According to Tony Blair, the war in Ukraine must end without Vladimir Putin benefiting. In an interview with Corriere della Sera, the former British Prime Minister recalled being the first Western leader to meet the Tsar during his ten years at Downing Street: “We should be concerned about reaching the end of the conflict , and Italy has made some suggestions in this regard these days. The basis must be that Russia does not take advantage of this aggression and that it has the consent of the Ukrainian people. That was an unjustified attack. And having often met President Putin in the early stages of his presidency with the idea that he was surrounded by hostile powers, that America, the UK and Europe were trying to humiliate Russia, that idea is unfounded ».
Currently, Blair explains in an interview with Alessandra Muglia, it is difficult to find a solution: “The problem is that in the first weeks of the war, before atrocities were committed, it was relatively easy to find a solution. Now no: Ukrainians feel they rejected the Russians, but also that Russia still occupies a large part of their territory, so they will want to catch up before sitting down at the table ». For Blair, Putin’s invasion of Ukraine was initially the result of an error in assessment: “My foundation has a project in Ukraine and I’ve been there every year since my resignation as prime minister. No one who knows the land and is familiar with its people would believe that they would welcome an invasion. But Putin was convinced of the opposite and none of his followers made him think twice. So now Putin is surrounded by people who don’t dare to tell him the truth. This is dangerous “.
