All language subtitles for Putin The New Empire, 2016

PUTIN- THE NEW EMPIRE, 2017
POUTINE POUR... TOUJOURS?
2016 [FRENCH]
DOCUMENTAL / BIOGRAFÍA / HISTORIA
BY JEAN-MICHEL CARRÉ

On the 2015 May 9th,

Moscow commemorates the 70th anniversary of the end of WW2.

The nation pays homage to the 27 million soviet men and women,

and to the bravery of the Red Army.

It was their personal sacrifice that

led to victory over Nazi Germany.

President Putin had invited the Western leaders

to come and pay their respects

to the memory of the nation which

paid the highest toll in this war.

Not a single Western leader has
responded to the invitation.

This is a supreme "affront" to Vladimir Putin,
(and clearly unfair and inconsiderate indeed to the greatly humanly spirited people of Russia)

one too many;

in his official speech there is no place

for traditional diplomatic rhetoric.

"I congratulate you on the 70th anniversary of victory in the Great Patriotic War.

Today, while celebrating this sacred anniversary date,

we realize the scale of grandiose victory over the Nazis.

We are proud that our fathers and grandfathers made it to overcome,

defeat and destroy this dark force.

Hitler's mad gamble became a hideous lesson for the whole world.

Then, in the 1930s,

enlightened Europe did not instantly see the deadly threat of the Nazi ideology.

And today, with 70 years having passed,

history once again calls upon us
to be mindful and vigilant.

We should never forget that such completely misguided
ideas of so-called "racial superiority" (actual bigotry)

led to the bloodiest war ever.

Hoorah!

Hoorah!

Hoorah!

Vladimir Putin's speech is delivered in the

presence of the Chinese and Indian presidents.

Between the three of them they represent

nearly a third of the world's wealth.

Tomorrow's allies,
against those that

Putin calls,
"the strong armed block".

The 70th anniversary of the end of World War II,

the 'Great Patriotic War'
as it was called by Stalin,

is celebrated by the
people themselves.

From all over Russia,
they converge

in Moscow for the 9th of May.

Russian grandeur is
contained with one event:

the victory over Hitler in 1945.

and this crucial date is the

turning point of
the 20th century.

So all new ideology
is based on the past.

From there, the mighty
Soviet Union emerged

and a Russia exists that
they want restored,

and they are grateful
to Vladimir Putin for

stating that it exists
and that it is powerful.

And I believe that this is why we have

difficulty in
understanding Russia

What we are witnessing,
I believe,

is the rebirth of their nation.

- Hoorah!

They are currently trying
to rewrite history,

saying America won the war

whereas in fact, it was
won by us, Russia,

by the Soviet Union.

Accompanied by a cortège

of 250,000 people

Putin leads what the
Russians call

the 'immortal regiment'
for the first time.

The force of this
initiative is that it does

not emanate from power
or State administration

It comes from the
hearts of our people.

It expresses our
respect towards

the generation which
defended the nation.

It demonstrates that we will
continue to uphold their values.

But it also conveys our
confidence in ourselves,

in our strengths and in the
well-being of our children.

The president carries a
photograph of his father,

Vladimir Spiridonovich Putin,

one of the millions
of soviet soldiers

that fought during World War II.

For Putin, the absence
of western leaders

on this historic day

is as much a personal insult as
it is to the Russian people.

The previous year, Putin
had joined the allies

for the anniversary of
the Normandy landings.

But he had not been invited to
the commemoration ceremonies

of the liberation of Auschwitz,
only a few months later.

The Soviet Union
was the only state

actually involved
in its liberation.

In my opinion, this
is all about

Western short-sighted
and sterile arrogance

and this isn't how
we might rebuild

a different and
intelligent relation

between the West and Russia,

which will have to
happen sooner or later.

The flagrant
contempt of the West

brings back memories
of the past.

After the explosion of joy
following the victory of 1945,

the world plunges into a
new type of conflict:

the Cold War.

1949 sees the creation of NATO,

grouping numerous Western,
mostly European countries.

In the East in 1955,
the Warsaw Pact is

formed by the
confederates of the USSR.

The propaganda pumped out by the
two eastern and western blocks

persistently invites
countries to favour

one block or the other.

The Cold War lasts
45 long years,

and sees the birth of many
peripheral world conflicts

and the construction
of the Iron Curtain

which is 8,500 kilometres long.

It cuts Europe in half.

CHEERING

In 1989 and 1991 the world
celebrates the destruction of

the Berlin wall and with it
the end of the Iron Curtain.

Hope rises that the world
will be re-unified.

The disappearance of
the USSR, however,

sees the dissolution
of the Warsaw Pact.

NATO, initially designed to
oppose the Soviet Union,

continues however to exist.

The Russians are
totally traumatised

by what has happened
to their nation.

From 300 million
inhabitants, the USSR

is now reduced to 140
million overnight.

Yesterday they were the proud
citizens of a world super-power,

and in next to no time
they had been abandoned,

their state dismembered
and subjected

to international supervision.

It was certainly
incredible news!

The end of he USSR was
a real catastrophe.

I'm not sure we've
absorbed the full impact,

the full import
of what happened,

but communism died this year.

By the grace of God,
America won the Cold War.

I knew I couldn't do anything.

It happened one night!

And then, George Bush declared:

"It's over, we've won."

And indeed, the USSR
admitted its defeat

and simply ceased to exist.

One can easily imagine
the feelings of a nation

that was once a super power and
shared the world with the US,

a nation that controlled
vast territories

in different parts of the world

and which had suddenly lost both
its influence and territory...

and which had been weakened
economically and militarily.

Thanks to the armies
of financiers

directed by "marshall"
Goldman Sachs,

the former regime is
painlessly eradicated.

With the complicity of
the new government,

a group of Russian oligarchs,
fascinated by power and money,

take over former state companies

and the exploitation
of raw materials

for next to nothing.

Russia has become
Europe's sick nation.

In fact, nobody emerged
victorious from the Cold War.

It was in Moscow that
the decision was made

to end this madness.

American economic
consultants arrived

and plunged the
country into misery.

Much of the Russian
resources ended up

in the hands of
international companies

linked to Russian oligarchs.

Russia experienced the most

humiliating period
in its history.

At the end of the USSR, Russia,

the Russians lost about
40 per cent of purchasing power.

40 per cent!

Look what happens in
a European country

if there is a loss
of 0.5 per cent.

So it's a massive shock.

When the press conference

with Boris Yeltsin and
Clinton took place,

and Yeltsin was a bit drunk
and Clinton started laughing,

and it was broadcasted
everywhere,

and shook the national
consciousness of Russia.

It was the first time in history
that an American president

befriended a Russian
president so openly.

This accident, which
seemed trivial to most,

had a major impact on
people like Putin.

