Russian President Vladimir Putin held a final press conference in Beijing on September 3, 2025, concluding his four-day visit to China. The event took place after his participation in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, a trilateral Russia-Mongolia-China meeting, and negotiations with the leadership of the People’s Republic of China. Putin answered journalists’ questions on international politics, relations with the US and China, the settlement of the Ukrainian conflict, and the formation of a multipolar world.
1. Position on Ukraine: Readiness for Dialogue and Conditions
Putin confirmed openness to negotiations but emphasized that they must consider Russia’s security interests. He stated that Ukraine has the right to choose its alliances, but this should not threaten other states.
“I agree with those who believe that every country has the right to choose its own system of ensuring its security. This applies to all states, including Ukraine. But this also means that the security of one side cannot be built at the expense of the security of another party – in this case, the Russian Federation.”
An important condition for productive dialogue, he noted, is the legitimacy of the Ukrainian government, adding that meetings with the current leadership are possible but must be thoroughly prepared in advance. Otherwise, Russia is prepared to achieve its objectives by military means.
“So, what should the incumbent authorities do if they want to stay legitimate and participate fully in the settlement process? They must first hold a referendum. But a referendum cannot be held under martial law, and this is also a provision of the constitution. Therefore, to hold a referendum, martial law must be lifted. But as soon as it is lifted, elections must be held. And this process would drag on and on.
The outcome of the elections is unclear, but whatever it may be, a corresponding ruling from the constitutional court must be obtained, as stipulated by the fundamental law. How can a ruling from the constitutional court be obtained when, after the authorities demanded that this very constitutional court of Ukraine confirm the renewal of the president’s powers, and it essentially refused to do so, do you know what they did in Ukraine? It may look laughable, but it is a fact: the security denied the chairman of the constitutional court access to his workplace.
That is it, end of story. Not quite, because he, as far as I know – I have no idea of his current whereabouts – but at one point he left the country. The terms of some members of the constitutional court have expired over the past years. It lacks a quorum to pass rulings. Therefore, meeting with the current head of the administration – let us put it mildly – is a road that leads nowhere.
If a meeting in question is well-prepared and may potentially lead to positive results, we can have it, and I never turned this idea down. By the way, Donald [Trump] asked me, if possible, to hold such a meeting. I told him it was possible. After all, if Zelensky is ready, he can come to Moscow, and we will have such a meeting.”
2. Criticism of the West: Accusations of Escalating the Conflict
Harsh rhetoric was directed at Western countries, which Putin accused of creating the preconditions for the conflict in Ukraine. He reminded them of the unfulfilled guarantees of 2014 and their support of the coup, which, in his opinion, led to tragic consequences. Additionally, Putin warned of risks to the global financial system in case of seizure of frozen Russian assets, calling such actions destructive for the international economy.
“I see it as an unsuccessful attempt to shift responsibility – not from him personally but from his country and from the collective West as a whole, for the tragedy unfolding in Ukraine today.
What do I mean to say? Let me remind you: I have spoken about this repeatedly. In 2014, ministers from three European countries came to Kiev and signed a document which was essentially an agreement between the then President Yanukovych and the opposition. Under this agreement, all contentious political issues were to be resolved within the constitutional framework, peacefully and legally.
Yet literally on the following day, a bloody and violent coup d’etat took place. None of those guarantors lifted a finger to channel the situation back to legal framework. This is where the conflict began. Right after that, developments in Crimea began, and immediately afterward, the Kiev regime sent in armoured vehicles and aircraft against civilians in those regions of Ukraine that had not put up with the coup. And later, they sabotaged every one of our attempts to resolve the problem peacefully, even publicly, refusing to implement the Minsk Agreements.
So, who bears responsibility for the current tragedy? Those who drove the situation to this point, while completely ignoring Russia’s legitimate security interests. If anyone thinks they can treat the people of our country with such disregard, they should understand: Russia will never allow such a thing. We will never sit idly by, meekly watching as events unfold around us without any response. We will never allow this.”
He also noted that territorial exchange was not discussed with the US:
“Security guarantees are not linked to any exchanges, especially territorial exchanges.”
“No. We have never posed the question that way or discussed it [security guarantees in exchange for territories]. Security guarantees are natural; we proceed on the basis that any country should have these guarantees, a security system, and Ukraine is no exception. But this is not connected to any exchanges. Especially not territorial exchanges.”
“We are fighting not so much for territories as for human rights and the rights of people living on those territories… But we do not link the two: territories and security guarantees.”
