Fall Of Berlin Wall Led To ‘Assignments Of Guilt’: Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin said the fall of the Berlin Wall did not unite Europe by any means.

“25 years ago, the Berlin Wall fell, but invisible walls were moved to the East of Europe," the Russian president told in an interview with Bild. “This has led to mutual misunderstandings and assignments of guilt.”

According to the BBC, German Chancellor Angela Merkel believes the fall of the Berlin Wall was a result of West Germany’s consistent policy of negotiation with communist leaders in the East. British and American hawks, however, believe it was a result of U.S. President Ronald Reagan's tough militaristic stance with Moscow.

Putin said in his interview with the German news agency that NATO and the United States would like to have “total victory” over the Soviet Union. According to him, NATO and the United States want to “sit alone on the throne in Europe.”

The Russian president referred to U.S. President Barack Obama’s comment in 2009 that the missile defense system would only serve to protect against Iranian nuclear missiles. He believes the United States strives “for an absolute triumph in the American missile defense plans.”

When asked if Russia made any mistakes, Putin said Russia made a mistake by being “too late.” He said the world would still be in balance if Russia had presented its national interests more clearly since the beginning.

“After the demise of the Soviet Union, we had many problems of our own for which no one was responsible but ourselves: the economic downfall, the collapse of the welfare system, the separatism, and of course the terror attacks that shook our country,” Putin said. “In this respect, we do not have to look for guilty parties abroad.”