Vladimir Putin on Foreign Policy

Georgia & Ukraine in NATO was a red line since late 2000s

For the Kremlin, the notion that Ukraine, a pillar of the Soviet Union with strong historic ties to Russia, would join NATO was a red line. Although NATO did not announce a formal membership plan for Ukraine and Georgia at the Bucharest Summit, the alliance did affirm "that these countries will become members of NATO," and it extended formal invitations to accession talks to Albania and Croatia, which became members in 2009. NATO expanded again in 2017, admitting Montenegro, and in 2020, welcoming North Macedonia.

We will continue to work with China on a bilateral basis

May remove Taliban from list of terrorist organizations

"Our expectation is that these people, the Taliban, that now clearly control Afghanistan, will see that the situation develops in a positive way. If that happens, we would decide to take them off the list of terrorist organizations. I think we're coming to that, and Russia's position will be to move in this direction."

US "democracy promotion" sounds like "toppling regime"

2008: Ukraine as part of NATO is a direct threat to Russia

The Russians made perfectly clear this was unacceptable. Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister said "Georgia's and Ukraine's membership in the alliance is a huge strategic mistake which will have most serious consequences for pan-European security."

Putin himself said, "Georgia and Ukraine becoming part of NATO is a direct threat to Russia." You all remember that there was a war between Russia and Georgia in August 2008. That was a consequence of this--because the Georgians thought we were sending them a signal that they could get uppity with the Russians and we would back them because they were going to become part of NATO. The Russians clobbered the Georgians, and Georgia is in deep trouble today because it thought it could become part of NATO. ÿ