Westerners really believed that

they were the masters
of the world.

They would impose human
rights, democracy

and markets on the world
without difficulty.

Bill Clinton, who
had presented this

in a seductive and
attractive way,

spoke of market democracy.

China had already adopted, not
democracy, but market economy.

Russia would have to follow.

We thought there would be a
few uncooperative countries,

but that they would
weaken with speeches,

sanctions, air strikes and so on.

And of course, the West
used this weakness.

with the US air strikes
on Yugoslavia,

they ignored protests from
Russia, sending a clear message:

"You are too weak
to be considered."

Without consent from the
UN security council,

NATO takes the unilateral
decision to send in planes

to bombard the Yugoslavian army

to protect the Albanese
populations of Kosovo.

Yeltsin is on his last legs

and Russia proves
incapable of preventing

its last European ally from
being brought to heel.

The West didn't
think it would end,

and that Russia could
one day protest

with more strength
and determination.

Of course it was a misjudgement!

Then Putin arrived.

He is the man who has borne the
humiliations of his country.

Today I have decided to announce

the man who, in my opinion, will
be able to consolidate society:

Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin.

In August 1998 Vladimir Putin
is made prime minister.

A few weeks later, a series
of five attacks are made

in Russian towns with
over 300 victims.

The government immediately
accuses Chechen separatists.

We'll pursue terrorists
wherever they might be.

We'll seize them in the
toilets if we have to!

That's my final word.

Two terrorists are
arrested and

the Kremlin puts a
halt to enquiries.

But Russian journalists discover
that the terrorists in question

are members of the
FSB, former KGB.

This doesn't prevent
Prime minister Putin

from sending Russian
bombers to bombard Grozny,

the capital of Chechnya.

From the 1st October,
it is bombarded

non stop for several months.

Out of the one million
inhabitants, 200,000 are killed.

The Russian people are proud

of their prime minister's
inflexibility.

Six months later, they elect him

president of the
Russian Federation.

Putin quickly imposes
his, "vertical of power"

and his, "directed democracy",

excluding oligarchs that
show interest in politics

and the media that
criticise him.

In the West, countries seem

quite confident in
the new president.

The world seems to have entered
a period of relative stability.

So the future is now ours
and history is over.

It is the end of history
due to lack of fighters,

since everyone agrees
on the fundamentals.

But then, gradually we begin to
realise that things aren't over,

quite the opposite, history
is just beginning.

- Right here, right
here, stay right here.

- It's terrible, terrible.

I've never seen nothing
like it in my life.

Putin has been very affected
by the September 11 attacks.

And despite the enmity
between the two nations,

he was willing to support the US

and provide assistance
during these painful ordeals.

The people of Russia are
familiar with terrorism.

We feel very close to the
citizens of America.

We understand how they
must be feeling today.

In the name of Russia, I want
to express our solidarity.

With this declaration
Putin also hopes

that the Chechen genocide
will be forgotten.

So he took action and he said,
"That will justify our moves.

They will stop harassing us
via NGOs and the media..."

So maybe there's the
possibility of an agreement,

an arrangement whereby Russia,

the new Russia that is taking
form, will be fully recognised.

Maybe he thought
that at some point.

Today we must proclaim
firmly and finally:

The Cold War is over!

As for European integration,

we not only support
these processes,

but we look upon them with hope.

We look upon them, as
a people who learned

very well the lessons
of the Cold War,

and the damaging effects of
an ideological occupation.

In response,

at least according to him,

first there was first the
American intervention in Iraq:

an illegal military
intervention in

an independent and
sovereign nation

and lacking the
required approval

from the Security Council.

France, Germany, and
Russia protested,

but that didn't
prevent the US from

carrying out an
operation which led

to the death of one
million Iraqis.

And then there was Georgia

and the Orange
Revolution in Ukraine,

actively supported by the US.

In other words,
according to him,

he held out his hand and
they spat in his face.

In September 2003, a former
Republic of the USSR,

Georgia, is overthrown
by the Rose revolution.

With the secret support of
the USA and other countries

in search of a
Western life-style,

the charismatic,
pro-western young leader,

Mikhail Saakashvili,

brings down the old soviet
apparatchik Shevardnadze.

This is a velvet revolution,

the greatest day in
history of this nation.

Not a shot was fired,
not a single shot,

people overwhelmed
and really removed

the government by
peaceful means,

that's classics you know,
really European. I am proud.

The scenario of this
colour revolution

reappears again in Ukraine in
2004 with the Orange Revolution

and once more in Kyrgyzstan in
2005 with the Tulip Revolution,

making The Kremlin's
interests waver

at the heart of its
sphere of influence.

We kept sending messages
to the Russians,

saying that we
didn't trust them,

that since the Soviet
Union had disappeared,

nothing had changed.

Anyway, we had to
step into the breach

and drive back Russian
influence as far as possible,

because they were dangerous.

During these people's risings

seven countries decide to
join NATO once and for all.

Today, we proudly welcome

Bulgaria

Estonia

Latvia

Lithuania

Romania

Slovakia

and Slovenia.

We welcome them into
the ranks of the

North Atlantic
Treaty Organization

With Russia it was always a
question of "NATO against whom?"

There had been a Warsaw pact,

but there was no
longer a Warsaw Pact.

Against whom?

Why join NATO?

The expansionist intentions
of NATO and Europe

are in total contradiction
with the secret,

and unfortunately,
verbal agreements

made between Gorbachev
and Bush senior

after the collapse of the USSR.

The agreements between the
two presidents stipulated

that countries having a common
frontier with new Russia

could in no event join NATO.

When the former Baltic
states of the USSR

joined NATO in 2004,

NATO called it a 'wave
of transformation'

whereas in Russia they called
it a 'wave of enlargement'.

This immediately provokes

the reaction of Alexey Pushkov,

spokesman for foreign
affairs in the Duma,

the Russian House of parliament.

NATO "amasses" an increasing
number of nations

and then the US secretary
of defence said:

"Russian forces are at
the gates of NATO!"

Yes, because NATO has come from
Germany to the Russian border,

but it's NATO that had expanded
in the direction of Russia,

that's why we considered
it a great danger.

After NATO, it is the
European Union's turn

to invite Baltic states and
a few other former members

of the Warsaw Pact to join it.

The expansion of a
new Europe means the

expansion of an acutely
anti-Russian bloc,

which will, in fact,
build around Germany.

That's to say that
within the European Union

there is an extremely powerful
Eastern European bloc,

whose opponent is Russia,

and that's something
that counts a lot.

The West was convinced that
it could rule the world,

not by military means
as previously,

in the age of the empires,

but by combining
economic control

and the ideology
of universalism.

If the West had
collaborated with Putin

in a genuine economic
partnership,

today Russia would be a member
of NATO and the European Union.

But they didn't want relations
based on equality with Russia.

