Russian President Vladimir Putin gave a detailed interview to an American journalist for the first time since the start of his war of aggression against Ukraine. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday that former Fox News host Tucker Carlson had spoken to Putin in Moscow.
The right-wing talk show host, who has been in Moscow for days and praised the Russian capital as great, announced the interview on Tuesday evening.
The Kremlin justifies the interview
The American broadcaster CNN also reported on Carlson’s interview plans. Carlson represents a different point of view than the Western media, with whom discussions would be pointless, Peskov said, justifying the initiative. Several Western media had also requested an interview with Putin.
The American talk show host is also a Trump supporter
From the Kremlin’s perspective, Carlson, a supporter of former U.S. President Donald Trump, has long listened to Russian positions. “He has an attitude that is different from the others. She is not pro-Russian in any way, she is not pro-Ukrainian, she is most likely pro-American,” Peskov said. Carlson, 54, who has an audience of millions, is also known for spreading conspiracy theories.
Peskov contradicted Carlson, who claimed that other journalists did not want to interview Putin. “We receive many requests for an interview with the president,” Peskov said. Major Western TV channels and newspapers have tried this.
“These are all mass media, all representing an exclusively one-sided position.” There is no point or benefit in talking to such media. Peskov said it was up to Carlson to inform the circumstances of the interview and the time of publication.
“Ugliest government propaganda”
The American journalist had stated that he would make the conversation available for free and in its entirety, unedited, on the social network X and on his website. Carlson said all Americans must look beyond the “ugliest government propaganda” under US President Joe Biden for themselves, because this war is largely being paid for by them.
Criticism of the American mass media
“We are not here because we love Vladimir Putin, we are here because we love the United States,” Carlson said. He said the war was already fundamentally changing the global economic order that emerged after World War II and brought prosperity to the West. It’s about historical upheavals that Americans need to be informed about. Carlson accused the American mass media of lying to viewers and readers by omitting them.
Fired from Fox News last year
Carlson was fired from Fox News last year. The talk show host presented a well-attended evening show there for many years. He used this to spread conspiracy theories and false news and to act against minorities. Shortly after, he started his own show on X.
TV networks contradict Carlson
Announcing the interview, Carlson said no Western journalist had “bothered” to talk to Putin since Moscow’s attack on Ukraine. This was contradicted not only by Peksov, but also by several Western journalists. They said they had already tried to talk to Putin. “Does Tucker really believe that we journalists have not tried to interview Putin every day since his invasion of Ukraine began?” asked Christiane Amanpour of the American television channel CNN. That’s ‘absurd’.
“We will continue to request an interview as we have done for years,” she added. BBC correspondent Steve Rosenberg also said he had sent “several requests” but Putin always refused. The Russian president has not interviewed any Western media since he began his attack on Ukraine in February 2022.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
