Russian President Vladimir Putin said during a meeting of the Military-Industrial Commission on Friday that his country was ready to work jointly with its European neighbours and resume relations with them, as two new arms projects and plans to develop the defence industries were presented. He said Moscow had no aggressive intentions towards Europe, but warned that the external threats facing Russia were not diminishing amid NATO’s continued expansion.
Putin offers to resume relations with Europe
We are ready to work jointly and resume relations with our European neighbours
Alongside his offer to restore relations, the Russian president said that the number of external threats surrounding his country was not decreasing. He said NATO was continuing to expand and that the scope of its activity had begun to reach other parts of the world, adding that some European leaders were openly declaring, in his words, their readiness for war with Russia.
New government programme to develop armaments
Putin proposed that the commission discuss a draft new government armaments programme, alongside another programme to develop the defence-industrial complex. He said the two programmes would form the basis for developing and producing modern weapons systems and equipment for the Russian army and other security agencies, ensuring their readiness to respond swiftly and effectively to potential external threats.
Putin also addressed the war in Ukraine and the course of negotiations, accusing the authorities in Kyiv of doing everything they could to prevent peace or talks with Russia. He cited an incident which he said occurred several days ago and targeted the home of Yelena Ostanina, head of the election commission in Zaporizhzhia region, resulting in her death.
Mutual accusations over disrupting peace talks
The Russian president attributed the attack to the Ukrainian armed forces, describing it as “another crime”. He said Kyiv officials and senior figures spoke about peace and proposed resuming negotiations, but by carrying out such acts, they were working to prevent a peace agreement or the start of negotiations, according to his accusation.
Putin also discussed the positions of European governments and voters, saying Europeans clearly expressed their opposition to waging any war with Russia in elections, while some European leaders openly declared their readiness for a military confrontation with it. He said those leaders were trying to save their declining popularity by covering up the mistakes of their economic and social policies.
He added that these efforts were not achieving their goal or helping those behind them politically. He said that instead of stopping and listening to their citizens, whom he believed were showing through the ballot box their opposition to war with Russia, the leaders concerned were continuing to escalate the situation. He accused them of using talk of the “alleged Russian threat” to cover up their domestic mistakes.
The Russian president then turned to elections in Ukraine and Russia, saying the Ukrainian authorities were not hurrying to hold elections in their own country, while at the same time trying to obstruct Russia’s electoral process. He added that the Ukrainian leadership was “in no hurry to hold elections, but at the same time is trying to obstruct us”.
Putin levelled sharp accusations at Ukrainian officials, saying that what he described as “a handful of embezzlers and corrupt officials” had seized power in Ukraine. He claimed they needed the war to continue in order to remain in power without elections, and to create the conditions to plunder the Ukrainian people and fill their pockets with money from funders, including European funders.
Satellite and air-defence upgrades
On the military and technical front, Putin ordered the full completion of the orbital satellite constellation, including capabilities linked to the command of the armed forces. He said completing the constellation would enhance various space reconnaissance, navigation and satellite communications capabilities.
He explained that completing the orbital system would also allow the internet to be used to command forces and weapons in real time. He linked the step to the new government programmes, which aim to modernise Russia’s military and security capabilities and improve the speed of response to potential threats. Putin said upgrading the air-defence system would be another key focus of the new government programmes.
He added that the system to be developed should be capable of destroying any airborne and space-based offensive weapons, as part of a broader effort to modernise protection and defence capabilities. He also said the government armaments programme would give major attention to developing unmanned vehicles and high-precision weapons.
He said Russia would pay particular attention to developing a wide range of unmanned robotic systems designed for various purposes, while continuing work on high-precision weapons.
