Tucker Carlson confirms Vladimir Putin interview as he hits out at Western media’s ‘fawning’ Ukraine coverage
Controversial right-wing media personality Tucker Carlson says he will soon interview Russian President Vladimir Putin, confirming recent rumours.
It would be the first time Mr Putin is interviewed by Western media since the invasion of Ukraine began.
In a video shared on X, Mr Carlson – who was sacked from Fox News in April last year and has been a vocal supporter of Mr Putin – said he is doing the interview to “inform” Americans.
“Not a single Western journalist has bothered to interview the president of the other country involved in this conflict, Vladimir Putin,” he said, a claim that has since been rejected by journalists covering Russia.
Alsu Kurmasheva, a Russian-American journalist, and Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich are both currently detained in Russia.
Mr Carlson said there have been “scores” of interviews with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, which he described as “fawning pep sessions” to amplify his demand for greater US involvement.
“Americans have a right to know about the war they are implicated in,” he added.
He said the war in Ukraine is a “human disaster” that altered longstanding political and trade realities throughout the world.
“And yet the populations of the English-speaking countries seem mostly unaware, they think that nothing has really changed and they think that because nobody has told them the truth,” he said.
“Their media outlets are corrupt. They lie to their readers and viewers and they do that mostly by omission.”
Tucker Carlson publicly supported Donald Trump on his campaign. Pic: AP
He added: “We are not here because we love Vladimir Putin… we are not encouraging you to agree with what Putin may say in this interview, but we are urging you to watch it.
“You should know as much as you can.”
It’s not clear when Mr Putin will be interviewed, but Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov declined on Tuesday to comment on whether there was a forthcoming interview.
Mr Carlson said he has also requested an interview with Mr Zelenskyy.
Read more:
Who is Tucker Carlson? The Fox News host known for controversial takes
Conspiracy theories
On his Fox News show, Mr Carlson often embraced conspiracy theories and far-right issues.
He repeatedly questioned the efficacy of COVID vaccines and compared mandates to “Nazi experiments”.
While he found success with viewers, his inflammatory comments caused some advertisers to distance themselves from the programme.
In 2018 he said immigrants would make the US “poorer and dirtier”, prompting an advertiser boycott.
He left Fox News after parent company Fox Corp settled a defamation lawsuit by Dominion – in which Mr Carlson played a starring role – for nearly $800m.
Dominion Voting Systems alleged in its lawsuit that Mr Carlson allowed debunked election-fraud claims about the voting-technology firm to air on his show.
In messages revealed as part of the lawsuit, Mr Carlson acknowledged the claims about voter fraud were baseless.
He also said he “passionately” hated former president Donald Trump – a departure from his rhetoric on the show.
World
Ukraine war: 14 killed as Russian missile and drone attacks strike Kyiv – including American citizen
Russian missile and drone attacks have killed 14 people in Kyiv overnight, according to Ukrainian officials.
A 62-year-old US citizen who suffered shrapnel wounds is among the dead.
At least 99 others were wounded in strikes that hollowed out a residential building and destroyed dozens of apartments.
Pic: AP
Emergency workers were at the scene to rescue people from under the rubble.
Images show a firefighter was among those hurt, with injured residents evacuated from their homes.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the attack as “one of the most terrifying attacks on Kyiv” – and said Russian forces had fired 440 drones and 32 missiles as civilians slept in their homes.
“[Putin] wants the war to go on,” he said. “It is troubling when the powerful of this world turn a blind eye to it.”
Pic: AP
Ukraine’s interior minister, Ihor Klymenko, said 27 locations across the capital have been hit – including educational institutions and critical infrastructure.
He claimed the attack, in the early hours of Tuesday morning, was one of the largest on the capital since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in February 2022.
Drones swarmed over the city, with an air raid alert remaining in force for seven hours.
One person was killed and 17 others injured as a result of separate Russian drone strikes in the port city of Odesa.
Pic: Reuters
It comes as the G7 summit in Canada continues, which Ukraine’s leader is expected to attend.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy was due to hold talks with Donald Trump – but the president has announced he is unexpectedly returning to Washington because of tensions in the Middle East.
Ukraine’s foreign minister says Moscow’s decision to attack Kyiv during the summit is a signal of disrespect to the US.
Moscow has launched a record number of drones and missiles in recent weeks, and says the attacks are in retaliation for a Ukrainian operation that targeted warplanes in airbases deep within Russian territory.
Kyiv’s mayor Vitali Klitschko says fires broke out in two of the city’s districts as a result of debris from drones shot down by the nation’s air defences.
Read more from Sky News:
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US-UK trade deal is ‘done’, Donald Trump says
Pic: AP
On X, Ukraine’s foreign ministry wrote: “Russia’s campaign of terror against civilians continues. Its war against Ukraine escalates with increased brutality.
“The only way to stop Russia is tighter pressure – through sanctions, more defence support for Ukraine, and limiting Russia’s ability to keep sowing war.”
Olena Lapyshnak, who lived in one of the destroyed buildings, said: “It’s horrible, it’s scary, in one moment there is no life. I can only curse the Russians, that’s all I can say. They shouldn’t exist in this world.”
World
Israeli tank shelling kills 51 people waiting for aid in Khan Younis, Hamas-run health ministry says
Israeli tank shellfire has killed at least 51 Palestinians in Khan Younis, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza.
Hundreds of others have been injured, with “dozens of critical cases” arriving at a medical complex.
It is feared that the number of fatalities will rise.
Pic: Reuters
The strikes took place as people waited for United Nations and commercial aid trucks in the southern Gaza city.
Witnesses said that Israeli forces carried out an airstrike on a nearby home before opening fire toward the crowd.
“Emergency, intensive care, and operating rooms are experiencing severe overcrowding,” a statement said.
Officials say medical staff “are operating with limited supplies of life-saving medicines” – with the ministry renewing an “urgent appeal” to increase aid.
Pic: Reuters
Hours earlier, Donald Trump had joined other G7 leaders to call for a “de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East, including a ceasefire in Gaza”.
The Israeli military is yet to comment on this incident.
On Monday, Gaza’s health ministry said at least 34 people were shot dead near food distribution centres.
This was the highest reported daily total since Israel and US-backed aid centres opened last month, with thousands of Palestinians moving through Israeli military-controlled areas to reach them.
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