here you're an exclusive 1000000 tons of plastic with another way. after all, the environment isn't to recyclable. make up your own mind. d, w, made for mines. this is did avenues broadcasting from belinda in this special program. we take one step back and ask, why did vladimir putin invade ukraine? he claimed it was to deny divine and demilitarized the country. but is that the real reason? and what to the answers to be about, who teens russia? and what about president putin himself, joe biden believes he wants to re establish the former soviet union. does the u. s . president have appoint who should say,

because they use the collapse of the soviet union was the greatest geopolitical disaster of the century. a tragedy for all russian the stolen. that's the issue. ah, i'm british manager, welcome to this special program on russia invasion of ukraine. in the next half hour. we look at the real motivations behind vladimir proteins attack on a sovereign nation and how the events of the cold war informed the russian presidents world view. but 1st, a look at ukraine and its citizens and independent people facing a war, forced on to them, disbelief, eco. so ukraine cities, an ugly wall that is destroying homes and hopes you

clicked on your door. i never thought that this could happen when i never thought this would truly happen in my life time you cook than you do, marsh, we wrote poems about the 2nd world war associates of our fisheries. with your service to here. i myself, am a teacher here short credit. we studied the history for avi, but we never thought that it would happen here. you go down to one of the brother machine is in molina. colorado has lived in this apartment block in the city of 2. yes. in easton ukraine, it has become an inhabitable in the capitals, keefe bombs hit this residential area where she was sleeping. oksana gall hinkle was thrown 3 meters from her bed to the corridor. the goal is to go your feet. if you are young, she knew i was completely confused. i didn't understand what was happening to me. it was as if i was lifted up and dropped from y'all. then i heard screams,

sands. i got up and saw all the windows smashed broken glasses. i quickly gathered a few things, documents i had prepared, and i ran out into the street with the he will know the let's be in the story for many, those who can have rushed to leave the city. the result, thousands of keep residents stuck in traffic, especially children are traumatized. when keith resident was set with his family describes their experience was a card moments i would say because you always have the dilemma. what to tell to kids. on one hand, you don't, you know, on one hand, you don't want to scare them. but on the other hand, so you don't want to lie to them. and we decided to take it to tell them the truth . and we tell that the word started and that we are in danger. and that's

why we need to go to our grannies because safe place this but in ukraine. hardly any place seems safe. in keith, people have been seeking projects in the metro station score, basements and pumps out of i guess this is a shelter. so here sitting in the counter and shelter and checking the news constantly told us something might happen around 5 pm. reading other gathered in an improvised shelter in a hotel. our units actually, ankle is a cook here. but going up to work is not an option.

it's hard but i'm holding on. have you slept to day fall when we were sleeping? plus an explosion woke us up with us for 20. i am near our house. a missile was shut down. what happens next? no one knows certain, but it seems certain that many more ukrainians will suffer before the fighting stops. and it has been use teams are on the ground reporting on the fighting. corresponding funding for char was in keith and sent us this report on what people in ukraine's capital city are experiencing. you do see the thing in people's eyes regardless whether they say that they stay poor and they want to resist with or without arms. but that fear basically results in different reactions or some people left or trying to leave ukraine. they are long, long queues that are forming a both on the highways towards the west,

long queues forming at gasoline stations. people were packing up and food and basic things at the fume supermarket that is still open. he and keith, so they are, people are really panicking and they want to leave. but then the others who are concerned as well, but they say they're not going to take the sovereignty, the freedom, the democracy of the country away. in fact, i've just seen a few hours ago, a young man on his bicycle carrying a ukrainian flag. he was the only man here, the only person here at my don at independence square. and it really was a picture to me that justice concern this fear. but there's also a sense, or a bood of, of, of, of basically not, not having russia to say what the future of this country is. and it years back in 2014, exactly on the square of a funny was reporting from the people of ukraine decided they didn't want to be part of russia's fault. their choice reflected in their protests on that very

