Putin says Russia could help broker deal
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin offered Wednesday to help mediate an end to the conflict between Israel and Iran, suggesting Moscow could help negotiate a settlement that could allow Tehran to pursue a peaceful atomic program while assuaging Israeli security concerns.
Speaking to senior news leaders of international news agencies, Putin noted that 'it's a delicate issue,' but added that 'in my view, a solution could be found.' Asked how Russia would react if Israel kills Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Putin refused to answer, saying that 'I don't even want to discuss such a possibility.'
Khamenei has rejected US calls for surrender in the face of more Israeli strikes and warned that any military involvement by the Americans would cause 'irreparable damage to them.' Putin said he shared Moscow's proposals with Iran, Israel and the United States.
'We are not imposing anything on anyone; we are simply talking about how we see a possible way out of the situation. But the decision, of course, is up to the political leadership of all these countries, primarily Iran and Israel,' he said.
Russia has maintained a delicate balancing act in the Middle East for decades, trying to navigate its warm relations with Israel even as it developed strong economic and military ties with Iran, a policy that could allow Moscow to play power broker.
Putin's comments follow a mediation offer that he made in a call with US President Donald Trump last weekend.
Trump said Wednesday that he told Putin to stay focused on finding an endgame to his own conflict with Ukraine.
'I said, 'Do me a favor, mediate your own,'' Trump said he told Putin. 'I said, 'Vladimir, let's mediate Russia first. You can worry about this later.''
The comments represented a shift for Trump, who earlier this week said he was 'open' to Putin's offer to mediate in the Middle East.
Putin, meeting with senior news leaders of international news agencies, including The Associated Press, on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, emphasized that Russia has a trusting relationship with Iran and helped build its first nuclear power plant in Bushehr on the Persian Gulf south of Tehran.
He said that over 200 Russian workers are involved in building two more reactors in Bushehr, adding that "we agreed with the Israeli leadership that their security will be ensured.'
Putin emphasized that Tehran hasn't asked Moscow for military assistance, noting the 'strategic partnership' treaty between the countries that was signed in January doesn't envision such aid.
In addition to a few air defense systems that Russia supplied to Iran in the past, it also offered previously to help create comprehensive air defenses, but Tehran didn't want it, he said.
'Our proposal was to create a system, not isolated deliveries, but a system,' Putin said. 'We used to discuss it in the past, but the Iranian side showed little interest.'
Israel said that it knocked out Iran's Russia-supplied S-300 air defense missile systems during last year's strikes.
Putin on Wednesday praised Trump's push for peace in Ukraine, seconding the American leader's repeated claims that the 3-year-old conflict wouldn't have started if he had been in the White House in 2022.
'If Trump had been the president, the conflict indeed might not have erupted,' Putin said.
Russia has intensified its aerial campaign in Ukraine recently and stepped up ground attacks along the more than 1,000-kilometer front line. Putin has effectively rejected Trump's offer of an immediate 30-day ceasefire, making it conditional on a halt on Ukraine's mobilization effort and a freeze on Western arms supplies.
He said he is open for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, but repeated his claim that he lost his legitimacy after his term expired last year — allegations rejected by Kyiv and its allies.
'We are ready for substantive talks on the principles of a settlement,' Putin said, noting the previous round of talks had led to an exchange of prisoners and the bodies of fallen soldiers.
Asked by AP about Russia condemning Israel's strikes on Iran even as Ukrainian civilians are killed in attacks by Moscow, Putin responded that Russia was targeting the country's arms factories.
'The strikes were carried out against military industries, not residential quarters,' Putin said.
AP reporters have documented damage to residential buildings in Ukraine, most recently this week. On Wednesday, emergency workers pulled more bodies from the rubble of a nine-story Kyiv apartment building demolished by a Russian attack earlier this week, raising the death toll from the strike on the capital to 28.
Putin vowed that Moscow will achieve its goal to 'demilitarize' Ukraine.
'We will not allow Ukraine to have armed forces that would threaten the Russian Federation and its people,' he said. 'And if we fail to reach a settlement, we will achieve our goals by military means.' He strongly warned Germany against delivering long-range Taurus missiles to Ukraine, saying that it could draw it into a direct military conflict with Russia but won't help stem Russian advances.
'Our troops are advancing along the entire line of contact,' he said, warning Ukraine to accept Russia's terms for a peace deal or face tougher conditions in the future. 'If they fail to agree, the situation could change for the worse.'
He also dismissed Western warnings of Russia's purported plans to attack NATO countries as 'ravings,' noting the alliance's military spending far exceeds Moscow's defense budget.
Putin has used the annual forum to highlight Russia's economic achievements and seek foreign investment. Western executives, who attended the event in the past, have avoided it after Putin sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022, leaving it to business leaders from Asia, Africa and Latin America.
