Tucker Carlson’s interview with Russian President Vladimir Putin elicited mixed reactions on X. The freewheeling two-hour discussion was dominated by Putin’s nationalist lecture on Russian history, starting with the Kievan Rus in an attempt to justify his unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.
One body language expert suggested that the KGB spy turned de facto dictator was able to disarm Carlson by being friendly enough while also using dominant body language and tone when necessary to steer the conservation where he wanted.
Putin genuinely seemed to enjoy himself and even appeared to mock Carlson for his failed attempt to join the CIA.
The U.K.’s Independent continues:
The remark came during a discussion of the 2014 political protests in Ukraine, which led to the ouster of its then-President Viktor Yanukovich and subsequently Russia’s annexation of Crimea and backing of so-called pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.
The Russian president went on to claim that his 2022 invasion of Ukraine was an attempt to put an end to the conflict that he falsely argued Ukraine had began back in 2014.
…
The US Ambassador to Russia between 2012 and 2014, Michael McFaul, noted that the start of the interview was “revealing about why Putin invaded. He was not reacting to some imminent NATO expansion but seeking to correct (in his view) things that occurred centuries before the creation of NATO”.
Watch the full interview below.
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