Russian President Vladimir Putin has attributed the strong performance of Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in the latest regional election in Saxony-Anhalt to what he described as years of policy failures by Western governments.
Speaking to reporters in New Delhi, Putin said the current situation in Europe was the result of “systematic mistakes” by Western countries in politics, security and economic policy.
He also accused European governments of escalating tensions with Russia and creating growing concern among their own citizens, arguing that this dissatisfaction was reflected in Germany’s election results.
AfD secured a record 43.8% of the vote in Saxony-Anhalt on Sunday, narrowly falling short of an outright majority.
“People in European countries understand what is happening,” Putin said, suggesting that this was behind the party’s strong showing.
Putin is in India this weekend for the BRICS summit.
The Russian president also insisted that Moscow poses no threat to European countries and has no reason to seek confrontation with them. He argued that long-standing disputes had been settled following the end of World War II.
However, before Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Putin had also denied that Moscow was planning a war.
Putin instead accused European countries of pushing the continent toward a direct confrontation with Russia.
“Do they want to revise the results of World War II? Where are they leading the people of their countries? Toward a war with the Russian Federation?” Putin said.
“They are now saying they are considering how they could send troops into Ukrainian territory. That means war with Russia,” he added.
