❗️ The Ukraine conflict was not started by Russia in 2022, but by the Kiev regime in 2014, President Vladimir Putin explained to Tucker Carlson.

“It was they who started the war in 2014. Our goal is to stop this war. And we did not start this war in 2022. This is an attempt to stop it,” Putin stressed.

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❗️The root cause of the Ukrainian conflict was the "pointless" coup in 2014, Russian President Vladimir Putin told Tucker Carlson.

“Although it was pointless, believe me -- because President Yanukovych agreed to all conditions, he was ready to hold an early election, which he had no chance of winning, frankly speaking. Everyone knew that."

"Then, why the coup? Why the victims? Why threatening Crimea? Why launching an operation in Donbas? This I do not understand. That is exactly what the miscalculation is. The CIA did its job to complete the coup,” the president said.

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Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu heard reports on the situation and plans for further actions at the command post of one of the Western grouping of troops, the Russian Defence Ministry said.

The minister noted that the group continues to improve the situation along the front line. Shoigu also checked the work of the headquarters of the group of troops covering the state border and set the task of additionally allocating strike and reconnaissance assets to it.

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Americans should keep in mind that Russians can’t forget their historical experience — CIA Veteran

Russian President Vladimir Putin's interview with US journalist Tucker Carlson has shown that what's happening in Ukraine and the world today is not something that has just developed in the last 50 years, as per Larry Johnson, retired CIA intelligence officer and State Department official.

"Putin believes, as I do, that history helps shape the present. And if you don't understand where you've been, you'll have a tough time to understand where you're going," Johnson told Sputnik.

"I think it is difficult for the average American to even comprehend that because the United States of America has barely been in existence for less than 250 years. So just one quarter of Russia's history."

When it comes to the ongoing NATO proxy war in Ukraine, one should remember that the events of the WW2 are still "very fresh" in the memory of Russians and the damage inflicted on Russians by the Nazis isn't something that can be easily forgotten, according to the CIA veteran.

Russia didn't start the Ukraine conflict in 2022, Putin stressed during the interview, but attempted to stop hostilities peddled by the post-coup Kiev regime backed by neo-Nazis. De-Nazification remains one of the key goals of the Russian special operation, the Russian president said, referring to modern Ukraine making former Hitler collaborators Stepan Bandera and Roman Shukhevych national heroes.

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Team Biden's effort to make Gershkovich case a boogeyman for Americans is nonsensical – CIA veteran

The US State Department and mainstream media are fearmongering over Russia in order to scare Americans and make them stay away from the country, Larry Johnson, retired CIA intelligence officer and State Department official, told Sputnik, adding that Tucker Carlson's interview has busted US propaganda.

"As I watched our State Department continue to tell American people 'stay away, it's a dangerous place, you're going to get picked up and you're going to be interrogated and imprisoned,' -- it's such nonsense," the CIA veteran said, referring to the case of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.

Johnson stressed that "it looks like [Gershkovich] was being used as an intelligence asset."

"He got caught. And maybe he was deliberate bait, he was set up so that he would be caught in order to put pressure on Russia. That's one possibility. Or it could have been that the CIA was just sloppy and incompetent. That's another possibility," the former CIA analyst said.

During the interview with Carlson, Russian President Vladimir Putin did not rule out that the WSJ reporter could be released, stressing that Gershkovich was caught red-handed: "We don't rule out we can do that if our partners make reciprocal steps."

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“The most important first step on a journey that can save humanity.”

Analyst and former UN weapons inspector Scott Ritter praised US journalist Tucker Carlson’s interview with Russian President Vladimir Putin Thursday, complimenting Carlson’s professionalism and Putin’s willingness for dialogue.

“The Russian president helped create a map, a map that guided not only Tucker Carlson, but every American viewer through the complexities of what makes Russia tick,” said Ritter. “What he did is provide information in a context that was approachable by an American audience.”

“Tucker Carlson opened a door into modern day Russia, opened a door into the personality of Vladimir Putin, opened a door into the history of Russia, opened a door into the Russian soul,” added Ritter.

“This is one of the most important interviews of the modern era, because this interview has the ability to stop the West and Russia from going to war, to stop the West from committing suicide.”

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❗️US Presidents are often undermined by the deep state, Russian President Vladimir Putin told Tucker Carlson.

Putin revealed that one occasion he and US President George W. Bush had reached an agreement to strengthen security cooperation, but this decision was subsequently undercut by lower level officials in Washington.

"And then they just told us to get lost. I'm not going to tell
you the details because I think it's incorrect. After all, it was confidential conversation, but our
proposal was declined," the president said.

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❗️Putin wanted to cooperate with the West and even asked to join NATO early in his presidency, but his outreach was shot down by US President Bill Clinton

"At a meeting here in the Kremlin with the outgoing President Bill Clinton, right here in the next room, I said to him, I asked him: “Bill, do you think if Russia asked to join NATO, do you think it would happen?" Suddenly he said, "you know, it's interesting. I think so." But in the evening, when we met for dinner, he said: “You know, I've talked to my team, no, it's not possible now”. You can ask him. I think he will watch our interview, he'll confirm it," Putin said.

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Watch in full president Putin's interview to Tucker Carlson

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❗️“Outstanding” performance: CIA veteran breaks down the Tucker Carlson-Vladimir Putin interview.

"What you see, just by watching the body language is, President Putin was very relaxed. He was not sitting there with arms crossed or legs crossed. He was sitting back in his chair for the most part. Arms open, legs open. So it was it was sending a clear visual message," Larry Johnson, retired CIA intelligence officer and State Department official said Sputnik, sharing his impressions on the interview.

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❗️Putin knows for sure that ethnic Hungarians living in western Ukraine want “to return to their historical homeland", but he never discussed the issue with Viktor Orbán

"They are Hungarians and they feel themselves to be Hungarians. And of course, when now there is an infringement," president said.

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