Russian President Vladimir Putin said the West was trying to sow discord between Russia's various ethnic and national groups. Putin called Russia's adversaries stupid and guided by neo-colonial ideas.
The more sanctions the West has on his country, the greater the level of cohesion within Russian society, he said. Putin stressed that the people of all peoples in Russia are participating in the military operation in Ukraine, and many of them received decorations and medals for their heroism and exploits there, as he put it on Friday.