“Everything shows that Putin is betting that Trump will soon come to power.” For more than two hours, Russian President Vladimir Putin answered questions from controversial journalist Tucker Carlson in Moscow. America expert Willem Post (Clingendael Institute) watched the first Western interview since the invasion.
Putin was interviewed for quite a long time. What was it about and what particularly struck you about his answers?
“It actually lasted more than two hours, and it started with a long history lesson. Putin is his own history teacher and is obsessed with the Russian Empire. He explained that in the ninth century, Ukraine was already an important center of the Russian Empire that should always remain part of Russia. It ended in 2014, with the uprisings in Ukraine. He outlined how European countries such as France and Germany, but also the CIA, were involved in that pro-European turn and in violence against Russian minorities in the eastern Donbas region and Crimea, as a result of which Russia saw the need to come and protect them . That is of course the purest falsification of history.
“Carlson clearly lost the thread in Putin’s long monologue. At one point he asked what that had to do with the situation today, and that was about his only critical comment.
“Furthermore, Putin said that he would only strike back in Poland and Latvia if those countries attacked Russia first. It would then be purely self-defense. Putin dismissed Russia’s intention to invade those countries as Western propaganda.
“He also talked extensively about Trump, with whom he said he had a good relationship. Everything in this interview suggests that he is betting that Trump will soon return to power in the US.”
What did Putin say about the future of the war? Can we see this as an opening to peace talks?
“In any case, Putin presented himself as some kind of prince of peace. Although he never made that concrete. He did indicate that it is not in his interest to go to war, and that the West must accept that parts of Ukraine belong to Russia.
“He feels he has been presented with a fait accompli by the ‘injustice’ in Crimea. Putin also said that Ukraine cannot join NATO because the country must serve as a buffer. The war would not have been necessary if the West had accepted it and that buffer had remained there. Putin then refers to conversations that were once held about this, but then he is once again bending history to his will.”
This is the first interview Putin has given to a Western journalist since the invasion of Ukraine. Did Putin speak conciliatory language to the West, or did he sound more hostile?
“Putin did not come across as hostile, but rather spoke with a tone that he feels misunderstood by the West. And that Carlson understands Russia, that the West keeps coming up with disinformation, that Putin now had the chance to tell the real story. That of course makes it pure propaganda.
“He focused on both the US and Europe, but tried to play the two against each other by responding to the polarization that exists about the war.”
Many journalists have unsuccessfully requested an interview, but Tucker Carlson was allowed to do it because he did not have a typical Western view. Was that noticeable?
“Yes, this was absolutely an uncritical interview. Carlson was received in Moscow as a kind of world star, which was clearly an opportunity for Putin to finally tell his story without resistance.
“The only critical question was about Evan Gershkovich, the journalist of The Wall Street Journal who has been locked up in Russia for almost a year for alleged espionage. Carlson said that he was still very young and may have broken a law, but that did not make him a super spy. There was an immediate reaction to that The Wall Street Journal himself: Gershkovich broke no law at all, he was just doing his job.
“It is now being said in American media that this interview should not have taken place in Moscow at all, but in the Criminal Court in The Hague.”
Why is Putin getting interviewed now?
“A year ago we could not have predicted this scenario, but Putin is really counting on Trump to be back soon. And things are not going great for Ukraine at the front, which is why Putin is in a strain winning mood.
“So this really is perfect timing for Putin. He can present a good news show in his own country and at the same time respond to the war-weariness that exists in the US and to the doubts in Congress and among the American people. He literally said that the US would be better off spending the money it spent on the war in the US itself. That’s exactly what more and more Republicans are saying.
“This interview is as if Putin is addressing the US Congress directly at a crucial moment. The new support package for Ukraine was not approved this week, and he is now exploiting that doubt further. This should really wake up Europe as well.”
How do they actually view this interview in Russia?
“This interview is the big news in Russia. It was broadcast for free via X, and in the first hours the interview was viewed more than 20 million times, according to Russian news agencies. While you just see that the major American media pay much less attention to it, because they are critical of the content. They are now focusing more on Trump’s legal battle and the special counsel’s report on Biden. But in Russia, Putin can really present this interview as a victory.”