Between 1999 and 2000, Putin
was probably the most

pro-European of
Russian politicians.

Certainly not the most
pro-Western, that hasn't changed.

But certainly the most
pro-European in Russian history.

At the Munich
conference in 2007,

Putin expressed his feelings
on the US with clarity.

He couldn't wait until 2012.

What is a unipolar world?

No matter how one tries
to embellish this term,

in reality it means only one
thing: one centre of authority,

one centre of force and one
centre of decision-making,

of a unique sovereign.

Ultimately it would be fatal for
those within such a system,

because it destroys
itself from within.

Harasho, harasho. I run
this freakin' show.

You think I can't speak English?
There's nothing I don't know.

I know that World War 3
nobody wants to see

so please EU and USA don't
mothersuckers mess with me.

Oh, Yes I Ken

'cause I'm the president...

In the Munich speech of 2007

Putin pronounces his
first violent diatribe

on western policies.

There is no immediate
follow up as until now

Putin has only
concentrated on putting

Russian domestic
affairs in order.

But Russia has
strategic interests.

Like The United States and other
principal western countries,

Russia must now
prove its capacity

to influence other countries.

Because what counts is
a sphere of influence

each large nation
has in the world.

For Russia, security interests
come before economic interests.

In this context, the
relations between Russia

and the US, Europe
and NATO countries,

are the subject of
constant debate

Russians feel
scorned, surrounded,

threatened with irreparable
destabilisation

and Westerners believe that
Putin is increasingly a bit autocratic,

Putin is pressed by the
liberals in his inner circle

and the West is
beginning to weigh

on Russia economically
and needs reassuring.

He tells his Prime
Minister, Dmitri Medvedev,

a renowned moderate,
to run for president.

Vladimir Putin is playing a

political game of
musical chairs.

For four or eight years, he will

replace Medvedev
as prime minister,

with in mind, a subsequent
return to power,

while to all
appearances submitting

to the rules of
the constitution.

In large Russian towns President
Medvedev's liberal policies,

inspired by the West,
raise the hopes of

the Russian middle
classes for change.

But an event reveals
the tension between

the two ruling heads
of the country.

In August 2008,
Georgia bombards a

province on the
Russian frontier.

President Medvedev, Chief of the
Armed forces, fails to react.

On air, in front of
the whole nation,

Putin curtly reminds him
of his responsibilities?

I think it would
be wise that you

give an order to
the War Tribunal

Of course I shall do that

Putin feels obliged
to take on the role

of Chief of the Armed Forces,

a role normally incumbent
on the president.

Medvedev remains sovereign
in the economic field.

His job is to
reassure investors,

but the West takes advantage
of his weaknesses

rather than dialoguing with him

During the sub-prime
crisis in 2008,

Medvedev is unable
to prevent the

massive flight of
American capital.

The Russian stock
exchange plunges

and shuts down several times.

FIRING

But 2011 looks like being
the year of every danger.

During the Libyan
crisis Russia fails

to use its veto in the
UN Security council.

But Putin quickly realises
that the supposedly

humanitarian
Franco-British coalition

has the ultimate aim of
physically eliminating Gaddafi.

Medvedev doesn't see this coming
and Russia loses a key ally.

Putin now clearly
knows what he wants

and has himself easily
nominated by his party

to be the candidate for the
next presidential election.

In the parliamentary
elections of 2011

Putin's party is victorious,

but the opposition
denounces significant

electoral frauds and
takes to the streets.

They are the biggest
demonstrations

since Putin's arrival in power.

Take the square!

Prevent these rats
from gaining power!

Prime minister Putin sees the
ghost of a colour revolution,

gliding over his own country.

We just witnessed fraud in
the Duma election in Russia,

including efforts to halt
the election monitoring

The first thing the
Secretary of State

does is to criticize
the elections,

even if she still hasn't
received any proof from

the monitoring international
organisations.

She is addressing some
people in particular

and is sending them a message.

The message was received
and people have started

to take steps, with the
support of the State Department

According to the Kremlin, the
intelligentsia deceived them.

They were ungrateful and
were rejected from society.

Robber! Robber!

She is here anyway!

We gave them plasma TV's,
holidays in Turkey or Fiji

we allowed them to
buy houses abroad,

to do whatever
they wanted in bed

and even to criticise
us in their blogs

and little radio stations,

to drink lattes, buy a
Mercedes or a Ford,

to use all the new gadgets,
including the iPhone.

And what do they do?

They took the iPhones they
had bought thanks to us

and they went to Bolotnaya
square and tweeted:

"Down with Putin!
It's all crap!"

I mean you can imagine a
conversation with Putin,

you know he was Prime
Minister after he was president

then one day says
"Vladimir, you think

you'd like to be president
again? I think I would actually.

Why don't we just
go announce it,

we'll tell Dimitri that he
could be Prime Minister.

Excellent, excellent idea.
We have a process, yes?

One month later in March 2012,

Putin has the
satisfaction of winning

the presidential election
in the first round

with 63 per cent of the votes.

His prime minister will
be? Dmitri Medvedev.

Thank you to all those who
said yes to Great Russia.

I salute you comrades!

We salute you Comrade President
of the Russian Federation.

Hoorah! Hoorah! Hoorah!

Putin is well and truly back.

He is not less authoritarian,
he is more so.

He is not less conservative,
he is more so.

He is not less militaristic,
he is more so.

All this is
confidently asserted,

coherent, and part of
his global vision.

It's exactly what a large number
of Russians want to hear.

Putin, at last clearly
spells it out.

"Russia will become a
great power again."

I keep hearing it said that "Russia
should have the respect its entitled to"

Why should anyone think otherwise?

Who? Who would think otherwise?

So it's really just a rhetorical question.

Yes, but...

"How can we demonstrate
that we are a great power?"

To begin with in the
2000s, his strategy was

to reach out to the United
States and to Europe and say:

"We are Europeans".

But faced with the
failure of this policy

he creates a new concept of
international relations,

viewed as a new
imperialism, but it isn't.

It's a new concept of
international relations,

which is not the same thing.

The master of the
Kremlin launches

a vast enterprise of
strategic reconstruction.

His priority is to
displace his great

country's economic
centre of gravity.

In the search of a new ally,
he sets sail for the East:

His first port of
visit is China.

From 2004 he had
begun to participate

with the Shanghai group,

a group invented by China
and not at all by Russia,

which was composed only
of Asiatic states.

He entered the BRICS, the ASEAN,

into the entire system of
extra-European alliances

where, in fact, Russia
seemed a workable player.

In 2012, an important
event occurred:

The moment he became president,

Putin inaugurated his mandate
with a State visit to China.

