Vladimir Putin has claimed that sooner or later Ukraine will be left without its “western lands,” which the Russian president says have historically been part of other European nations.
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The remarks were made during Putin’s meeting with members of the Russian Navy, held to mark Navy Day.
Speaking about the areas that he says once belonged to Poland, Hungary and Romania, he said: “I am sure that sooner or later Ukraine will lose these western lands.”
Putin added that this might not happen immediately: “Not tomorrow, perhaps not the day after tomorrow, in a year, two, 10 or 15 years, but everything will fall into place from a historical perspective.”
Communications experts view this as a calculated statement by the Kremlin leader, aimed at mobilizing nationalist groups in Poland, Hungary and Romania that believe these territories belong to their countries, thereby fueling internal tensions in those states.
At the same time, it was reported on Monday that Ukrainian and American representatives had considered a proposal to offer Russia the possibility of an aerial ceasefire.
Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, said Moscow considered any comment on such a ceasefire proposal premature.
