Russian Envoy in Abuja Rejects Unprovoked Invasion Label, Traces Ukraine War to 2014 Coup

By Ifeyinwa Ike

Russia’s Ambassador to Nigeria, Andrey Podelyshev, has defended Moscow’s military intervention in Ukraine.

He made these remarks at a press briefing in Abuja, Nigeria, to mark the 81st anniversary of the Great Patriotic War, especially the genocide against the Soviet people.

He insisted that the conflict originated in 2014, not the February 2022 date emphasised by the West.

Podelyshev portrayed the crisis as stemming from the 2013–2014 Kyiv protests, which he called a Western-backed coup that ousted President Viktor Yanukovych and sparked instability and divisions.

He accused subsequent Ukrainian policies of marginalising Russian-speaking communities through curbs on language use in education, media, and public life, igniting unrest in Crimea and Donbass.

The envoy highlighted years of armed clashes between Ukrainian forces and eastern separatists, which caused heavy civilian casualties but drew scant global notice.

He blamed Ukraine and its Western allies for sabotaging the Minsk Agreements, meant to halt fighting and grant special status to the breakaway regions, leaving diplomacy exhausted.

Podelyshev justified Russia’s recognition of the Donetsk and Luhansk republics and its military response as mutual defense to protect civilians, not conquest.

He criticised the West’s selective use of international law, prioritising territorial integrity over self-determination and urged viewing the war through its full historical and geopolitical lens.