During the meeting, Putin first thanked all the religious organizations for their support for the Russian army, Russian soldiers and their families, and all those who are fighting for Russia as part of special military operations.
Then Putin said that he wanted to address the situation in the Middle East, "because it concerns us and I will tell you why now."
Noting that all of Russia is following with concern and pain the tragic situation in the Holy Land, which is of great significance for Christians, Muslims and Jews, representatives of the world's largest traditional religions, the Russian leader said that the new escalation in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict has already claimed thousands of lives:
"Russia has experienced and knows what international terrorism is. We know what it is. We will always feel the pain of the irreparable losses the country has suffered in the years of the fight against international terrorism.
In the October 7 attack, I would like to express my sincere condolences to the Israelis and citizens of other countries whose relatives were killed or injured.
But it is also clear to us that innocent people should not be held responsible for the crimes of others. The fight against terrorism cannot be conducted on the principle of collective responsibility, where old people, women, children, entire families are killed, where hundreds of thousands are left without shelter, food, water, electricity and medical care. This is a humanitarian catastrophe."
Recalling that Russia's position on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is well known and has been clearly stated many times, Putin said: "This position has no conjunctural character in connection with the current situation. It is based on UN Security Council resolutions that envisage the establishment of two independent and sovereign states - Palestine and Israel. This is the key to a long-term, fundamental solution and peace in the Middle East. This is the traditional position of first the Soviet Union and then Russia since 1948," he said, adding:
"Our task today, our main task, is to stop the bloodshed and violence. Otherwise, further escalation of the crisis will lead to the most severe and extremely dangerous, destructive consequences. And not only for the Middle East region. It can spread far beyond the borders of the Middle East. This is what I have repeatedly emphasized in my speeches, in numerous telephone conversations, in personal meetings with the leaders of the Middle East and other countries."
"At the same time, we see attempts by some forces to further increase tensions, to draw as many countries and peoples as possible into the conflict, to use them for their own selfish interests, to unleash a real wave of chaos and mutual hatred not only in the Middle East but also far beyond it. To this end, they play on the national and religious feelings of millions of people. And this policy, so to speak, has been in place for a long time, long before the current crisis."
"THEY DO IT ACCORDING TO THE PRINCIPLE OF DIVIDE AND RULE"
"Muslims are being incited against Jews, calling for 'war with infidels'. Shiites and Sunnis, Orthodox Christians and Catholics are pitted against each other," Putin said, adding, "In Europe, desecration of Muslim holy places and vandalism are condoned. In some countries, Nazi criminals and anti-Semites with the blood of Holocaust victims on their hands are glorified at the official level. In Ukraine, they are moving in the direction of banning the legitimate Orthodox Church and deepening the church schism," he added.
"In my opinion, the purpose of all these actions is clear. To increase instability in the world, to divide cultures, peoples, world religions, to provoke a clash of civilizations," the Russian leader said, adding, "They are doing all this according to the famous principle of divide and rule. At the same time, they talk about a new world order. But this new order actually means the same thing. Hypocrisy, double standards, claims of privilege, dominating the whole world, in fact, preserving the neo-colonial system."
"The West sees how the process of creating a multipolar world order is gaining momentum. They use the same tools - Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, Russophobia - to block the development of independent, sovereign countries, to divide the world majority,"
Putin said:
"The outbreak of violence and hatred not only in the Middle East but also in other regions, the relapse of old 'hot spots' and the emergence of new ones, is, of course, in the interests of those powers that pursue or are trying to pursue such a policy."
Putin went on to say:
"These forces, which in many ways direct the conflict in the Middle East, foment and incite extreme nationalism and religious intolerance around the world, are of course pursuing their hostile goals against our country. The governments of some countries are openly expressing these goals. This goal, in their words, is the strategic defeat of our country. There is nothing new here either. The conflict in the Middle East and other religious and ethnic conflicts in other parts of the world have their roots in."
