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President Vladimir Putin claimed Tuesday that the Russian people were “united as never before,” as he sought to project confidence in the wake of a short-lived revolt during a meeting of a rare international organization where he can find a sympathetic audience.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization meeting, hosted via videoconference by India, offered Putin one of the few remaining platforms in international politics where he can get a sympathetic hearing. It was his first multilateral summit since an armed rebellion rattled Russia.
The Asian security grouping founded by Russia and China to counter Western alliances also welcomed Iran as a new member, bringing its membership to nine nations.
Speaking via video link from the Kremlin, Putin praised the SCO for “playing an increasingly significant role in international affairs, making a real contribution to maintaining peace and stability, ensuring sustainable economic growth of the participating states, and strengthening ties between peoples.”
He thanked the SCO nations for supporting the Russian authorities during the short-lived armed mutiny mounted by Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, and said the West had turned Ukraine into “a virtually hostile state – anti-Russia.”
For Putin, the summit presents an opportunity to show he is in control after an insurrection that left some wondering about divisions among Russian elites.
“The Russian people are united as never before,” he said. “The solidarity and responsibility for the fate of the fatherland was clearly demonstrated by the Russian political circles and the entire society by standing as a united front against the attempted armed rebellion.”
Earlier speakers avoided directed references to the war, while bemoaning its global consequences.