Putin believes that
Europe wants to

impose its (controversial) ideological
conformity ideas on Russia.

and Putin prefers to trade harmlessly with China,

who do not seek to impose themselves,
and instead simply cooperate with Russians,

even though he actually of course approves
of what are European values.

Our economic goals have similarity of course.

We are both large
economic countries

and compete with similar economic growth aspirations.

We both hope to
become successful

in this competitive world environment.

Europe is a huge
market for Russia.

But Russia has
chosen a different

strategy and turned toward Asia.

Basically it says:

"We are not dependent on Europe,

we have multiple
alternative outlets."

This is what led to signing
agreements with China.

China plays along with Putin

and very quickly
becomes Russia's

most important
commercial partner.

Together, they initiate
military cooperation

and large infrastructure
works such as the silk road.

Amongst all their
joint projects,

the most ambitious one,

carried out with
great discretion,

is to bring down the
hegemony of the dollar.

China and Russia both buy
large quantities of gold,

each using their own currencies.

Their long term
project is to prepare

a fatal blow to the
dollar empire.

There might be a
geopolitical alliance,

short-lived and limited
to few subjects,

an agreement with China to
trump various US projects,

to use the Chinese economy
for specific deeds,

accords, projects.

I cannot fathom to think that
Russia would ever consent

to an alliance against the rest
of Europe.

But it is mired in circumstances, it will potentially
become viewed in such seeming circumstances

where no real alternative was to presents itself
instead.

Right now I have the
impression that

we have stuck our heads in the
jaws of the Chinese tiger.

And this tiger is thinking.

It isn't in their
interest to eat us

so they will just play with us.

When Xi Jinping
became president,

his first foreign visit
took place in Russia.

This reveals the knowledge
and profound determination

of these two heads of state

on the importance
of the relations

between our two countries.

China is an important
diplomatic and economic ally,

but Putin knows it is a
circumstantial alliance.

The Middle Empire is becoming
the major world economy,

one day or another
each country's

interests will diverge.

On a parallel with the
alliance with China,

Putin's dream is to
create a multi-polar world

where Russia will play
a predominant role.

He revives an ancient
Eurasian ideology.

Moscow would be at the heart
of a new economic hub

consisting of former
soviet republics in Europe

and central Asia, stretching
from Belarus to Siberia

and including Kazakhstan
and if possible Ukraine.

...Kazakhstan, Armenia, and soon
Kyrgyzstan.

Phil, you said it's big,
look at the size of it,

five times bigger than its
neighbour the European Union.

We will continue to cooperate
with Russia, if it wishes,

We shall develop our
close cooperation

with members of the
Eurasian Economic Union.

Belarus will remain
a crucial player

in the post-Soviet
reconstruction.

The aim of this
economic structure

is to show solidarity
and be self sufficient.

Open to the rest of the
world it would become

the turntable for relations
between Europe and Asia.

One of these
countries, Kazakhstan

is particularly important:

it's new capital Astana, with
its avant-guard architecture,

is constructed at the
heart of the Steppes

and has been chosen as the
future capital of Eurasia.

For the last 26 years this
former soviet republic

has been run by the
dictator Nazarbayev.

Very close to Putin, he acts
as a mediator with Turkey.

Kazakhstan is immense and
extremely rich in raw materials:

gas, petrol, uranium.

The country shares a frontier

of 7000 kilometres with
Russia and 150 with China.

Its geographic position
would be perfectly

central as the
capital of Eurasia.

Clearly, Russia's objective
is based on volunteering,

on reconstructing a
geopolitical body

of roughly 200
million inhabitants,

which would have
military cooperation,

common economic cooperation

simply in order to influence
the course of events,

in the same way
that Europe plans

to influence with 500 million,

alongside the Kazakhs, the
Kirghizs, the Belarusians

and with the Ukrainians
if it had been possible

but that didn't work.

Apart
from the very strong

cultural and economic link that
unites Russia and Ukraine,

the second greatest economic
power of the former USSR,

Ukraine also holds an essential
geo-strategic position.

as far as Europe is concerned.

But neither the United States

nor present European
leaders see it that way.

In the end, Ukraine,
which could have

been a bridge between
the two worlds,

is driven to choose
between one or the other.

In 2014, the European Union
signed an agreement with Ukraine

signifying, "you are dealing
with us, and not with Russia,"

which was a declaration of war.

Now, in one move, the
EU decided to enter

the customs territory
of Russian via Ukraine.

Is that how things
should be done?

And when we suggested
holding consultations,

we were told it
wasn't our business.

Is that how we should solve
the problems of Russia?

The European Union demonstrated

an abysmal lack of understanding.

And it is very responsible.

I mean,
the European Union's misfortunes,

which are perceived with Brexit

stem from that,
from its ignorance of the people.

The Association agreement will modify the rules of the game

and will transform Ukraine into a country

with a European
policy and economy

This will pose a terrible
threat to Putin,

because our people
are very close.

And the outcome of Ukraine embracing a European development

will be an unbearable scenario for Putin.

Subject to pressure from the Kremlin,

Viktor Yanukovych, elected
after the failure

of the leaders of the
Orange revolution, in 2010,

finally, but not surprisingly,

turns his back on
Europe and joins

The Customs Union with Russia.

The sudden about-turn
of President Yanukovych

provokes public protest
in Kiev the capital.

Thousands of people
take to the streets.

At first the movement is pacific
as in the orange revolution,

but Yanukovych's
repression is enforced

by the Ukrainian special forces

and paramilitary and nationalist groups

turn it into a military confrontation.

The series of decisions taken
by Moscow, Kiev or Brussels

only succeed in
plunging the world

into a new trial of strength.

Yanukovych destroyed the Ukrainian army.

However,
he was able to develop internal troops

which were forced
to fight against

internal enemies, meaning us.

We stood no chance of winning.

But we did!

On 21st of February 2014

after several weeks of bloodshed on Maidan,

the opposition takes advantage
of Viktor Yanukovych's flight

to invest parliament.

The protests in Kiev were a brutal awakening for Putin.

They showed that in Ukraine,
which is like a mini-Russia,

people can demonstrate
and simply dismiss

a regime that isn't
even communist,

in a country with no gulag and
where nobody dies of hunger.

Whatever people might say,

we are all fully aware

of the staged events that
took place on Maidan.

The media coverage, the
support of the politicians...

it demonstrates the
full involvement

of the USA and of Europeans

in a coup d'etat and an

anti-constitutional
seizure of power.

The United states no longer
even makes any effort to hide.

Victoria Nuland, the US
vice secretary of state

openly distributes
sandwiches on Maidan.

A few weeks earlier in a
telephone conversation

intercepted by the Russians, to
her foreign affairs colleague,

she had cracked: "Fuck Europe""

Putin fears that if he
does not react quickly,

Ukraine will join NATO

and partially compromise
his Eurasian project.