He met earlier with former Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, who now heads the New Development Bank created by the BRICS alliance of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. He is also set to have meetings with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and He's also expected to confer with top officials from China, South Africa and Bahrain and the head of the OPEC group of oil-producing countries.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Korea Herald
12 hours ago
- Korea Herald
Trump repeats NATO members should spend 5% of GDP on defense
US President Donald Trump reiterated Friday that North Atlantic Treaty Organization member states should spend 5 percent of gross domestic product on defense, while saying the United States should not. Trump made the remarks during a press availability as he is preparing to attend a NATO summit in The Hague, the Netherlands, next week, where the defense spending target is expected to figure prominently. "I don't think we should, but I think they should," he said, responding to a question about the defense spending target that he proposed. "We've been supporting NATO so long. In many cases, I believe ... almost paying 100 percent of the cost. So I don't think we should, but I think that the NATO countries should absolutely," he added. The US spent about 3.4 percent of its GDP on defense last year. Asked about Spain's stance against the target, Trump said that NATO will have to deal with the country. "Spain has been a very low payer," he said. "They were either good negotiators or they weren't doing the right thing. I mean I think Spain has to pay what everybody else has to pay. Spain has been notorious for low pay." Spain has reportedly rejected the defense spending proposal, calling for a more "flexible" approach. On Thursday, the Pentagon said that European allies are setting the "global standard" for Asian allies, which is spending 5 percent of GDP on defense. South Korea's defense budget this year stands at around 61.2 trillion won ($44.6 billion), which is about 2.32 percent of its GDP, according to Seoul's defense ministry. (Yonhap)
Korea Herald
a day ago
- Korea Herald
6 more S. Koreans, 1 Iranian family member evacuate Iran amid escalating conflict with Israel
Six more South Koreans and an Iranian family member have safely crossed the border from Iran into neighboring Turkmenistan amid the escalating conflict between Iran and Israel, Seoul's foreign ministry said Friday. Two South Korean nationals and an Iranian family member arrived in Ashgabat on Friday afternoon (local time), in addition to four other South Koreans who had earlier left Iran and reached the Turkmen capital via the same land route, the ministry said. This brings the total number of South Koreans who have left Iran to 37, since the government began operations to assist those wishing to evacuate, including by providing transportation through border checkpoints. Twenty-six South Koreans and four Iranian family members also crossed the border into Turkmenistan by transportation provided by the South Korean government earlier this week. Escalating airstrikes between Israel and Iran have prompted countries to evacuate their nationals from the region. At least 43 South Koreans and their Israeli family members have fled Israel and taken shelter in Jordan. An estimated 110 South Koreans were in Iran and around 500 in Israel before the conflict began last Friday. (Yonhap)
Korea Herald
a day ago
- Korea Herald
South Korea says defense spending against GDP already ‘very high'
South Korea's Defense Ministry on Friday hinted at concerns over an announcement by the Donald Trump administration that its Asian allies are subject to the 'new standard' of spending 5 percent of gross domestic product on defense. South Korea's defense spending, which stands at some 51.2 trillion won ($37.5 billion) or 2.32 percent of its GDP, is already 'very high,' the ministry noted in a statement. "Among key US allies, South Korea is one of the countries that has an extremely high defense spending to GDP ratio," the ministry said in a statement. "We have continuously hiked our defense spending in consideration of our serious security situation involving North Korea's nuclear and missile threats.' South Korea will continue its efforts to maintain necessary capabilities and posture for the defense of the Korean Peninsula as well as regional peace and stability, the ministry said. Seoul's statement follows remarks made earlier this week by US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, regarding a 'new standard' now in place for all US allies' defense spending, 'including in Asia.' Hegseth's remarks, made during a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee, are aligned with US President Donald Trump's call for NATO members to increase their defense spending to 5 percent of their GDP. This is more than double the 2 percent defense spending guideline agreed upon by the leaders of the trans-Atlantic alliance in 2014. Last month, Hegseth, during the Shangri-La Dialogue, an annual defense forum held in Singapore, said that it 'doesn't make sense' for key US allies in Asia to 'spend less on defense' than countries in Europe, despite dealing with 'more formidable threats,' including North Korea provocations. Concerns are rising in South Korea over reports that Trump may shore up South Korea's defense spending while the US adjusts the role and reduces the size of the US Forces Korea. A May report by The Wall Street Journal claimed that the Trump administration is mulling the option of pulling some 4,500 personnel out of the 28,500-strong USFK and relocating them to other locations in the Indo-Pacific region. Last month, Hegseth directed Under Secretary of Defense Elbridge Colby to draw up a US national defense strategy that focuses on burden sharing with allies as the nation navigates to deter threats from China. More than doubling defense spending would deal a heavy blow to South Korea, as it would cost Seoul over 100 trillion won to meet the 'new standards' suggested by the Trump administration. An expert pointed out that it would require the government to significantly reduce other budgets allocated to areas, including welfare, to uphold such a scenario. 'It won't be an easy process for Seoul as it would be required to cut back budgets set aside for other matters, including welfare, and funnel (the funds) into defense spending if the 5 percent of GDP rule is applied,' said Yang Uk, a research fellow at Asan Institute for Policy Studies. Observers say that if South Korean President Lee Jae Myung decides to participate in the upcoming NATO summit scheduled for June 24-25 in the Netherlands, an opportunity might arise to discuss the defense cost issue with Trump. However, the presidential office here has yet to confirm whether Lee will attend the summit, as of press time, but said the previous day that it is coordinating the details of a potential summit with Trump. First Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo said in a Friday interview with Yonhap News TV that 'the current situation where the US has been requesting several countries to shore up their defense costs is true.' He vowed to review the matter in detail and continue 'close negotiations' with Washington.
