Russian President Vladimir Putin once again claimed that Moscow is the “Third Rome”, trying to back his neo-imperial agenda with pseudo-religious rhetoric. He spoke in the film by Saida Medvedeva and Pavel Zarubin entitled “Russia. Kremlin. Putin. 25 years”, released on Rossiya-1 TV, reports 7×70.
Putin once again recalled the medieval concept of “Moscow is the Third Rome”, where supposedly Russia is the successor of Byzantium and “true Christianity”, as opposed to the West, which, according to him, “has deformed” the faith. “We have decided that we are the successors of true Christianity. Moscow is the Third Rome, there will be no fourth one. Here we are, true Christians,” the Russian leader said.
Such statements are a typical example of the Kremlin’s ideological manipulation, where historical myths are used to justify expansion, aggression, and interference in other countries’ affairs. Putin contrasts Russia with the West, attributing to Protestants and Catholics “the desire for material gain,” while portraying Russia as the world’s alleged moral and spiritual leader.
“In Russia, people always talk about the moral principle,” Putin declared pompously, at the same time justifying Moscow’s aggressive policy by supposedly protecting spirituality. Such rhetoric has nothing to do with Christian values; instead, it is designed to create the image of a “besieged fortress” and demonize the West.
The Russian president also repeated the old Kremlin talking point that the West is “encroaching on Russia” and “seeks to divide it.” Once again, Putin is trying to explain Russia’s geopolitical isolation not by its own aggression (in particular, against Ukraine) but by the alleged hostility of the outside world to “moral” Russia.
There were also historical distortions as Putin claimed that the negative assessment of Ivan the Terrible had arisen because he “remained Orthodox.” Ignoring the facts of mass repressions, bloody crimes, and political terror during the time of Ivan IV, Putin portrays him as victim of the Catholic West.