The entire future of
Putin's Russia is perhaps

secretly at stake behind
the Kremlin doors.

The new government of Ukraine,

has recently announced its plans

to join NATO.

Just imagine, say,
that in the 1980s,

the Warsaw Pact had expanded
through much of Latin America,

uh, Mexico announced its plans
to join the Warsaw Pact.

How would the United
States have reacted?

Putin takes a trip to Crimea,

an autonomous
province of Ukraine,

where 90 per cent
of the inhabitants

are Russian speakers.

Former territory of Tsarist
Russia and the USSR,

Russia has many vested
interests there

and owns the naval
base of Sevastopol

with unique control
over the Black Sea.

Mindful of my responsibility
to preserve the

life and security of the
citizens of Crimea,

I call upon the President of the

Russian Federation,
Vladimir Putin

in order to maintain peace and
security in the territory

of the autonomous
Republic of Crimea.

After several days of silence,

Putin improvises a
counter-offensive

that will mark a turning
point in east-west relations

Ukraine says Russia
declared war.

European leaders are meeting
in Brussels at this moment.

Respond to Russian
intervention in Crimea

And the Russians who
are now attempting

to recuperate military bases...

Armed men with no
formal identification...

Who are these men?

They are wearing
combat fatigues,

which appear to be new,

where do they come from?

Russian?

No answer.

These are events that we
would consider unthinkable

in the 21st century in
the European continent.

Russian troops are deployed
in the Crimean Peninsula.

Heavily armed, yet
surprisingly relaxed,

the green men
tranquilly go about

neutralising the regular
Ukrainian army,

in what could be
called a particularly

unspectacular power grab.

The Russians fired warning
shots in the air.

You're being filmed
by journalists!

The US are with us!

Calm own, stop this chaos!

Calm this crowd, major.

It's not a crowd, we
are all soldiers!

Honey, I can't talk to you.

Once the green men have
installed themselves in Crimea,

nothing more can be an
obstacle to Putin's plans.

And yet, according to the
Budapest accords of 1994,

the Russian intrusion
is considered

as illegal by the west.

The Crimean parliament invokes
the people's right to

dispose of their own future
and votes for independence.

A referendum is
immediately organised.

The Crimeans that do vote,

vote 96 per cent in favour of
an annexation with Russia.

Crimea is highly strategic.

Possessing it means,
amongst other things,

controlling the oil pipelines
that cross the Black sea.

In less than a month, Ukraine
has definitively lost Crimea.

For a large number of
the Russian people

the annexation is
reuniting with a land

that is historically and
sentimentally Russian.

I've a tendency to
believe that everything

this government is doing is
incompetent somehow

However, my first
emotional reaction

when we retrieved Crimea

was one of patriotic relief and the

sentiment that it was so fulfilling,

because Crimea re-became
integral part of Russia.

The re-joining with Russia of
its Crimean territory was presented

as an action in defence of this Russian
population, who are the Crimeans,

portraying an image of
a paternalistic state

safeguarding its people.

Among us are
representatives of the

Republic of Crimea
and Sevastopol,

citizens of Russia,

residents of Crimea
and Sevastopol!

It was presented
and experienced as

a retrieval of an
historic justice.

The anti-Putin ranks
actually emptied

with the annexation of Crimea.

All this led to a huge wave of
support among Russian people,

who instantly forgot
the malfunctioning

governance of Putin
and the Kremlin.

Crimea is one of
numerous examples

of the victory of
the Russian army.

We had all grown up with
classics of Russian literature,

Dacha of Sevastopol,

the heroic death of
Makarov the academician.

All this concerns Crimea and
is part of our education.

Crimea was won by Russia, repelling the
Ottoman Turks at a high cost in Russian lives.

At the UN Security
Council, a resolution

proposing to condemn Russian
policies in Crimea...

...a negative veto vote of the
permanent members...

changes nothing.

Russia uses its veto, and
China cautiously abstains.

After a long and bitter journey,

Crimea and Sevastopol

have returned safely
to their motherland,

and to their home port,

Russia!

♫ Russia is our sacred state, ♫

♫ Russia, our beloved country ♫

♫ A mighty will, a great glory, ♫

♫ Yours forever for all time, ♫

♫ Be glorious, our free
Motherland... ♫

I like that he promotes powerful
things like peace, love,

traditional Russian art,
traditional Russian values.

Even more important here is
that the babushka is valued,

her house is warm, the wood
is cut, the sky is clear.

In short, all is well!

What I like about President Putin is
the protective instinct, the power

and force emanating from his core.

In general, to me,

in his policies, his body,

his whole image
represents strength.

It is true that
Vladimir Putin is

very popular in
Russia and abroad.

The majority of Russians have a
really positive opinion of him.

This mythology has finally
turned against us,

I am afraid that Putin began
to believe in his own myth.

So many newspapers
claim he is the

most influential man
in the world...

the most this and
the most that...

So now he believes it!

The man in the street
believes everything

the state television tells him,

He loves anyone who has

"President of the
Russian federation"

written on his business card,

or "Emperor of the
Russian Federation".

He's a man who respects his own power
and rejects weakness.

We are victorious people!

It is in our genes,
our genetic code!

It is passed down from
generation to generation.

We will win this time too.

I ask you: are we going to win?

In June 2015, Putin's
popularity rating

verges on 90 per cent.

There is an adhesion
amongst even the

most fervent members
of the opposition

but Nationalism wins the day.

Eduard Limonov is one of them,

but also Sergei Udaltsov,

a hero of the important anti
Putin demonstrations in 2011,

for which he paid 4 and
a half years in prison.

Like many Russians
they too salute

the result of the
referendum in Crimea.

It is the start of a Putin-mania
which is still vibrant today.

A man like Putin, who
isn't unkind to me

A man like Putin, who
won't run away!

A man like Putin,
full of strength!

A man like Putin, who
doesn't drink,

I want a man like Putin,
who would never run away.

A man like Putin,
who wouldn't hurt me,

A man like Putin, who doesnt
run from a fight

'Putin Victor', 'Putin Victorious',

His power has matured.

This means that, today,

everything he touches
turns to gold,

with such popularity, with
a population so united,

he can do whatever he wants.

After his power grab in Crimea

Putin has managed to pull
the country together

but he has also disrupted
the power balance

between Russia and the West.

The United States
reacts in consequence.

Today is a reminder
that the United States

means what it says

and we will rally the
international community

in standing up

for the rights and freedom
of people around the world.

Today,

and building on the measures
we announced two weeks ago,

the United States is
imposing new sanctions

in key sectors of the
Russian economy.

The rouble plummets.

The GDP drops by 6 cent.

Numerous sanctions hit
the country hard.

They mainly affect
the middle classes

and the rural community.

But natural resources and
in particular, oil and gas,

are strangely not concerned
by the sanctions.

