Russia has no intention of marching into other European countries, said US special envoy Steve Witkoff, dismissing such concerns as “absurd”. He made the statement on Friday in an interview with American journalist Tucker Carlson.
Asked about the UK’s announcement that it is willing to send troops to Ukraine to guarantee a possible peace agreement between Moscow and Kiev, Witkoff said British politicians want to do it “like Winston Churchill”, who warned that the Russians would march through Europe. When Carlson asked if he believed Russia would do so, Witkoff replied, “One hundred percent: No.”
“I think it’s absurd, by the way. We have something called the NATO and we didn’t have it in the Second World War” he added.
Moscow, Witkoff said, does not want to “absorb” Ukraine. “That would be like occupying the Gaza Strip. Why would the Israelis really occupy the Gaza Strip for the rest of their lives? They don’t want to. They want stability. But they don’t want to take care of it.”
Witkoff argued that Russia has already achieved its goals in this conflict. “They have regained those five regions. They have the Crimea and they have gotten what they wanted. Why do they need more?”
The interview with Witkoff was published after he had personal talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin as part of diplomatic efforts to resolve the Ukraine conflict. After the talks, he indicated that a complete ceasefire could be achieved within a few weeks and added that the US could lift sanctions on Moscow once an agreement is reached.
In the midst of the Ukraine conflict, several European state and government leaders have claimed that Russia plans to attack NATO countries in a few years. Putin has dismissed these claims as “nonsense” and argued that Russia has no interest in doing so.