“The second reason for the crisis is the West’s constant attempts to drag Ukraine into NATO,” the Russian president added.
Putin was speaking at the SCO summit, attended by Russian allies, including Chinese President Xi Jinping, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.
Moscow and Beijing have touted the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation as an alternative to Western-led political and security blocs, including NATO.
Putin said the world needed a “system that would replace outdated Eurocentric and Euro-Atlantic models, and take into account the interests of the widest circle of countries”.
“We highly value the efforts and proposals of China, India, and our other strategic partners, aimed at contributing to resolving the Ukrainian crisis,” he added.
Despite US President Donald Trump urging both Moscow and Kyiv to strike an agreement to end the war, peace proposals have stuttered.
Putin has rejected calls for a ceasefire and tabled hardline territorial and political demands – calling for Ukraine to cede more territory and renounce Western backing – as preconditions for peace. Kyiv has ruled them out as non-starters.
The Russian leader said he would discuss the diplomacy to end the conflict and his latest talks with Trump in a series of bilateral meetings.