A sign of the
generalised hypocrisy

in both Russian and
Western policies.

The issue is that Russia is the
biggest supplier of Europe

and there is no other country
or group of countries

that can replace the volume of
Russia's exports to Europe.

So in other words, Europe
will always depend on Russia

and Russia will be...
will remain the biggest

supplier of gas to Europe.

No-one can support an all
out, economic confrontation.

Weakened, but supported
by his electorate,

Putin acts as if he is
unperturbed by the sanctions,

as for example when
France refuses to

deliver the two
Mistral war ships,

that Russia had already
partly paid for.

Quite frankly, it has no effect
on our position of defence.

We have mainly made contracts
to support our associates

and provide work for
their shipyards.

We will not impose penalties

or excessive fines.

We simply want our
costs to be covered.

Foreigners will never
understand Russia.

We want to thank you
for your sanctions.

We will increase production as
instructed by our president.

We are pro-active against such sabotage.

We say to you amiably:

we need nothing more from you
as we do for our own

McDonald's quality food is not
to the taste standards of Russians.

You have worn yourselves out
imposing your sanctions.

We will impose a total
embargo on you!

With pride rediscovered,

the Russian people remain
united behind their leader.

The US and NATO now understand

that we have no need
for other nations,

We don't steal
from anybody,

but we shall retake all land which
is ultimately "our own".

Despite the massive
support of the population,

Putin continues his repressive
policies towards the opposition

and groups whose
values he considers

incompatible with his policies.

Putin's policy is very
harsh domestically

with regards to any
opposition or uprising.

This might seem
surprising because he is

very powerful and
overwhelmingly popular

Why does he do this?

I think it's due to a
profound fear of disorder.

Putin has the impression that
he's sitting on a volcano,

He feels it because
he knows that

he is witnessing a
changing society,

a changing world, in which
he is trying to adapt,

and he is succeeding
with regards to

international politics.

But how does one govern a society in the
egalitarian minded 21st century?

Not by using old regime methods.

In this respect he still is a man with
knowledge of historical values,

so he responds accordingly - everyone
does - with their own history in mind.

He reacts with his experiential
endowment:

including unquestionably authoritarian
seeming tactics

the Soviet era was previously
certainly no stranger to employing

In Russia, the notion of force and
power,

of power and even absolute power

are not unthinkable as required.

For those who exalt Putin,

they think that power even in civil society means
at times some measure of autocracy too.

One man who decides everything,
and takes action...

We can refer to the presence
of of political opponents

but it's impossible to speak of
organised opposition forces,

they don't exist.

The aim of the
Kremlin's policies is

to nip in the bud any indication or form of
particular kinds of political opposition.

During the night of
27th February 2015,

Boris Nemtsov, one of the
most staunch members

of the opposition, is killed,

only a few yards
from the Kremlin.

The regime's violence
is so fierce

that the opposition
has no hesitation

in accusing Vladimir Putin.

Boris Nemtsov dedicated
his life to that.

He unmasked criminals,

it is said that this is why "they" hated
him and gave the order to kill him.

We are continuing the fight,

our fight for Russia to become an
even more democratic seeming State,

in which all people will have the
same rights and

political freedom of a more liberal minded
egalitarian quality.

But a video filmed
in a hotel room,

equipped with the usual FSB
secret service technology,

is broadcast on television.

The very same Mikhail
Kasyanov is filmed

in close detail with his
mistress and personal assistant.

Apart from the sexual
details of the video,

Kasyanov speaks of the other
leaders of his opposition group

in extremely insulting terms.

The video undermines
his credibility

and shatters his fragile
contestation of Putin.

Today, only 5 to 7 per
cent of the Russian people

consider themselves anti-Putin.

The majority of the Russian
population do not believe

that freedom of speech is an
indicator of development.

It's not that they don't want it.

It's just that they don't consider they
are missing out under Putin

That's all.

Liberal individualism,
such as that

experienced at the
fall of the USSR,

was for the Russians synonymous
with division and even chaos.

The present cohesion
of the nation

evokes harmony and security.

Putin offers the Russians
an all powerful chief

and unconditional values
to devote themselves to.

After strength, religion is
the system's second linchpin.

In the Soviet system, we were
educated by the Communist Party

which offered us a
ready made morality,

we knew what was
good, what was bad

and people's lives were
guided, which is reassuring.

Total freedom is very unsettling

and for Putin the prevailing Church,

which has been restored
in all its splendour

and with its traditional
authoritarianism,

has the merit of being
a reasonable guide for society.

For Russian people,
denying the orthodox

religion would mean denying
too much embedded history,

its own seeming related traditions

but in fact, if the Soviet
Union ended in disaster,

it's also because it rejected
this specific religious ideology.

In order to gain support
among the people,

it seems needed to profess
religious orthodoxy

because Russian cultural relics
are inclusive of orthodox

and orthodoxy has been at the roots
of Russian state religious practice.

Without orthodoxy, the tzar
would simply be impossible,

he would just be destroyed!

In the space of one generation,
an atheist country has,

without difficulty, become
a religious country.

This is part of
the vast ensemble

that might be called
power in Russia.

It has become
increasingly present in

the public sectors
and public debates.

Vladimir Putin focused on
the church to represent

a moral authority that
would guide Russia

along a path of collective
adherence to values

which would be those of
the state and society.

Today, many countries are
reviewing their moral standards,

seeking to abolish their historical
seeming norms and traditions

and the differences between nations and
cultures. ("Cancel culture" etc.)

And we are aware that
throughout the world

an increasing number of
people support our approach

which aims to protect Russia's
traditional values.

Of course, it involves a
conservative approach.

The intent is to avoid the recurrence

of chaos and of a primitive state.

I would say that it's really the

centre of an ideological conflict,

in inverted commas,
between a kind of

Russian conservatism and
a Western liberalism

where we Westerners have a
tendency to view Putinism

as something rather
out of fashion,

outdated, and conservative,

and that Putinism upholds
conservatism and says:

"It's you, the Western leaders

who are out of touch with Human reality

and with your own best people."

In his ideological
counter-attack,

Putin supports parties
that denounce

the supranatural aspects
of the European Union.

They share a very
conservative vision

on standards of behaviour,

in particular concerning
homosexuality,

the family and religion.

Like Putin, they loudly
denounce western universalism,

which can only lead
to the crumbling

of the social fabric
and decadence.

If Putin supports the
nationalist parties,

paradoxically, he also supports
the leaders of a radical left,

where his anti-liberal
views find an echo.

His shadow hangs over
the whole Greek crisis.

Putin is a seducer,

for some he has become,
"Putin, the bearer of hope".

As these parties
gain popularity,

in both France and other
European countries,

it is beneficial for
Putin's strategy,

a strategy which
consists of dividing

Europe by all possible means,

The aim is to distance
Europe from the US.

and exploit the divergences
between European countries.

