Sergey Alexandrovich Karaganov heads the Russian Foreign and Defence Policy Council, is very close to Chancellor Sergey Lavrov and, above all, to Vladimir Putin, to whom he is one of his advisors.
The also dean of the Faculty of World Economy and International Affairs of the Moscow Higher School of Economics gave an interview to the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, in which he referred to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and said: “This is a war against the West, the objectives in Europe could be achieved”.
“Putin said that if Ukraine had entered NATO, there would be no more Ukraine. In 2008, there was a quick membership plan. It was blocked by our efforts and those of Germany and France, but since then Ukraine has been integrated into NATO. It has been filled with weapons and its troops have been trained by NATO, its army has become stronger and stronger. We have seen a rapid increase in neo-Nazi sentiment in that country. Ukraine was becoming like Germany in 1936-1937. War was inevitable, they were a spearhead of NATO. We made a very difficult decision: to attack first, before the threat became even more lethal,” justified the invasion decided by Vladimir Putin.
Asked how he could think that a small country like Ukraine would attack a nuclear superpower like Russia, the official said: “Ukraine was built by the United States and other NATO countries as a spearhead, perhaps of aggression or at least pressure, to bring Western military machinery closer to the heart of Russia. We see now how prepared they were for war. And Nazism isn't just about being against the Jews. Nazism is the supremacy of one nation over another. Nazism is the humiliation of other nations.”
Karaganov said he doesn't think there will be a change of power in Russia because “we are waging a war of survival. It is a war against the West where people gather around the leader. And in the United States nobody paid for the Iraq war, so we have our doubts about the effectiveness of democracy,” he continued.
In another passage of the interview with the Italian newspaper, Putin's adviser pointed out that the “real war is now against Western expansionism” and explained it as follows: “We see that there is a Western expansion taking place and that Russophobia reaches levels such as anti-Semitism of interwar period. So the conflict was already becoming likely. And we have seen deep divisions and structural problems in Western societies. So the Kremlin decided to attack first. Among other things, this military operation will be used to restructure the Russian elite and society. It will become a more militant society, based on nationality, expelling non-patriotic elements from the ruling class.”
Asked whether the aim of the war is to boycott NATO's presence in Central and Eastern Europe, the official said: “Most institutions are, in our opinion, unilateral and illegitimate. They threaten Russia and Eastern Europe. We wanted a just peace, but the greed and stupidity of Americans and the myopia of Europeans have revealed to us that these actors do not want it. We have to correct their mistakes.”
He then clarified that Russia does not consider the European Union “illegitimate” but said: “Sometimes we don't like their policies, especially if they become increasingly belligerent.” At the same time, he said that “it becomes increasingly likely” that an escalation of this war to other countries will be inevitable.
“Americans and their NATO partners continue to send weapons to Ukraine. If this continues, objectives in Europe could be affected or lines of communication will be broken. Then the war could escalate. It is increasingly plausible. I think the American generals see it as I do,” he stressed.
Asked about the massacre in Bucha, Karaganov said it was “a staging, a provocation. It's a staging, 99%. But there is a war and civilians are suffering. The neo-Nazi forces used civilians as human shields, especially in Mariupol,” he said. At the same time, he said that the Russians opened humanitarian corridors but they “were blocked by nationalist forces.”
Finally, when asked about the relationship with Beijing after Western sanctions, Putin's adviser replied: “We will be more integrated and more dependent on China. This has positive elements, but in general we will be much more dependent,” he acknowledged. He continued: “I am not too afraid of becoming a pawn of China, because Russia has a spirit of sovereignty and culturally we are different from the Chinese. I don't think China can or will surpass us. However, we are not happy, because in reality I would have preferred to have better relations with Europe.”
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