West Becomes Main Supplier of Weapons to Terrorists Via Kiev, Says Russian FM Spokeswoman at SPIEF

The West has become the main supplier of weapons to terrorists around the world via its arms deliveries to Ukraine, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) on Thursday.

According to the Russian diplomat, Western weapons are smuggled through Kiev to terrorist organizations in Africa, the Middle East, and cells in Western Europe itself.

"The NATO countries, the minority in the world, are supplying weapons, think about it, they are supplying weapons to the terrorist regime. And they are doing it absolutely uncontrolled, which is the worst," Zakharova said, speaking at the session "Philosophy and Geopolitics of the Multipolar World" at SPIEF.

She recalled the prediction made a few years ago by a certain foreign minister of a Gulf state that Western Europe would soon become the main supplier of international terrorism.

"I subscribe to these words. And the terrorists will use the weapons that the USA supplied to the Kiev regime. These weapons are already in the western part of Europe, are already in northern Africa, in the Middle East," Zakharova said.

Sub-Saharan Africa

Terrorist Threat Only Increased in Sahel Amid West’s Series of Ops, Nebenzya Says

29 March 2023, 12:36

She noted that Europe used to suffer from international terrorism in a point-by-point manner.

"[Western Europe] has never been a producer of international terrorism, and now it will be. And they don't realize it yet. They just know how to change the avatars on their social media accounts when there are terrorist attacks here and there... They don't know what it means to become countries with powerful terrorist cells. They already have them, and they will undermine Western Europe more and more," Zakharova warned.

At the same time, Western Europe has no immunity on how to counter this, she noted.

"The law does not work; there is no legality. There is no morality. Religion, which in any way restrained this, is being trampled on, humiliated. People are demoralized; people cannot distinguish between good and evil," Zakharova said.

Russia's cooperation with African

Russia's relations with the countries of the African continent are of an equal and mutually beneficial nature, the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said in response to a reporter's questions on the sidelines of the SPIEF.

"We consider cooperation between Russia and Africa as equal cooperation, and this is very important," Maria Zakharova told reporters at the forum. "The African continent has been intimidated and mistreated over the past centuries by the states that colonized, enslaved and plundered it."

She also recalled that the Soviet Union was behind the decolonization process.

"This is one of the greatest achievements of our country. We have many great achievements, but the involvement of the Soviet Union put an end to colonialism, and I consider it a historic contribution of our country on the way to making the world a better place."

The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) is taking place from June 5 to 8. Sputnik is the forum's media partner.