Tucker Carlson has claimed that Vladimir Putin is willing to compromise on Ukraine after holding an ‘off the record’ chat with the Russian president in Moscow.
The American talk show held a blockbuster interview last week with the Russian leader who made a series of extraordinary claims.
Carlson told the World Government Summit in Dubai in a speech on Monday that based on the pair’s discussion, he believes Putin is now prepared to come to a compromise with Ukraine – two years after he launched his brutal invasion.
‘Of course, the very work of the leaders of any country on this planet, except perhaps the United States during a unipolar world, forces them to find a compromise. This is what is called diplomacy,’ Carlson said, according to TASS.
‘And he [Putin] is among them (leaders who are ready to seek a compromise).’
Carlson is reported to have also told the summit that he had an ‘off the record’ discussion with the Russian despot, but did not specify its content.
The interview, held on Tuesday in Moscow and broadcast on Thursday, was the first interview with a Western media figure since the February 2022 invasion.
During the interview, Putin pushed his narrative on the war in Ukraine, urging Washington to recognize Moscow’s interests and press Kyiv to sit down for talks.
Putin also repeated his claim the full-scale invasion – which Kyiv and its allies describe as an unprovoked act of aggression – was to protect Russian interests and prevent Ukraine from posing a threat to Russia by joining NATO.
Ukraine has repeatedly said it would not come to a compromise with Russia that involved giving up its land and has said it is determined to liberate all its land occupied by Moscow’s forces – including the Donbas region and Crimea.