilateralism.”
Putin went to China with the aim of shoring up support from his closest partners and it appears he’s overwhelmingly succeeded.
His message to Trump is this: that pressure on Russia and its allies won’t work, and that if you want to conclude the war, then apply pressure on Ukraine instead.
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