square chaos. death and revolution on keith's might on square in 2014 protesters. he won't, closer ties with europe stand against pro russian president victor young coverage. his forces killed more than a 100 then who fled to russia. the kremlin, called it a qu soon, soldiers an unmarked uniforms. so called little green men appeared in ukraine's crimea a crimea referendum on whether to leave ukraine and join. russia was rejected as illegal by the international community. but it was followed swiftly by russian annexation of crimea in march 2014. by early summer that year, an insurgency against ukrainian rule had broken out in the eastern on bass region, fell the ukrainian army and russian by separatists fought and on. thus,

a civilian jet was short. don't malaysian airlines flight em. each 17 had nearly 300 people on board investigation said it had been hit by a russian missile. by autumn 2014. the front lines had stabilized, despite continued shooting. the un estimates that more than 13000 people have been killed. efforts to resolve the conflict politically via the minsk process failed to make much headway. years of uneasy deadlock were broken in spring 2021. when russia sent military hardware and tens of thousands of troops to ukraine's borders by late april, there was relief in keith. as the kremlin said, it would recall his soldiers and that russian president vladimir putin would meet us president joe biden. but some analysts say much of the military hardware and many troops actually stayed uloa. lita know

that summer putin backed his military ideas with a long se. he claimed ukrainians and russians were one people and said ukraine could only be sovereign in partnership with russia. but ukrainian president followed him as lensky refused to make concessions during the peace process. over don bath and in november, moscow sent tens of thousands of troops back to ukraine's borders and into neighboring belarus. this time they were accompanied by enough hardware for a sustained campaign. and that campaign has led to their destruction and death. we are witnessing now to help us make sense of the russian attack. i'm joined in the studio by the devil's chief international editor, richard walker, and from videos in lithuania, by d. w. russia analyst, constantine. i got richard to you 1st. i think the question on everybody's mind is,

why did president putin invade ukraine? you have a very, we're going to go in deep into the background, of course, in our talks today. and it's great to be on with konstantin today to talk about this as well. but i think the sort of the, the most immediate reason is that vladimir putin has decided to do what he can to dial back the clock to before the protest that we saw at the end of 2013 beginning of 2014 there, which toppled a government that was favorable towards russia in ukraine. he wants to dial back the clock to before then. he doesn't like the political direction that ukraine is taken in recent years. he isn't like this strategic direction. it's 8 and he didn't like the social direction. he's taken it taken so he is decided to remove the government and replace it with one. it's more in the previous mode. one that he finds more clients to,

to his view of what you train should be. and that is the view that we will be discussing as we go along. richard will stay with us in the studio and konstantin requested to stay on the line as well. because we do need to talk about president fulton who is really central to understanding the reasons behind this war. now german chancellor olaf shoulds earlier in the week called this invasion fourteen's wall as 5 turned president. shirt is a quick look at what drives him and shapes his convictions. this is how vladimir putin likes to portray himself strong, loyal to his country, and adventurous. the dare devil who doesn't shy away from danger. at the start of his career, it was a different story. back then, he was considered a blank slate as an intelligence officer. he spent years in dresden in the former

east, germany after the fall of the iron curtain. shortly before the end of the soviet union, he returned to his homeland and became a confidant of russian president boris yeltsin, who groomed him as his successor. putin 1st became prime minister that in may 2000 . he was inaugurated as president. his goal was for russia to once again become a global power in goshen. your savior. schools are using the collapse of the soviet union was the greatest geopolitical disaster of the century. a tragedy for all russian estella? mister, yes, she did. army putin calls his way of governing guided democracy. he has brought much of the russian media under kremlin control and disempowered. oligarchs who had grown rich under the chaotic years of yelton's reign. prudence decisive action in chechnya also brought him widespread support. there he waged an uncompromising war against islamist rebels. the war in which many civilians were

also killed. in terms of foreign policy potent initially had a good relationship with his western counterparts. i like the man and the i i found be very straightforward and trustworthy. personally, but bruton has always viewed nato's expansion after 1997 with suspicion. when the pro russian government in ukraine fell in the autumn of 2013 brewton intervened. separatists took control of eastern ukraine and russian soldiers occupied the ukrainian peninsula of crimea. then russia and next it was the usual after a difficult, lengthy tiring journey, crimea, and so as to pull a returning to the home harbor. shout sir. oh, no,

