Putin says Ukraine invasion aims to unite ‘historical Russia’ - Al Jazeera English

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Russian president says Moscow is consenting to negociate and accuses ‘geopolitical opponents’ of trying to disagreement Russia.

Published On 25 Dec 2022

President Vladimir Putin says Russia’s violative successful Ukraine is being carried retired to “unite the Russian people”.

Putin utilized the conception of “historical Russia” to reason successful an interrogation to beryllium aired connected Sunday that Ukrainians and Russians are 1 radical arsenic helium sought to warrant his 10-month violative successful Ukraine and undermine Ukraine’s sovereignty.

Russia’s “geopolitical opponents [were] aiming to teardrop isolated Russia, the humanities Russia”, Putin said successful excerpts from a broadcast for Rossiya 1 nationalist television.

“Divide and conquer, that’s what they person ever sought to execute and are inactive seeking to do,” Putin said.

“But our extremity is different: It’s to unite the Russian people,” the Russian president added.

Putin repeated that Moscow was acceptable to negociate but said Ukraine and its Western allies person refused to clasp talks.

Death toll rises

In confederate Ukraine, the decease toll from Russian attacks connected the metropolis of Kherson has risen to 16, and 64 radical person been injured, the Ukrainian subject politician of the portion reported connected Sunday arsenic aerial raid sirens sounded crossed the state connected Christmas Day.

Among the dormant were 3 men who died portion clearing mines, Yaroslav Yanushevych reported connected Telegram.

The Ukrainian service counted 71 attacks connected the partially recaptured portion connected Saturday, including 41 connected its main metropolitan area.

Despite Russia’s retreat from the city, Kherson remains wrong scope of Moscow’s weaponry and nether changeless threat.

‘Senseless war’

From St Peter’s Basilica astatine the Vatican connected Sunday, Pope Francis appealed for an extremity to the “senseless” warfare successful Ukraine during his accepted Christmas message.

“May the Lord animate america to connection factual gestures of solidarity to assistance each those who are suffering, and whitethorn helium enlighten the minds of those who person the powerfulness to soundlessness the thunder of weapons and enactment an contiguous extremity to this senseless war,” the caput of the Roman Catholic Church said.

The Associated Press caller bureau reported connected Sunday that immoderate Ukrainians, who usually observe Christmas connected January 7, arsenic bash the Russians, person changed their contented arsenic a absorption to Russia’s war.

The bureau said that immoderate Orthodox Ukrainians decided to observe the festival celebrating the commencement of Jesus Christ connected December 25 similar members of Western Christian churches.

In October, the enactment of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, which is not aligned with the Russian religion and is 1 of the 2 branches of Orthodox Christianity successful the country, agreed to let the faithful to observe connected December 25.

“What began connected February 24, the full-scale invasion, is an awakening and an knowing that we tin nary longer beryllium portion of the Russian world,” Olena Paliy, a 33-year-old nonmigratory of Bobrytsia adjacent Kyiv, told AP.

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