Putin’s Memorable 2007 Munich Address
by Stephen Lendman
The three-day Munich Security Conference is ongoing through February 18.
Participants include heads of state, other top officials and business leaders.
Representing Russia, Sergey Lavrov addressed the forum on Saturday.
Commenting on the Mueller investigation witch-hunt indictments, he dismissed them as “blather,” adding:
“…I have no reaction at all because one can publish anything he wants. We see how accusations, statements, statements are multiplying.”
On February 12, 2007, Putin delivered a memorable Munich Conference address - his remarks enraging Washington for its candidness.
Stressing “security for one is security for all,” he quoted Franklin Roosevelt during the early days of WW II, saying:
“When peace has been broken anywhere, the peace of all countries everywhere is in danger.”
Putin denounced unipolarity, notions of world supremacy, and other “aspects of Cold War bloc thinking.”
A world with “one master, one sovereign” in unacceptable,” he stressed - “pernicious not only for all those within this system, but also for the sovereign itself because it destroys itself from within.”
“And this certainly has nothing in common with democracy…(W)e are constantly being taught about democracy. But for some reason those who teach us do not want to learn themselves.”
“(T)he unipolar model is not only unacceptable but also impossible in today’s world.”
‘(T)he model itself is flawed because…(u)nilateral and frequently illegitimate actions have not resolved any problems.” They create major ones.
US aggression in Afghanistan was ongoing when Putin spoke. Iraq was reeling from Bush/Cheney’s war, related violence continuing daily, human suffering extreme, continuing endlessly to this day.
Imperial policies “caused new human tragedies and created new centers of tension,” Putin explained. Endless US aggression raged then like now, 11 years later - “the world plung(ed) into an abyss of permanent conflicts,” he stressed, adding:
“We are seeing a greater and greater disdain for the basic principles of international law…One state…first and foremost the United States, We are seeing a greater and greater disdain for the basic principles of international law,” imposing its will on other nations politically, economically and militarily.
“(N)o one feels safe,” said Putin. Abuses by one dominant nation forces others to react defensively, producing an arms race menacing everyone.
“(T)oday we are witnessing…countries participating in military operations that are difficult to consider legitimate,” massacring countless numbers of civilians, causing vast destruction, Putin explained.
Soviet Russia transformed itself into the world’s leading peace and stability advocate, going all-out to end raging conflicts, undermined by US rage for endless wars.
“(T)he only mechanism (for) using military force as a last resort is the Charter of the United Nations” - never individual countries on their own preemptively the way America operates, Putin stressed.
Russia’s word is its bond. Washington can never be trusted. Putin pledged strict adherence to everything his administration agreed to - a promise he fulfilled.
He urged mutual cooperation to save humanity from another devastating world war - this time with nukes, if launched.
“Let’s work on this together,” he said. US militarism in Europe threatens Russia’s security. Despite US-led NATO deploying forces on its border, “we continue to strictly fulfill the treaty obligations” agreed to.
Provocative NATO actions undermine “the level of mutual trust. (W)hat happened to” end of Cold War assurances by US-dominated NATO not to expand one inch eastward toward Russia’s border?
In May 1990, then-NATO secretary-general Manfred Worner said “the fact that we are ready not to place a NATO army outside of German territory gives the Soviet Union a firm security guarantee.”
“Where are these guarantees,” Putin asked? Where is America’s commitment to non-proliferation matching Russia’s pledge?
The OSCE was established to address “all aspects of security: military, political, economic, humanitarian and, especially, the relations between these spheres,” Putin explained, asking:
“What do we see happening today? We see that this balance is clearly destroyed. People are trying to transform the OSCE into a vulgar instrument designed to promote the foreign policy interests of one or a group of countries.”
“And this task is also being accomplished by the OSCE’s bureaucratic apparatus which is absolutely not connected with the state founders in any way” - because of Washington’s toxic influence.
In conclusion, Putin said Russian history spans over 1,000 years, its geopolitical agenda proudly independent.
“We are not going to change this tradition today,” he stressed, adding:
“At the same time, we are well aware of how the world has changed and we have a realistic sense of our own opportunities and potential.”
“(W)e would like to interact with responsible and independent partners with whom we could work together in constructing a fair and democratic world order that would ensure security and prosperity not only for a select few, but for all.”
Putin says what he means and means what he says. US standards are polar opposite - unipolar, belligerent, undemocratic, hostile to world peace and stability, humanity’s greatest threat.
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