DISINFO: The West has one goal: to eliminate Russia
SUMMARY
The West has one goal - to cash out the former USSR and the Russian Federation. Then they can accept Russia into the so-called family of civilized peoples, but each part separately [...] to push around these parts and put them under control.
If Russia follows the path that the West dreams of, [...] the Russian people, the ethnic group, will hardly be able to survive.
Russia needs to ensure its security and strategic stability.
In today's conditions, all the leading NATO countries have declared their main goal to inflict a strategic defeat on us so that our people suffer.
RESPONSE
An unfounded statement, aiming to stir up anti-Western sentiment in Russia without providing any evidence.
Pro-Kremlin outlets accusing the West of anti-Russian policies, aggressive Russophobia and allegedly belligerent and hostile agenda to destroy, ruin Russia, aiming to portray Russia as a victim and deflect any responsibility for Moscow’s illicit actions. See also Russian Myths: no.5 Encirclement.
The West has never strived to destroy Russia as a state. From the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the emergence of a new and democratic Russia and up to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine in 2014, the West has been trying to establish good-neighbourly relations with Moscow. According to the 1997 Founding Act on Mutual Relations, Cooperation and Security between NATO and the Russian Federation, Russia was viewed as a partner of the alliance.
The EU has conducted half-year summits with the Russian leadership for years until 2014 in an effort to enhance relations. EU has also tried to change the course of Russia's aggressive actions and give diplomacy a chance such as with the efforts of HRVP Josep Borrell - see here.
The West emphasizes that they are not striving for the collapse of Russia or for some kind of reformatting of it. US President Joe Biden, speaking recently in Warsaw, addressed Russian citizens, assuring them that the US does not seek to destroy or control Russia. French president Macron stated that "Russia must be defeated but not crushed."
The sharp deterioration in relations between the West and Russia is directly linked to Moscow's illegal actions. A number of issues affect bilateral relations, including Russia’s aggressive actions in Ukraine, in the EU’s Eastern Neighbourhood, Syria, Libya, and elsewhere, and repeated malign activities including disinformation campaigns.
The EU imposed restrictive measures on Moscow in 2014, which have been amplified and broadened since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022. It is Russia that refused the diplomatic process and started an unprovoked war in Europe, capturing more and more territories of a neighbouring country and creating a serious danger to European security.
For background, read our analysis: The “Russophobia” Myth: Appealing to the Lowest Feelings.