Putin said this during his annual speech at the Valdaj discussion club on Thursday.

– They are pouring fuel on the fire in Ukraine, increasing provocations around Taiwan and destabilizing world energy and food markets, said Putin.

– The latter may have been accidental, we have no doubt about that. It happened because of a system failure, he added.

Nuclear weapons

During the discussion round that followed his speech, Putin was asked about his previous statements on nuclear weapons.

– We never said anything about Russia in view of the proactive use of nuclear weapons. We only hinted in response to the statements of Western leaders, he said.

Putin then referred to the statement by the recently resigned British Prime Minister Liz Truss.

– He said that Britain is a nuclear power and the Prime Minister has a mandate to use it. And he said he was ready to do it, to which no one responded, he said.

oppressor

Putin used much of his speech to attack Western culture, which he said tries to oppress others.

– History will prove us right. The world’s greatest cultural genius will not be forgotten, said Putin, who quoted Fyodor Dostoyevsky in his speech.

Western democratic systems are also reviewed.

– Since colonial times, it has been their trademark to see others as inferior, while they themselves are elites, he said.

But Western domination is now coming to an end, he added.

Not an enemy

Russia does not see itself as an enemy of the West, but will never dance to the tunes of Western countries, said Putin.

– Russia does not seek hegemony. Russia is not challenging the West, but has the right to development, he said.

– We have tried to establish relations with the West and NATO, to be friends with them. But the West imposes sanctions on those who do not allow themselves to be controlled, said Putin.

Dangerous decade

The world is now in perhaps the most dangerous decade since the Second World War, Putin believes.

– Humanity is now faced with a choice: Accumulate the burden of problems that will surely destroy us all, or try to find solutions that may not be ideal, but work and can make the world more stable and secure, he said.

– A new world order must be based on law and justice, continued the Russian president who invaded neighboring Ukraine on February 24 this year.