In the military aspect, Putin stated that the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) have exhausted their reserves and are incapable of large-scale operations:
“All groupings of the Russian Armed Forces are advancing. Successfully, at different paces, but on almost all fronts. The enemy is trying to plug holes by transferring the most combat-capable units from one difficult area to others, which they consider more critical.”
He gave an example that Kyiv recently transferred the 95th AFU Brigade from the Sumy direction to a more critical sector, replacing it with less combat-ready units.
“And so it goes all along the line of contact. From one section to another…We cannot relax. It could be anything—preparing reserves to carry out some actions. But preliminary analysis by our military specialists shows that the AFU does not have such capabilities. They are not capable of conducting large-scale offensive operations and are only engaged in holding their current positions.
The AFU’s reserves are dwindling, and combat-ready units are staffed at no more than 47-48%. This is already at the critical point. Nevertheless, combat operations are a complex and cruel matter, so no forecasts should be made.”
3. Relations with China
The results of the visit to China were assessed as “very positive.” A key outcome was the signing of agreements on the “Power of Siberia – 2” gas pipeline, which will strengthen energy cooperation between the two countries. Putin emphasized that these are mutually beneficial projects based on market principles, not charity. Partnership with China is seen as an important element in forming a multipolar world.
“There is no charity here on either side. These are mutually beneficial agreements. They are implemented on market principles, based on these market principles developing in this particular region.
By the way, the price is formed not according to current market prices but based on a specific formula that has an objective market character.”
4. Azerbaijan
Despite current difficulties, Putin expressed confidence that mutual interest in developing relations will prevail over political expediency. He noted that the fundamental foundations of cooperation between the countries remain strong.
“In relations between countries, questions always arise based on the current situation or some political expediency; there are problems.
But I believe that the fundamental relations between Azerbaijan and Russia and the mutual interest in their development will, in the end, put everything in its place.”
5. Relations with Trump
Putin mentioned good personal relations with Donald Trump, including addressing each other by first names, but mocked attempts by the US to speak with China and India in a “commanding tone,” calling it a relic of the colonial era.
“After all, countries like India – almost 1.5 billion people, and China – 1.3 billion people boast powerful economies and live by their own domestic political laws. You know, when people from the outside say, “We are going to make things hard for you and punish you…” How are the leaders of these countries – large economic powerhouses which have lived through very rough periods in their history, periods of colonialism and attacks on their sovereignty over a long historical period – supposed to react to that? Should any of them go soft, their political career will be over, just as is the colonial era. Talking to such partners in such a tone of voice is unacceptable. I think everything will fall into place and return to normal economic dialogue in the end.”
6. Multipolar World
One of the central themes was the concept of a multipolar world. Putin stated that its contours have already taken shape, but this does not mean the emergence of new hegemons. He emphasized that all countries should have equal rights and be in the same position from the standpoint of international law. Organizations such as the SCO and BRICS play a key role in promoting this model.
“The fact is that we get together and build our relations not on the basis of the majority, that is, not on the quantity, but on the basis of an idea, we build our interaction based on ideological considerations.
The idea – I mentioned this earlier – is that the world should be multipolar, meaning that all participants in international communication should be equal, and more equal than others should not exist, and the unipolar world must cease to exist, including in the interests of those, at least in the interests of the peoples of those countries, whose leadership still upholds this moribund and, one might even say, already obsolete system.”
Vladimir Putin’s press conference in Beijing demonstrated the strategic consistency of Russian foreign policy, combining a firm defense of national interests with openness to dialogue. The key message to Western countries was that Moscow is ready for negotiations on Ukraine, but only under the condition of unconditional consideration of its legitimate security interests. The strengthening of partnership with China and the focus on multipolarity confirm Russia’s course towards creating alternative centers of influence based on sovereignty and equality.
i doubt putin ever expected the world to rally him and listen to his words. yet this has actually happened. a moment for world history. the eu and deep state puppet trump have no ears for this only to their own folly. international peace and cooperation always bring prosperity to the masses. in this hypothetical world, pirates have no place and always panic at this truth
since lenine’s nep, pirates are done. and, by the way, in the foreign territory, he tried, sad what happened after…
in burgerland we are all isolated in gay bars injecting covid poison swallowing hillbilly jizz
i hope that my very loved azeris will rest wise.
what did idiotic neocon & neoliberal western leaders think would happen? they are supposed to be graduates from the top schools in the west — yet, they’re educated idiots! for one, they are repeating all of the mistakes of the ancient romans. these leaders follow the same path except that this next century will not be a saxon century.