Putin in Valdai: If Russia is a “paper tiger,” then what is NATO?

At the Valdai Discussion Forum in Sochi, Russian President Vladimir Putin responded to US President Donald Trump's statement that Russia was a “paper tiger.”

Speaking before a gathering of experts, Putin asked, “If we are a paper tiger, then what is NATO?” At the same time, he emphasized that Russian troops are advancing on several fronts in Ukraine and accused the alliance of waging war against Russia by providing intelligence support to Kiev, supplying weapons, and training soldiers.

In his speech, the Kremlin leader called on Ukraine to return to the negotiating table. At the same time, he warned Kiev against playing a “dangerous game” with attacks on nuclear power plants, in particular the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant. “Accusing Moscow of firing on a facility it controls itself is pure nonsense,” he said.

According to Putin, the situation around the nuclear power plants is stable, even though there have been power outages and emergency generators had to be used to ensure the cooling of the reactors.

(reuters, sie)