‘China is not a threat to Russia’– Putin

THE effort by the imperialist camp to “split” the strategic partnership between the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China has clearly failed after Russian President Vladimir Putin, dismissed the West’s effort to picture China as a “threat” to Russia.

Pres. Putin made this known to everybody during his one-on-one televised interview with NBC’s senior international correspondent, Keir Simmons, on June 15, 2021 in Switzerland.

The Russian leader granted the interview a day before his summit with the world’s leading warmonger, US Pres. Joe Biden. The full interview, running 1 hour and over 22 minutes, is now readily available in YouTube.

Simmons first tried to bait Putin by asking why the Russian leader is not expressing his concern over the ongoing military modernization of the Chinese military compared to his near regular criticism of the NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), established after the Second World War aimed at “containing” the growing power of the then Soviet Union.

And as if to add to the growing “threat” of China on core Russian interests, Simmons also mentioned China’s ongoing program to build at least 4 aircraft carriers while Russia only has one carrier in service.

“Why would we worry about China’s aircraft carriers? 4 China aircraft carriers, compared to US.

Nothing is excessive about China,” Putin said (the US Navy currently has 44 aircraft carriers in service, the biggest of any nation in the world).

Pres. Putin noted that “over the last decades,” Russia and China have developed a “strategic partnership that has not been previously achieved” in the history of the two countries.

(In 1969, China and the Soviet Union had deadly border clashes in Manchuria with then Soviet leader, Leonid Brezhnev at one point considering dropping an atomic bomb on China).

Pres. Putin stressed that over the decades, Russia and China’s strategic partnership has become “unprecedented” with “high level of trust” on both sides in “all areas”—politics, economy, technology and in the area of military and technical cooperation.

“We do not believe that China is a ‘threat’ to us (Russia),” Pres. Putin said, adding:

“China is a friendly nation, it has not declared us an enemy, as the United States has done. Don’t you know anything about this,” he asked Simmons.

He also described as “meaningless conversation” Simmons’ attempt at raising the purported military threat posed by China.

Putin also defended China’s refusal to join in the nuclear arms talks with Russia and US Imperialism aimed at limiting their nuclear stockpile, noting that both countries are way ahead of China in terms of nuclear deterrence.

He noted that with more than 1.5 billion population but lesser nuclear deterrence capability, China’s position is “understandable.”

“Number 2, China is huge powerful country, with one and a half billion people. In terms of purchase power parity, China’s economy has exceeded the United States; China has tied Europe for first place last year, while the US has dropped to second, don’t you know about this (too),” Pres. Putin asked.

Pres. Putin also said he has heard with his “own ears” the statements of the Xinjiang Uighurs who only have high praises on the policies of the Chinese authorities in the region, as he countered the West’s lies about the situation in Xinjiang, including the US’ claim that at least 1 million Uighur Muslims are living in “concentration camps” in the region.

“Why should I stick to and built a relationship with Russian Muslims by referring to the situation in China without understanding thoroughly what is happening there.

“You are better off asking all these problems to the foreign minister of China or the (US) state department,” Pres. Putin said.

When again baited by Simmons into criticizing China by directly asking if Russia “can expect 100 percent support from China,” Pres. Putin reiterated Russia and China’s “unprecedentedly high level” of relationship that both countries “cherished,” he said.

“Why are you trying to drag us into some kind of issues that you evaluate as you see fit for building your relationship with China?

“Can I be completely honest with you?

“We can see attempts at destroying the relationship between Russia and China; we can see that those attempts are being made in practical policies, your question too have to do with that,” Pres. Putin told Simmons, whose last attempt at driving a wedge between China, Russia and the United States is in the area of space exploration.

Simmons claimed that Russia intends to end its space project with the US in favor of China. “Why would you say that,” Putin countered.