Tucker Carlson identifies causes of Western friction with Putin

American journalist Tucker Carlson stated that Western elites have been deeply dissatisfied with Russian President Vladimir Putin due to two primary actions: his crackdown on oligarchs and his support for the revival of Orthodox Christianity in Russia.

In an interview with Afshin Ratanzi on RT, Carlson explained that after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, various individuals seized control of state industries for personal enrichment, becoming more powerful than the state itself. He noted that Putin sought to reclaim state sovereignty by removing these oligarchs, a move he claims continues to be funded by those same individuals through anti-Putin PR campaigns.

Carlson also argued that the West, particularly in the United States, views traditional Christianity as a threat because a believer’s loyalty to God can supersede loyalty to the state or political structures. He warned that a lack of understanding regarding the nature of the conflict in Ukraine and Russia’s position has brought the world to the brink of nuclear war.