you're going. golden putin was excluded from the g h that and the u. s. and the e u. imposed strong economic sanctions against russia, but protein has stuck to his course governing in an increasingly authoritarian manner. he has quashed protests against his policies. russian opposition, members live in fear. michelle quarter cowski was inundated with trials than forced into exile boris nymphs off was murdered in the street. aleck st. volney was poisoned than saved by german doctors. the kremlin actively supports anti democratic movements across europe. russian hackers attempt to influence elections in russia. putin as regarded by many as the eternal president. he's been re elected

4 times. and in 2020, he changed the constitution, allowing him to stay in power even longer. vladimir putin took over his country at a difficult time, but his lead it with a firm hand. something analysts don't see changing any time soon. no, i was like you grainy and her back now with the russian affairs, unless constantine exit and villiers and in studio did of the chief international editor, richard a walker. constantine. i'd like to go to you 1st. a lot has been written about president 14 and his time as a kid you these by during the cold war in your view, how much does that shape him and president putin's worldview? well morning, not so good morning for the speaking. i think that the person essential thing is not to describe the reason why it was never spy. the case would be with a huge political police organization, in which only one director,

the 1st cheap direct it was actually occupied with spying. but you never served in it. the actually seemingly aspired to go there. but he was sent to east germany, the g d r as an officer or a different director under the cover of director of the russian cultural rather this time of course. so the cultural center in germany and it seems that his, his occupation was to watch the internal german opposition and to probably monitor the activity of the salyers personnel. that was patient. that was, that was, i would like to remind you with a 1000000 strong saw the contingent army confusion stations of germany. so i suppose that the k j b as such, of course, influence. it was the time when he thought he's going to make a fantastic area because being a k

b officer was extremely prestigious in in the soviet union gave you a lot of perks about additionally huge power people would tear you if you were a kid to be agent, so i teach the officer, so i think that this impacts him hugely. and his desire if you wish to have this power on said paula. intimidating power is very much part of the i think k to be thinking another thing that's important and full disclosure i said 3, yes. translator for the sort of admin permission, me least i was doing just my national army service. but of course, in the course for my job, i've seen quite a few people from the k to b. and what actually characterize them is a belief in conspiracy theories. and secondly, this understanding that this argument doesn't work,

but it doesn't work because people do not have enough sausage. you put the sausage back in the shops for some private enterprise and you can run it. wonderful. and i think that the cynical view of the, of human nature, actually another important thing to understand. i'd like to go back to the point that you made about paula. and i'd like to tie that in with what present fortune has said in the past. he has said, and we just played that report as well. he has said that the collapse of the soviet union was a tragedy for all russians. so what you're saying is that this is not so much about russian pride, but personal power for president fulton. well definitely, and actually he used and even stronger term. he called the collapse of the soviet union. the biggest joke political catastrophe of the 20th century. and i think that it's true that he is on how to look thing is that

occasion the office. so i was always brought up on this saying, i think there's risky, the founder of the check and see or to get from the way that the page of the office is the security concerns of all the nights showing on the revolution. and that breeds this understanding all on the one hand you belong to the elite organization, or the other hand you fulfilling the national destiny. put in that translates into one thing, but it is essentially yes him because he is defending a normal course. and it is pretty much indistinguishable personal power and conviction, but also to stay on the line like to talk to you, richard, just based on what constantly was saying and went back to the point that you were making about. he wants ukraine to be in a sense, observant term and to go back to the time before 2014. when i was,

let's just say within the russian folder was at least pro russian in many ways up. how do you see the current situation in light of that and the fact that for president putin personally power and national pride conflate into one yet will it's been really interesting to watch what vladimir putin has been saying during the course of this week as well. so it's been a week after the demo with events, of course, but at the beginning of the week, he made this extraordinary address to the nation at the time where he announced this for the 1st intensification of the crisis. this week that he was recognizing these break away regions of eastern ukraine as in japan states. and this speech that he gave was really, and it would be fascinating to hear some constantino's take on it as well, but it was an hour, long 7 and a half 1000 words in english translation. and it took this historical sweep in an

