MOSCOW (Realist English). Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that Moscow is not planning any new special military operations, arguing that further escalation can be avoided if Europe adopts what he described as a more respectful approach toward Russia and takes its interests into account.
Speaking in response to a question from a journalist with BBC, Putin said the current level of confrontation was being driven by Western political elites rather than by any aggressive intent on Russia’s part.
“It was Western political figures who created the current situation. They are the ones escalating tensions,” Putin said. “Are we going to attack Europe or something? What nonsense. This is being done for domestic political reasons and to create the image of an enemy.”
Putin argued that portraying Russia as a threat serves to mask deeper structural problems within European politics. He again cited NATO’s eastward expansion as an example of what he described as broken promises to Moscow, saying Russia had been misled by the West on the issue. “If you don’t deceive us the way you did with NATO’s expansion to the east,” he said, Europe and Russia could avoid further confrontation.
Turning to economic issues, Putin said Russia ranks fourth globally in terms of gross domestic product measured by purchasing power parity, behind China, the United States and India. By contrast, he said, the United Kingdom occupies only “seventh or eighth place” by the same metric.
The Russian president also pointed to what he described as missed economic opportunities, arguing that closer cooperation between Europe and Russia could significantly boost growth. According to Putin, a combined European–Russian economy measured by purchasing power parity would surpass that of the United States.
Relations between Russia and Europe remain strained amid the war in Ukraine, NATO’s continued expansion and sweeping Western sanctions against Moscow. Putin’s comments appeared aimed at reinforcing Russia’s long-standing narrative that current tensions are the result of Western policy choices rather than Russian aggression.
