President Putin has touched on the subject of the Ukrainian conflict and what caused it during his speech at a Russian Ministry of Defense meeting:
The Russian leader pointed out that in 2014, the United States effectively torpedoed any chance of normal bilateral relations between Moscow and Kiev by staging a violent coup in Ukraine.
He also noted that the US deliberately dragged Russia and Europe into a conflict in Ukraine, with one of Washington’s goals being the disruption of Russo-European relations.
According to Putin, the Western powers currently seek to press Ukraine into NATO, as well as subjugate Russia by carving it into smaller pieces.