effort to justify what he was about to do. and now in retrospect, what he's done later in a week, as well, with the agent. and he completely legitimize the idea that ukraine is a sovereign states instead regarding it as something that is an appendage of the russian empire essentially. and going way back even before the soviet union and accusing soviet leaders such as lenin and stalin even of making mistakes with regard to ukraine. so taking an even kind of grand, a long sweep view of russian history and giving this strong impression that he feels after 20 plus years in power. and perhaps with another decade and a half in power. but certainly beginning to think about his legacy as a russian leader, that he wants to undo some of what he sees as the mistakes of the past. and essentially re unite. what he sees essentially is

a part of the russian empire notices over an independent state. let's just take a constant and continue resorting. richard talk that he talked about this historical script that the president potent referred to in, is devised address. can you give us some context on this? what prompts a russian leader to think that ukraine, which is recognized as a sovereign nation, does not essentially a whole sovereignty and needs to bend to russian will. well, for that you need from the to live side by side, the futons understand what prompted this amazing turn in which basically now it's for the whole world to see that there's only one issue with which puts in is frankly speaking, upset, and this is your crime. to put it in the why the context? judging by this, a speech to which region alluded 7 last out was plot the piece or he wrote for the credit websites, $5000.00 words plus the do explain or well,

judging by them, it seems that he sees essentially getting back your crime as a way of writing the role of the unjust collapse of the study, and then just treatments of the saw the and then russian states by the west. and this is a way of saying we are still strong. we have our own sphere of influence. but i think i was there, i think it goes further judging by some, by the text. and that is by quite a few russian experts and actually people getting in til origin history put in. it's been impacted by the and very strongly by the ideas of cure. rushing to lots of our yvonne in he was white and a great philosopher up to the boss makes one of the civil war in russia in early

20th century. so some people say that if the boss makes lawsuit, he would have been the philosophical founder of kind of russian corporate. this states allow saline, this idea that russia needs one strong leader, no matter what is the name and president governor. and that's russia can only survive if it keeps the 3 slavic name together. russian russians and ukrainian. this is very, very strong friends that goes through the writings of this man in. and it seems that it took him on board. he quoted him several times. and you speech us before, and i suppose that this is an attempt to write one's own page in history in well in golden letters because it's all but now this is, this is written in the blood of the unfortunately, that does appear to be the case of constantine,

thanks so much for that. richard. quick final word from you, joe biden said the president putting attempts to be going back to the days of the soviet union. is that because? well, i think we've just been hearing that, you know, you could even say that he's attempting to go back even further. and i think with westport, western leaders really worried about at the moment and it links him with what konstantin was saying there about the single powerful leader is that it at this moment in his period in power, vladimir putin is totally uncontested. he's been in office for over 20 years. we saw during the course of this week these extraordinary displays of the subservient even his closest team around him in the kremlin, where he was belittling the head of his foreign intelligence service on live television. there is no one in russia in a position of power, it appears to act as any kind of check on his behavior. and as we're seeing in ukraine,

he's willing to go into very serious risks. so concerns about how far the school untrammeled power the he has, what he could lead to richard will have to enter there. thanks so much for joining us in the studio constant in thank you so much for being with us. that's the end of this program. but coverage of russia's vision of ukraine continues on, did of the news. you can always check out our website for the latest or on facebook and twitter pages. that's it. with ah,

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d w. ah ah ah, this is dw news live from berlin civilian targets on the fly in rushes on ukraine. and apartment block stuff is a direct rocket strike is russian forces attempt to seize control of a key sub. this comes, as russia says, it is using cruise missiles against you, cried also on the show seeking refuge from russia's aggression ukrainians make it to safety in poland, including children. his father turned back to fight for that country.