The weaker a European
government is,

the better it will be for Putin.

At a time when party leaders who
support the same values as him

cut themselves off
in their xenophobia,

Putin claims he
will free the world

from the shock of civilisations

and protect it from
new wars of religion.

After being the grave digger
of post totalitarian utopias,

he is now attired as the Grand
organiser of world peace.

A turn around which may
appear astonishing for Putin

who presented himself as
pro-European and even pro-NATO

when he first came to power.

Putin considered it necessary to

reassess the organisation
of the world

and this conviction
emerged when he

became aware that
geopolitics has changed,

that global equilibriums
are no longer the same,

that Europe is no longer
decisive in the world,

that's finished.

That economically seeming, inertia
seems inexorably heading towards Asia,

due to the assimilated power of China,

over too the expansion of the Muslim
world,

and this is where Putin
moved from a potential,

pragmatic threat, to a
political redefinition.

Within Russia there exists

a mosaic of peoples and cultures

that makes it a
model of cohesion

for bordering countries.

At the present time,
Europe is obsessed

with the question of identity.

Putin proposes an
alternative based

on tolerance and
multiculturalism,

where Islam holds its
own specific place.

When you notice how polite to the
orthodox religious movement Putin is,

it's astonishing to
see him fraternising

in such a way with
other religions.

That's what's important.

It's impossible to understand
if you forget that Russia

is also a multi-religious sect country.

The construction of even the
first mosque in Moscow

displays a tolerance
to show that Islam

was one of Soviet era significant
religious influence in some parts.

On this
basis, Putin considers

that Russia has a
historic mission to fulfil

as mediator between the
Western and the Muslim worlds.

Russia too has always been a multi-ethnic

and even somewhat multi-religious country.

We created it like this.

The mutual cultural, traditional
and religious enrichment

is the strength and originality
of our common country, Russia.

By promoting the idea of
a multicultural world,

Putin's aim is to fight
radical Islamism,

which he considers a
threat for his own country

and for the rest of the world.

He hasn't forgotten
how the Soviets

were routed out of Afghanistan,

when the prestigious
Red Army was

beaten to the ground
by the Mujahideen.

Or again in Chechnya,
after the war against Putin,

the Wahhabites, backed
by Saudi Arabia,

planned to found a
Caucasian emirate.

So Islam, yes, but
not just any Islam,

one that would accept to
exist with other religions

and submit to the state,

to a powerful state.

After Tunisia, Egypt
and and Libya,

Syria is shaken in its turn
by a wave of contestation.

The repression is
ferocious and immediate.

Bashar al-Assad is at the head

of a multi-confessional
but despotic state

and a key ally for
Putin in the region.

Russia is a highly
influential nation in Syria,

the alliance dates
back to the '70s

and is a military and
political alliance.

Cynically but incredulously though, somehow considered by
a few as an arms market for Russian weapons but most of all,

it's the only place outside Russia

where it has maintained its bases
out of need.

Particularly since it lies
on the Mediterranean,

which is fundamental
for the Russians.

But this view has
shifted because

it corresponds to a
period when Westerners

still impertinently regarded Russia as somehow
without real insignificance on stage.

"What we're about to do in
Syria won't please them,

but we don't give a damn."

For example, when we observe the
Middle East and North Africa,

we witness the
terrible consequences

of this forced standardization

It's unbelievable.

But unfortunately, it
wasn't really a lesson

to many Western politicians.

There are still a lot
of them promoting a

globalisation based
on a unique model.

It is in the Middle east, at the
heart of Islamic fundamentalism,

that Putin plans
to defend his model.

While the West defends
the Arab Spring

and the people's
dream for democracy,

the head of the Kremlin
defends authoritarian regimes

that he sees as bastions
against radical Islamism.

We need to distinguish the

philosophical idea
of universalism,

which is indisputable, and the
methods used to impose it.

When this situation occurred
during the Arab Spring,

many Westerners thought,
this is great,

it will finally show
that Arabs and Muslims

are able to develop their own theocracy
- yet seeming democracy of a sort,

so we must apparently support this
idea.

So in Syria, we will be on
the right side of history.

We will be on the side of good

and we must establish "democracy" (Islamic
theocracy in actuality) rapidly in Syria at all costs.

And there we see Westerners,

in particular Americans
and the French,

very supportive, desiring and

announcing the collapse
of the regime,

which was visibly a cruel
and repressive regime.

So it was announced, but it
didn't quite work that way.

Many Christians in Syria
thought, "Be careful,

it's a cruel regime but the
next one will be worse,

because it will be Islamists"

And the French and other
European countries

said "No they will be
Syrian democrats."

And others replied, "We would
like them to be Syrian democrats

but there's little chance
of them succeeding.

All of Saddam Hussein's
followers, his officers,

his bodyguards and even those
who gained from the system,

the soldiers or security guards,

were sent home.

Obviously, this was a
boon for radical groups,

who could try to integrate them.

They turned up with their
fighting expertise,

and created a powerful core
amidst these radical groups.

...the order of the
day has been adopted.

Putin can perhaps win the
diplomatic war in Syria

but using his veto at the UN
and blocking the situation

has enabled the rise in power
of Islamist extremists

brought to Syria to fight
the opposition to Assad.

The consequence is a
minority group of jihadists

who in less than a year have
become a powerful army,

capable of acting outside
their territory.

The West, led by the
United States and France,

is ready intervene to
help the rebellion

and destitute Assad In
the name of human rights.

Posing as the defender of peace,

Russia merely blocks all UN
resolutions in that direction.

For Putin and his allies,
Western interference

is directly responsible for
the chaos in Iraq and Libya.

- Those against?

- The United States is disgusted

that a couple members
of this council

continue to prevent us

from fulfilling our
sole purpose here,

addressing an ever
deepening crisis in Syria

and a growing threat

to regional peace and security.

In the same way as the Russians,

we found ourselves faced
with structural antagonism.

The US didn't want China
to become a force

capable of challenging
their global hegemony.

So the US deployed
various measures of

coercion and
containment upon China.

Russia is unfairly excluded from the G8

after the rejoining with Crimea.

One year later, Vladimir
Putin gets his revenge

when he reunites 15 heads of
state during a double summit

of the BRICS and the Shanghai
Cooperation Organisation.

European and American
authorities have

repeatedly announced
that Vladimir Putin

was politically isolated,

but it would seem they have
failed to reach their goal.

1,300 dead and hundreds of
wounded is be the latest figure

of the chemical weapon attack

led by the Syrian regime
in an area of Damascus.

Children are crying, holding
rags over their mouths and noses

Behind me, somebody is
yelling: "God is great!"

That we are ready to
move forward together...

