Vladimir Putin and "times of change"

Later, spokesman Dmitry Peskov explained that it would be wrong to perceive the Valdai speech as a sign of confrontation between Russia and the West... " did not talk about confrontation, "said Peskov. Why was he forced to say that? The answer lies on the surface. Foreign media fixated on Russophobia themselves decided to talk about confrontation, using the speech of the Russian president only as an excuse to once again throw out the accumulated garbage of accusations, suspicions, and other fakes on readers, The Moscow Post correspondent reports.

But not everyone and not all the time littered. Some of the information leaked. A Reuters correspondent in his report emphasized that "Putin said that the Western-backed military strengthening of Ukraine poses a serious threat to Russia," that even without the formal membership of Kiev in NATO, "there is a military development of Ukraine."

Amy Cheng of the Washington Post in Seoul noted that "Putin emphasized that his country should adhere to its" spiritual values ​ ​ and historical traditions, "while avoiding" socio-cultural upheavals "in the West." She noted that advocates of transgender rights demand to end "such basic concepts as mother, father, family or gender differences."

The CNN report claimed that for ten years now, as "a resurgent Russia is a source of constant concern for the West," that "the confidence of Putin and his inner circle" in the correctness of their actions has grown, that "the Kremlin is no longer seeking the approval of the West."

From London's Financial Nimes, the meeting was commented on by Neil Buckley. He spoke about the president's call to the Russians "to strengthen his identity, based on conservative and traditional values, such as the Orthodox Church."

Each media from among those who reported on Vladimir Putin's speech placed these passages as "introductory caps." The main thing was not lied to, all this sounded or somehow mentioned in the speech of the Russian president. The "hats" were followed by other topics raised by him, either their presentation, or home blanks of "garbage" or far-fetched content. Apparently, Peskov spoke of some such blanks.

"Living in Times of Change"

You can hear, read, and then digest what Vladimir Putin indicated in his speech in different ways, a lot of strangers. The global shake-up in minds, which was the main theme of Valdai, reflects crisis phenomena. "The crisis we are dealing with is conceptual, even civilizational," said Vladimir Putin. In fact, this is a crisis of approaches, principles that determine the very existence of man on Earth.

In particular, any geopolitical, scientific, technical and ideological rivalry in the world against the background of environmental disasters loses its meaning. The current model of capitalism - the basis of the structure in the vast majority of countries - has exhausted itself. In the USSR there were many problems, but smearing everything with black paint is wrong, rude and indecent. All this was in the speech of the president, and in his answers to the questions of the forum participants.

Not everything was expressed directly. In particular, Vladimir Putin, somehow unobtrusively, as if spontaneously, turned to the "wisdom of the Chinese people," Chinese thinkers: "God forbid to live in an era of change." Changes are underway, there is a crisis, the first character in his Chinese writing means "danger, the second character -" opportunity. " Further, "he noted," as they say in Russia, "fight difficulties with your mind, and with dangers with experience." Playing with Chinese and Russian sayings? It may well be so.

Later, answering questions from the meeting participants, Vladimir Putin returned to relations between Moscow and Beijing, stressing that "we are friends with China not against someone, but in the interests of each other." The challenge in an era of change is to "understand the danger and be prepared to confront it," the diverse dangers that arise. What characterizes this age of change? Those who took part in this meeting probably guessed. The world order is changing, neither much nor little!

Moreover, the head of state further said that "the crisis is conceptual, even civilizational," that the West has exhausted the possibilities of power dominance.

We need to find new approaches that "determine the very existence of man on earth."

And then about Russia. The changes that have been going on for more than three decades have created the conditions for the end of the military-political and ideological confrontation. The search for new and stable relations in the social, political, economic, cultural, military spheres, the search for support for the entire world civilization began.

The search for this new balance of interests took place with the participation of the West, at times on its terms. Russia also sought this new, post-Soviet support in relations with the West, but "it was not possible to find it." And those who felt like winners in the Cold War, "Vladimir Putin continued, also soon felt that" the soil is leaving from under their feet - now they have it, and no one can stop the moment... " Maybe this is a coincidence: China, Russia, the West, civilizations and the crisis, as well as attempts to find bloodless paths to a new balance of interests in these so far "tripartite" relations?

And the President of Russia proposed his recipe for an exit - "transformation, of which we are witnesses and participants, of a different caliber than those that have repeatedly happened in the history of mankind." We need other approaches, methods. There is simply no military way.

