US Feeds On Crisis How Countries Have Supported Russia In The Ongoing Conflict With Ukraine

The Russian offensive against Ukraine rages on with its troops making their way to Kyiv and other major cities, wreaking havoc and destruction on their way.

While the attack has drawn international condemnation from world leaders — even from some of its political allies in Europe such as the leaders of Hungary and the Czech Republic, there are others who view the Ukraine crisis as a making of the West, especially that of United States.

Follow all LIVE updates on the Russia-Ukraine crisis here

Here’s a look at who are Russia’s supporters and what they have to say about the Ukraine conflict.

Iran

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Tuesday called for the war to end and said that US policies are to blame for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“The root cause of the Ukraine crisis is the US and the West’s policies,” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a televised speech marking a Muslim religious anniversary.

“The United States regime is a crisis-creating and crisis-living one. It feeds on crisis.

“In my opinion, today Ukraine is also the victim of such policy. Today, the Ukraine situation is related to this US policy. The US has dragged Ukraine to this point,” he added.

He accused Washington of meddling in the “internal affairs of the country, setting up demonstrations against the governments, creating velvet revolutions, creating colour coup d’etats”.

He added that states which depend on the support of the US and Western powers need to know they cannot trust such countries.”

In his hourlong speech on the Ukraine war, the supreme leader did not mention Russia once.

China

China has remained mum on Russia’s offensive against Ukraine.

However, last Thursday Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying criticised journalists’ use of the word “invasion” as a “typically Western” method of questioning.

Also read: China refuses to call Russia’s military attack on Ukraine an ‘invasion’: Where does Beijing fit in conflict

“China is closely watching the latest situation, and we call on all parties to maintain restraint and prevent the situation from getting out of control,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a regular press briefing where she was repeatedly asked if Beijing condemned the actions.

Later, the China’s permanent representative to the United Nations Zhang Jun noted that Ukraine’s issue is “rooted in a complex web of historical and present factors”.

Beijing also criticised the sanctions that Europe and the US have levied against Russia over the conflict.

“The US has imposed sanctions on Russia for more than 100 times since 2011,” China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said during a 25 February news conference. “Facts show that sanctions are never the fundamental or effective way to solve problems.”

Ultimately, Wang said China calls on “all parties to exercise restraint and prevent further escalation of the situation.”

Syria

Syria’s president Bashar al-Assad, it has been reported, has praised Russia’s military incursion into Ukraine, denouncing what he called Western “hysteria” surrounding it.

According to official SANA news agency, the Syrian leader in a phone call to Vladimir Putin said that what was happening in Ukraine was a “correction of history and restoration of balance which was lost in the world after the breakup of the Soviet Union”.

Damascus is a staunch ally of Moscow, which intervened in the Syrian civil war in 2015 by launching air attacks to support al-Assad’s struggling forces against various rebel factions.

Russia’s intervention in Syria marked a turning point in the conflict. It enabled pro-regime forces to wrest back lost territory in a series of victories against rebels involving deadly bombardments and huge destruction.

Belarus

Belarus, which borders both Russia and Ukraine in Eastern Europe, has expressed its support for Russia’s invasion of its shared neighbour.

President Alexander Lukashenko, sometimes referred to as ‘the last dictator’ in Europe, has maintained close ties to Russia.

Also read: Russia and Ukraine to hold talks: Why Kyiv initially rejected Belarus as host nation

As the conflict began, the Belarusian president said his country’s military could step in to aid Russia if needed.
He also urged Ukrainians to “stop” their confrontation with Russia – and abandon their US “masters.” “Stop! Shoo away these masters from over the ocean. They won’t bring you any happiness. As soon as they can’t use you any more, they will dump you at the junkyard of history,” said the 67-year-old, as per an Al Jazeera report.

Cuba

Cuba, which shares a fraught history with the United States, sharply criticised the western superpower for imposing “the progressive expansion of NATO towards the borders of the Russian Federation”.

Cuba’s foreign ministry said the US had ramped up threats against Vladimir Putin, aggravating the crisis. The Cuban statement did not specifically mention Russian advances into the separatist regions of eastern Ukraine.

Pakistan

Pakistan’s prime minister Imran Khan met with Putin as the Russian invasion of Ukraine ensued.

According to an IndiaToday report, he told a Russian official, “What a time I have come so much excitement.”

Khan “regretted the latest situation between Russia and Ukraine and said that Pakistan had hoped diplomacy could avert a military conflict,” according to a statement from Islamabad.

“The prime minister stressed that conflict was not in anyone’s interest, and that the developing countries were always hit the hardest economically in case of conflict. He underlined Pakistan’s belief that disputes should be resolved through dialogue and diplomacy.”

Venezuela

Russian ally Venezuela in South America blamed NATO and the US for the crisis in Ukraine.

President Nicolas Maduro said that his government repudiated “the perverse plans that seek to surround Russia militarily and strategically”.

Venezuela’s foreign ministry said that NATO and the US had violated the Minsk agreements, a 2014 deal aimed at ending a war in Donbas, a separatist region in eastern Ukraine.

“The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela expresses its worry over the worsening of the crisis in Ukraine, and laments the mockery and violation of the Minsk accords on the part of NATO, encouraged by the United States of America,” the ministry said in a statement.

“The derailment of these {Minsk} accords has violated international law and created strong threats against the Russian Federation, its territorial integrity and sovereignty, as well as impeded good relations between neighbouring countries.”

Nicaragua

Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua accused the United States and Europe of “using Ukraine to provoke Russia”, which he said was merely “demanding security”.

Ortega was one of the first world leaders to back Russia’s stance over Ukraine.

Left parties of India

While India has maintained a neutral stance on the escalating crisis, the Left parties condemned Russia’s military action against Ukraine, but defended Moscow’s right to demand security guarantees amid efforts to induct the country it shares a border with into NATO.

Also read: Ukraine-Russia conflict: India is doing a delicate balancing act between Moscow and West, here’s why

In a communique, the CPI(M) said: “After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the United States-led NATO has been steadily expanding eastward, contrary to the assurance given to Russia”.

“The efforts to get Ukraine to join NATO would pose a direct threat to Russia’s security.”

It said Russia is also concerned about its security due to the threat posed by the presence of NATO forces and missiles at its borders in Eastern Europe.

“Hence the Russian demand for security guarantees, including Ukraine not joining NATO, is legitimate,” the CPI(M) said.

With inputs from agencies

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