Andrey Vandenko
Victory [over Nazi Germany]. The 75th anniversary. Do you believe that it is fundamentally important that all leaders come?
Vladimir Putin
Not at all. It is our holiday. But I think that concerning former members of the anti‑Hitler alliance, the right thing to do would be to attend [our event], from both a domestic political stance and a moral one. We look forward to seeing them and we will be glad if they come. If not, well, that’s their choice. But I think that would be a mistake for them.
Andrey Vandenko
Do you get the feeling that they want to deprive us of this victory?
Vladimir Putin
No, I don't. That’s impossible. It would go against common sense. You see, there are some ignorant people. They spout all kinds of garbage in the European Parliament about the ‘equal’ responsibility of Hitler and Stalin. Complete garbage! You have to look at the chain of events starting around 1918-1919, and at what was going on then. Who signed what with Hitler. By the way, Stalin, regardless of what anyone thinks of him (a tyrant or whatever), never disgraced himself by having direct or face-to-face contact with Hitler. What’s more, not a single document was ever signed by both Stalin and Hitler whatsoever. In contrast, there are documents signed by both Hitler and the British Prime Minister, Hitler and the Prime Minister of France. And also by both Hitler and the leader of Poland. And they worked with him, with Hitler, held numerous meetings with him, and betrayed Czechoslovakia. Poland carved up Czechoslovakia with Hitler. In fact, they agreed on invading Czechoslovakia. The only thing that Hitler told them was: "Don't do it on the same day as us. Let’s not get in each other’s way. We won't go after what you will: The Tesin Region." This was outright collusion. Just read it. Everything is in the documents. I dug them up from the archives. I looked through them and read them.
Andrey Vandenko
Yes, [everybody] read, and heard about it.
Vladimir Putin
Everything is in there. And after that they want to tell us who is to blame. They are the ones who are guilty starting from 1938. It was precisely the Munich Betrayal that was the first step to ignite World War II.
Andrey Vandenko
Poland places the Soviet Union on the same footing as... Warsaw officially equates the Soviet Union to Hitler’s Germany, equally blaming both sides and accusing both countries of unleashing World War II. So, now we’re reaching for our boxing gloves.
Vladimir Putin
We’re not doing that. We have condemned the Molotov–Ribbentrop secret protocol. Russia has done that. In turn, other countries could also honestly say how they feel about the way their leadership acted back then. Let them honestly open up about it, instead of hurling some fictitious, absolutely baseless accusations and allegations.
Andrey Vandenko
You are talking about the past, while I am focusing on today. Look…
Vladimir Putin
No-no-no!
Andrey Vandenko
Polish leaders didn’t invite you to the 75th Anniversary of the Liberation of Auschwitz.
Vladimir Putin
So what!
Andrey Vandenko
Though Zelensky attended the event and was talking about the 1st Ukrainian Front, the Lvov Division…
Vladimir Putin
We all know this is nonsense. We know what it is based on… This is about today's political landscape. But what about the millions of Ukrainians who fought against Hitler, and against Nazism? To them, this is a slap in the face. I assure you. They are just afraid to open their mouth because they know they will immediately be subjected to intimidation. I know how people feel in their hearts. Those who took up arms to battle Nazism. This is a slap in the face to them. But Ukraine’s incumbent president wants to look good for Poland’s current government, and in my opinion, this is a terrible mistake.
Andrey Vandenko
And what do you think of slogans like "We can repeat it", in the run-up to May 9…
Vladimir Putin
What slogans?
Andrey Vandenko
You know, the ones usually seen on the back of a BMW or a Mercedes on May 9 – "We can repeat it", "To Berlin!"...
Vladimir Putin
Look, you...
Andrey Vandenko
"Thank you Grandpa for the Victory"…
Vladimir Putin
“Thank you Grandpa for the Victory” is a good one.
Andrey Vandenko
What about "We can do it again"?
Vladimir Putin
You know what? It could be interpreted in many ways. The Soviet Union was subjected to a dreadful, horrible, unforgivable attack by Nazi Germany. We lost 27 million people. No other country in the world sustained such an enormous loss. So, if anyone ever dares to try anything like that again, “we can repeat it”.
Andrey Vandenko
Well, it would have been better if we never had to …
Vladimir Putin
Of course, we never wanted it and never will. Accordingly, the Russian leadership, too, has never looked at this issue from that angle. Therefore, if we consider the slogan you mentioned from this perspective, it is enough to recall the words of Alexander Nevsky: "Whosoever comes against us by the sword shall perish by the sword."
Sources: The Great Russian Encyclopedia.