From the outset
of the conflict,

the Obama administration warned
that the use of chemical weapons

was a limit not to be crossed;

and that a chemical attack
by the Syrian government

would result in an immediate
riposte from the Pentagon.

Putin obtains the Syrian
disarmament of this arsenal,

his first diplomatic victory.

He is now a credible partner,
if not yet on equal grounds.

Moscow has obtained a
victory on the ground,

but the regular Syrian
army is retreating

despite the Russian military
experts at their side.

Armed factions and
combatants are multiplying.

and ISIS and Al Nusra are

rapidly amplifying their numbers

to the detriment of the
democratic opposition to Assad.

...one of the key organisations.

The Americans have
armed a significant

faction of the opposition.

Is there a specialist
in Arabic to help

me with the pronunciation
of the name?

The Al Nusra Front?

- That's it, Al Nusra

This is one of the major Syrian
opposition organisations.

The US State Department
has confirmed that

it is a terrorist organisation
linked to Al-Qaeda.

And the Al Nusra Front
does not deny it.

Do they want it to merge
with the future government?

Of course not.

So are you going to ward
them off like flies?

No.

In view of attitude
of the West,

in September 2015,

Vladimir Putin decides to go one
step further in his commitment.

Instead of the triumph of
democracy and progress

we have violence, poverty,
and social disaster.

I would like to
ask those who are

responsible for this situation:

are you now aware of
what you have done?

The flag of the Islamic
State has already

federated tens of
thousands of combatants.

Among them, former
Iraqi soldiers,

thrown into the streets in the
wake of the 2003 invasion.

They are now joined
by members of

the "moderate Syrian opposition"

which was armed, trained
and supported by West.

This is not about the
ambitions of Russia,

but of the fact that
we will no longer

tolerate this management
of global affairs.

Russia ventures,

for the first time since
the collapse of the USSR,

to use military force
outside its own domain.

Fighter planes and helicopters,
of the latest generation,

brutally invade the
Syrian airspace.

The Russian army's offensive
is particularly ferocious

and is massive,

using carpet bombs, similar
to the ones used in Chechnya,

the Russian operation targets

all the forces engaged
against the regime,

and enables Bashar
al-Assad to re-conquer

a great number of
lost territories.

Russian diplomacy is very
much a diplomacy in response

to what the West might
or might not do.

I think that the
intervention in Syria

was largely motivated
by Western delays,

which lasted for two,
even three years,

What should we do?
What do we want?

So for several months, and even
as we speak, we are witnessing

a form of re-entrance
of Westerners

into the real world

And in the real world, they
can't overthrow Assad.

The efficiency and violence

of the Russian air strikes force
the Islamic rebels to retreat.

The numbers of civilian
victims are high

but Putin obtains a
prestigious victory in

liberating the antique
jewel of Palmyra.

With its management of
the Syrian conflict,

Russia has displayed its
renewed military strength

and its capacity to assume
the security of its allies.

In the eyes of the West

it has confirmed itself
as a major world player.

Currently, the centre of gravity has

switched to other region of the world.

China is "progressing", India is "progressing",
(economically speaking that is)

Latin America and Africa
are both progressing!

But Europe is not developing.

The US is a predominant
but failing force,

clinging to its possibilities,

but the wind of change
has already begun.

Putin has succeeded in placing

his pieces on the
world chessboard,

showing he can carry his
weight in crucial conflicts

and has perhaps avoided an

open regional conflict
in the Middle East.

By continuing to arm and support

Russian speaking
separatists in the Donbass,

Russia will be present
for a long time

in Ukraine through a proxy war.

Far from the Syrian
battle fields,

Ukrainians continue to fight
for their independence.

Putin doesn't intend to
obtain major victories

in Ukraine or to impinge
on its territory.

A war of which no one can
imagine the conclusion.

We are a kind of
Christian Taliban.

I will consider my
mission accomplished

when I witness the
ruins of the Kremlin.

I can well understand
that Europe won't help us.

It has no intention
of helping us

and to tell the truth, it
has no obligation to do so.

It is our war, it
is our misfortune.

The more Russia is
attacked by the

liberal so-called "intelligentsia" and equally
by such minded Western based politicians,

the more it relies on populist
movements everywhere.

Traversing frontiers Vladimir
Putin has even become

a reference for his worst enemy:

The United States of America.

If he says great
things about me,

I'm gonna say great
things about him.

I've already said he is
really very much of a leader,

I mean you can say "oh, isn't
it a terrible thing?"

The man has a very strong
control over a country,

he's been a leader far more than
our President has been a leader.

You called him is brilliant,
outstanding, talented.

I just said he was a brilliant
and a colourful candidate.

Don't you think so?

I do.

After the collapse of the USSR,

people thought the world
would now be a unipolar one,

inducing peace and stability.

But since then the
myth has dissolved

and fears have replaced
that conviction.

Are we going to see a real
disruption of the world order

at a time when Western
universalism,

defending humanist values,

is sowing death and destruction;

when it is exacerbating
rank social inequalities

and injustice,

when it is pushing peoples
towards populist models?

So, are we going
to witness a major

realistic policy
resurfacing in the West,

tied to its own values,

yet refraining from imposing
it every morning on the world,

accepting an evolving
partnership,

whose role would be
to assist Russia,

to overcome "obsessional complexes"

and aim for an "alternative" seeming
future?

This is what we hope for.

We are glad to
announce billionaire,

and everybody's
favourite, Donald Trump,

has won the American presidential
election.

In wanting to restore
the former Cold War

and to sustain mental images
of the Cold War before '91,

we are hindering the analysis
of the prevailing new Cold War.

You must abandon the framework
of the previous Cold War

in order to understand
what's happening today,

which is not about
conflict between two

superpowers that are
governing the world

but clearly of a much
more complex world.

I congratulate Donald
Trump on his victory.

We paid great attention
to his election campaign.

We are aware that this will be a difficult task

in light of the deterioration in our current relations,

but Russia is willing to reconstruct

all aspects of our relations.

Moscow has played an active

and important role in international negotiations,

including the accord with Iran to cease nuclear production.

Could solutions now be found for Syria or Ukraine,

and other international hotspots?

This remains to be seen.

Today, responsibility for the world's future

lies on the shoulders of the United States,
Europe, China,

and of course Russia.

The United States and Russia

will probably remain enemies forever,

whoever their leaders may be.

Maintaining reciprocal hostility
serves their domestic policies.

China, will methodically and unilaterally

use its economic power and military strength,

to establish what it considers

its zone of influence:
the China Seas.

Europe is perhaps the only entity capable

of changing the rules of the game.

But, without renouncing any
of its fundamental values,

it has to have the necessary intelligence

and strength to do so.

I won't stop

Until I win...

Yay! Putin.

video supplied with sync improvements
and with captions editing by eurohumanist.org

(originally from itunes USA download facility)