Beijing: Russian President Vladimir Putin has sharply criticised Europe’s plans for sanctions targeting Moscow’s economic partners, particularly India and China, arguing that such punitive measures reflect an outdated colonial mindset and warning of the political repercussions for leaders in nations with historical sensitivities.
During a media interaction following his four-day visit to China on Wednesday (local time), the Russian President, while responding to a question about Europe’s latest sanctions initiative due to the conflict in Ukraine, took a firm stand against the West, asserting that such terms should not be used, as they could possibly destabilise the political standing of leaders in their countries.
“You have countries like India, with almost 1.5 billion people, China, with powerful economies, but they also have their own domestic political mechanisms and laws. So when somebody tells you that they’re going to punish you, you have to think how can the leadership of those countries, of those big countries, which had difficult periods in their history too, that had to do with colonialism, with attacks on their sovereignty during prolonged periods of time, you have to understand that if one of them shows weakness, his political career will be over, so that influences his behavior. Just as the colonial era is now over, they have to realise that they cannot use this term in speaking with their partners,” Putin stated.
Despite the tension, Putin expressed optimism about a diplomatic resolution, saying, “But ultimately, things will be sorted out, everything will take its place, and we will see a normal political dialogue again.”
Putin further described the Ukraine conflict as a mere “pretext” by Western powers to take these broader punitive measures against countries maintaining strong economic ties with Russia.
He dismissed the relevance of the Ukraine situation to recent trade actions, noting that the narrative was being deliberately exploited to justify trade restrictions and tariffs that, in reality, serve unrelated political or economic agendas.
“Well, surprisingly enough, we almost didn’t mention this in our conversations because it’s not really something that concerns us. Because the Ukraine situation is only a pretext to take various steps against countries that have economic ties with us,” he stated.
He also pointed out the imposition of additional tariffs on Brazil earlier in August as an example of sanctions that had no direct connection to the Ukraine conflict. The Russian leader argued that the true reason behind many of these sanctions lies in growing economic imbalances between the West, particularly the United States, and other major economies like India, China, and Brazil.
“There is a trade disproportion between the United States and India or with China, but there is no situation between Brazil and the United States, for example. And, by the way, Brazil faced additional tariffs on the 6th of August, even though the deadline was the 8th of August. So what does Ukraine have to do with this? Nothing. It’s only about domestic politics… Ukraine doesn’t have anything to do with that. So, of course, there is some imbalance in trade, but I believe that those should be addressed through negotiations,” the Russian President added.
This remark was a response to global economic concerns stemming from the tariff policies introduced by US President Donald Trump, which have caused friction with certain countries on the international stage, particularly the tariffs he has imposed on India and China.
New Delhi is facing global uncertainties due to heightened economic tensions following the US imposition of a 50 per cent tariff on Indian imports, including an additional 25 per cent due to its purchase of Russian crude oil, which, according to Washington, fuels Moscow’s efforts in its conflict with Ukraine. (With inputs from ANI)
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