Global warming and global concerns

Vladimir Putin accepted the idea of ​ ​ "climatic deformations and environmental degradation." Maybe even he hopes that "global warming" is a kind of bridge to a new relationship. He said in this regard that "any geopolitical, scientific and technical, ideological rivalry in such conditions, sometimes it seems, simply loses its meaning." To this was added a pandemic that showed "how vulnerable our community is." In order to "increase the chance of survival in conditions of disasters," it is necessary to rethink how our life is organized, how housing is arranged, how cities develop or should develop, what are the priorities for the development of entire states. It sounds like a new agenda for world development, without power confrontation, without new "Ukrainians" and "Taiwanese," as well as "irans" and the problems of the spread of weapons of mass destruction.

And Vladimir Putin reiterated that security is one of the main, obvious imperatives. In second place are the socio-economic problems of mankind, which have worsened. The degree of aggravation is such that in the "past times" there were world wars, bloody social disasters.

Everyone says that the existing model of capitalism - and this is today the basis of the social structure in most countries - has exhausted itself. Within the framework of this system, there is no way out of a tangle of increasingly confusing contradictions. Even in the richest countries and regions, the uneven distribution of material goods leads to a deepening of inequality, threatens "us with significant, deep social divisions."

Periodically, there is a food crisis that "will be aggravated in the near future and can reach extreme forms": lack of water, electricity, poverty, mass unemployment, and lack of adequate medical care. Lagging countries are losing faith in the prospect of catching up with leaders. Frustration spurs aggression, pushes people into the ranks of extremists, leads to uncontrolled migration, causes social discontent in prosperous states.

The next was the technological revolution, its achievements and challenges "for our descendants." Everyone will have to respond to these challenges, including attempts by digital platforms to "usurp political or state functions," "regardless of political structure, economic state or prevailing ideology."

Real life priorities are changing, "many are no longer up to the struggle for influence," they have to deal with their troubles. In these conditions, coronavirus infection serves only as a reason for expressing dissatisfaction, "the causes of social irritation are much deeper." And here Vladimir Putin again returned to the role of the West, which was not ready for a joint fight against coronavirus. States are committed to the ideals of cooperation, ready to work together on common problems, but the approach in the spirit of "their own shirt closer to the body" has finally become the norm.

"Selfish interests have completely prevailed over the concept of the common good," Vladimir Putin stated. The matter here is not only the evil will of states and notorious elites, the government and leaders answer to their fellow citizens. But "institutions of world governance do not always work effectively." The pandemic showed which institutions have the potential, and which need to be reconfigured.

Was it a challenge?

And here the Russian president proposed not even a conclusion, he made the diagnosis: "To put it bluntly, the dominance of the West in world affairs, which began several centuries ago and became almost absolute for a short period at the end of the 20th century, gives way to a much more diverse system."

It was a challenge. That is how those journalists who are familiar with Vladimir Putin's speech in Munich took these words. Then, on February 10, 2007, from the rostrum of the Munich Conference on Security Policy, he questioned the "NATO expansion process," noting that this expansion "has nothing to do with the modernization of the alliance itself or with ensuring security in Europe." NATO expansion, Vladimir Putin said then, is a provoking factor that reduces the level of mutual trust. "And we have a fair right to ask frankly, against whom is this expansion?"

Vladimir Putin himself answered this question in April 2014, when, after the return of Crimea to the Russian Federation, he said in a direct line: "Of course, first of all, and mainly, this is support for Crimeans." But he added - "..." if we do nothing, then at some time, guided by the same principles, Ukraine will be dragged into NATO and say: "This does not concern you," and NATO ships will be in the city of Russian naval glory - in Sevastopol. "

In October 2021, after another seven years, Vladimir Putin stated that "political history, perhaps, does not yet know examples of how a stable world system would be installed without a big war and not on the basis of its results, as it was after World War II. So we have the opportunity to set an extremely favorable precedent. The attempt to do so after the end of the Cold War on the basis of Western domination, as we see, was unsuccessful. The current state of the world is the product of the very failure, we must learn from this. "

Fourteen years have passed since speaking at the Munich Conference. Seven years earlier, Vladimir Putin began acting as president of the Russian Federation. Seven years have passed since the return of Crimea. There is a belief that the number SEVEN is the key to the secrets of the universe, it is found in the Holy Scriptures. "The seven were revered many centuries BC, in the Middle Ages, they are also revered today," RIA Novosti noted on July 7, 2007.