Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
To make it even weirder, his analogy is wrong.
Russian President Vladimir Putin recently offered an unusual lesson to explain the conflict in Ukraine.
During a conversation with a Chinese-language teacher who visited the North Pole, the Russian leader pointed to the animal kingdom, according to a report by The Moscow Times, cited by RBC-Ukraine.
He described how killer whales interact with polar bears in the frozen north.
“They (orcas) eat these bears like small fry. Yes… They just attack in a pack and boom — tear them to pieces. It’s all very interesting. Such a food chain. Children also need to be told about this so they understand what kind of world we live in and why we are conducting the special military operation,” Putin stated when the educator was telling him about his trip to the North Pole, according to the report from The Moscow Times.
Faulty food chain
The Russian leader did not stop at marine predators. He also cited writer Jack London, referencing northern tribal customs where elderly people were abandoned to wolves because the tribes could not carry them.
“Yes, it all looks rather harsh, but that’s how they live,” Putin said.
However, his wildlife comparison quickly fell apart under scrutiny. Biologists note that killer whales do not hunt polar bears, and no confirmed cases of such attacks exist, RBC-Ukraine noted.
At most, polar bears occasionally scavenge whale remains left behind by orcas. That detail makes the intended metaphor backfire on anyone trying to paint the bear as a dominant predator.
No peace ahead
These strange remarks come as the Kremlin rejects diplomatic talks. Putin recently described widespread attacks on civilian infrastructure as “effective and timely” measures for his forces on the front line.
Ukrainian diplomat Sergiy Kyslytsya noted that the Russian leader relies on public terror rather than real negotiation, hoping winter hardship will wear down resistance.
At the same time, aggressive rhetoric in Moscow keeps escalating. Russian lawmaker Alexei Zhuravlyov recently called for tactical nuclear strikes on Ukraine to force a sudden surrender, showing how far political figures are willing to go.
