---
title: "Putin Issues Absurd Claims About Ukraine: We Didn't Start the War and Never Attack Civilians First"
description: "Vladimir Putin claimed at the Valdai forum that Russia did not start the war and does not target civilian objects, blaming NATO and Ukraine instead."
date: 2026-10-01T16:34:00.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/putin-issues-absurd-claims-about-ukraine
tags: [vladimir-putin, valdai-club, russia-ukraine-war, nato, g20]
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# Putin Issues Absurd Claims About Ukraine: We Didn't Start the War and Never Attack Civilians First

![Vladimir Putin speaking at the Valdai Discussion Club meeting](https://xab.info/media/2026/10/01/putin-zayavil-chto-rf-ne-nachinala-voynu/putin-zayavil-chto-rf-ne-nachinala-voynu-1.webp)

## 🎯 Key Points

- Putin stated at the Valdai Club that Russia did not start the war against Ukraine.
- The Kremlin chief claims the Russian army supposedly does not attack civilian targets.
- The statements came amid heavy shelling of Ukraine and reports of Valdai's relocation due to drone threats.
- Reports emerged about Putin's potential invitation to the G20 summit in the US in December.

Russian leader Vladimir Putin delivered a series of controversial and absurd statements regarding the full-scale war against Ukraine during the annual meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club. According to the Kremlin chief, responsibility for escalating the conflict allegedly lies not with Moscow, but with NATO countries and the Ukrainian leadership, which he accused of fostering nationalism.

### Background and Rhetoric of the Valdai Forum

In his speech, Putin attempted to justify armed aggression by claiming that Russia was allegedly "deliberately put in a situation where it had to defend itself with weapons in hand." According to the Russian leader, the North Atlantic Alliance began developing the so-called "historical territories of Russia," which forced the Kremlin to take extreme measures. These statements were made against the backdrop of ongoing large-scale hostilities and relentless international pressure on Moscow to halt its campaign.

### Claims of Military Humanity vs. Reality

The Russian dictator devoted special attention in his speech to accusing the Ukrainian side and characterizing the actions of his own army. Putin cynically stated that the Russian military has allegedly never violated the rules of warfare and has never intentionally been the first to attack civilian infrastructure objects.  These words sharply contrast with numerous documented reports from international organizations, the UN, and human rights defenders detailing daily missile and drone strikes on residential buildings, hospitals, energy facilities, and schools across Ukraine.

### Contradictory Data

While official Russian propaganda continues to insist on the purely "defensive" nature of the operation and strict compliance with international humanitarian law, independent investigations and monitoring missions record thousands of episodes of civilian infrastructure destruction. Furthermore, analysts note a change in the logistics of the Valdai forum itself: according to foreign media, the event had to be relocated from Sochi to the Moscow region due to the real threat of Ukrainian drone strikes, highlighting the scale of the ongoing confrontation.

### International Context and Future Prospects

Against the backdrop of these statements, diplomatic efforts to find a settlement continue, although Putin himself noted during his speech that the continuation of international conflicts in the near future is entirely possible.  An additional factor in the global agenda has been reports regarding a potential invitation of the Russian leader to the G20 summit in Miami scheduled for December, which has sparked mixed reactions among Ukraine's Western partners.

## 🔍 Fact-Check Verification

- [Путин выдал порцию абсурда об Украине: "Войну не начинали и первыми по мирным не бьем"](https://www.rbc.ua/ukr/news/putin-vidav-portsiyu-absurdu-ukrayinu-viynu-1790872176.html) - Основной источник цитат Путина с заседания Валдайского клуба.
- [Международный дискуссионный клуб «Валдай»](https://www.gazeta.ru/tags/organization/valdaiskii_klub.shtml) - Справочная информация о клубе Валдай.
- [Путин перенес заседание Валдайского клуба из Сочи в Подмосковье из-за угрозы украинских дронов ...](https://zn.ua/WORLD/putin-perenes-zasedanie-valdajskoho-kluba-iz-sochi-v-podmoskove-iz-za-uhrozy-so-storony-ukrainskikh-dronov-ft.html) - Контекст изменения места проведения мероприятия из-за угрозы БПЛА.
- [#валдайский клуб](https://argumenti.ru/tag/%D0%B2%D0%B0%D0%BB%D0%B4%D0%B0%D0%B9%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9%20%D0%BA%D0%BB%D1%83%D0%B1) - Подтверждено по источнику argumenti.ru

## ❓ FAQ

### Q: Where did Vladimir Putin make his statements about the war?
**A:** The statements were made at the annual meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club.

### Q: How did Putin explain the causes of the war?
**A:** The dictator claimed Russia was forced to defend itself and blamed NATO and nationalism in Ukraine for provoking the conflict.