New Delhi: After weeks of silence, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday defended his decision of invading Ukraine in what was his first public appearance since the Russian forces were withdrawn from northern Ukraine.
Russian state television showed Putin visiting the Vostochny space base in Russia's Far East, accompanied by his ally, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko, to mark the anniversary of Soviet successfully launching the first manned mission to space, reported news agency Reuters.
Responding to a question by a worker in the Russian space agency about the success of its mission in Ukraine, Putin said, “Absolutely. I don't have any doubt at all.”
"Its goals are absolutely clear and noble. We didn't have a choice. It was the right decision,” he added.
Putin went on to say that Russia’s main aim was to protect the Russian-speaking people of Donbas in eastern Ukraine and to end its position as the center of nationalistic anti-Russian feelings.
Putin had retreated from public appearances after Moscow pulled back its forces from northern Ukraine after being stonewalled at the entry of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.
His only appearance in the last few weeks was at the funeral of a nationalist lawmaker where he did not specifically talk about the war.
In his Tuesday address, he drew an analogy between Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin's first space flight 61 years ago and Russia's defiance of economic sanctions posed by the West today.
“The sanctions were total, the isolation was complete but the Soviet Union was still first in space,” he said while talking about his own reaction to the news as a young boy.
"We don't intend to be isolated. It is impossible to severely isolate anyone in the modern world - especially such a vast country as Russia,” he said.
Belarus President Lukashenko also dismissed the impact of sanctions: "Why on earth are we getting so worried about these sanctions?" he said.