Putin Says US Continues To 'Occupy Germany' Decades After World War II

Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed Germany is still occupied by the United States decades after the end of World War II.

Speaking in an interview on Russian television, Putin added that due to the American occupation, Germany is unable to act independently more than 70 years after it surrendered at the end of World War II.

"The matter is that European politicians have said themselves publicly that after World War Two, Germany was never a fully sovereign state," Putin told state-owned media Rossiya-1 TV, Reuters reported.

"The Soviet Union at one point withdrew its forces and ended what amounted to an occupation of the country. But that, as is well known, was not the case with the Americans. They continue to occupy Germany," he continued.

In addition to his remarks on Germany, the Russian president said European leaders had been intimidated into losing their sense of sovereignty and independence. He did not specify who they may be intimidated by.

Putin's comments come amid investigations into the blasts that targeted Russia's Nord Steam gas pipelines in September last year. So far, Western countries said they believe the attack to be deliberate, but have declined to name who they think was responsible.

New intelligence reviewed by U.S. officials suggested that a pro-Ukrainian group carried out the blasts, but added that they found no evidence that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky or Kyiv's top lieutenants were involved in the attack, as per The New York Times.

Last week, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius suggested that the blasts could have been a "false-flag operation to blame Ukraine."

"We have to make a clear distinction whether it was a Ukrainian group, whether it may have happened under Ukrainian orders, or a pro-Ukrainian group without knowledge of the government," Pistorius said. "There has also been talks that it may have been a so-called false flag operation. This would not be a first in the history of such events."

In response, Putin dismissed "nonsense" suggestions that the blasts were carried out by an autonomous pro-Ukrainian group, adding that the attack had to be carried out on a "state level."