OREANDA-NEWS. Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the United States organized a coup in Ukraine in 2014, and the countries of Europe weakly supported it, which led to a split within the country and the withdrawal of Crimea from its composition.

The head of state also noted that many countries were faced with an ultimatum - to be with the West or with Russia, and it was this aggressive policy that led to the Ukrainian tragedy.

In his article for the German newspaper Zeit, Putin spoke about NATO expansion, which, in his opinion, effectively buried hopes for a continent without dividing lines. “What, by the way, was warned about in the mid-1980s by one of the leaders of the SPD, Egon Bar, who proposed to radically rebuild the entire European security system after the unification of Germany, both with the participation of the USSR and the USA. But no one in the USSR or in the United States or in Europe did not want to listen to him then," Putin said.

He also spoke about the events in Ukraine. “Moreover, many countries were faced with an artificial choice - to be either with the collective West or with Russia. In fact, it was an ultimatum. What consequences such an aggressive policy led to, we see in the example of the Ukrainian tragedy of 2014. Europe actively supported the anti-constitutional armed coup in Ukraine, "the president writes.

“This is how it all began. Why did it need to be done? Then the current President Yanukovych had already agreed with all the opposition’s demands. Why did the United States organize a coup, and the countries of Europe weakly supported it, provoking a split in Ukraine itself and the withdrawal of Crimea from its composition?” Putin asked a question.