--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The most obvious risk was that the…" description: "\"The most obvious risk was that the Russian speaking population was threatened and that the threats were absolutely specific and tangible. This is what ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/256/vladimir-putin-261_asks_the-most-obvious-risk-was-that-the-russi_1824020.jpg" --- # The most obvious risk was that the Russian speaking… ![“The most obvious risk was that the Russian speaking population was threatened and that the threats were absolutely specific and tangible. This is what made Crimean residents, the people who live there, think about their future and ask Russia for help. This is what guided our decision.” quote by Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/256/vladimir-putin-261_asks_the-most-obvious-risk-was-that-the-russi_1824020.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/256/vladimir-putin-261_asks_the-most-obvious-risk-was-that-the-russi_1824020.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/256/vladimir-putin-261_asks_the-most-obvious-risk-was-that-the-russi_1824020.jpg) > “The most obvious risk was that the Russian speaking population was threatened and that the threats were absolutely specific and tangible. This is what made Crimean residents, the people who live there, think about their future and ask Russia for help. This is what guided our decision.” [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He argued that protecting Russian speakers justified intervention, shaping policy decisions. **In simple terms:** Protecting language groups drove political action. Key Takeaway Consider language protection in policy. Themes security identity intervention Mood serious strategic Type political persuasive When to use this quote - regional conflict - human rights advocacy - government decision making Key Concepts nationalism ethnic rights geopolitics Questions to Reflect On - How do we balance cultural protection with sovereignty? - What criteria define a legitimate threat? A Different Perspective Assumes language threat equates to security risk. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Crimea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crimea/) [Decision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Risk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/risk/) [Russia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/russia/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Threat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/threat/) ## Related quotes > [Of course one always has to follow international law. This was also the case in Crimea. 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So what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/the-nationalists-coup-in-the-ukrainian-capital-of-kiev-in-february/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [ Our task was not to conduct a full-fledged military operation there \[in Crimea\], but it was to ensure people's safety and security and a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/our-task-was-not-to-conduct-a-full-fledged-military-operation-there/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [Crimea has always been and remains Russian, as well as Ukrainian, Crimean-Tatar, Greek (after all, there are Greeks living there) and German - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/crimea-has-always-been-and-remains-russian-as-well-as-ukrainian/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [NATO remains a military alliance, and we are against having a military alliance making itself at home right in our own backyard; in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/nato-remains-a-military-alliance-and-we-are-against-having-a-military/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [I'm asking : if the Kosovars have the right to self-determination, why should people on Crimea not have it? 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In my opinion, when the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/the-events-in-crimea-themselves-have-nothing-to-do-with-what-happened/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [If NATO troops walk in Crimea, they will immediately deploy their forces there. Such a move would be geopolitically sensitive for us because, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/if-nato-troops-walk-in-crimea-they-will-immediately-deploy-their/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [The Crimea is not a disputed territory. Unlike the case of Georgia and South Ossetia, there has been no ethnic conflict there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/the-crimea-is-not-a-disputed-territory-unlike-the-case-of-georgia-and/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [I would like to assure you that there is no organization or any sort of repression against people who don’t agree with our actions,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/i-would-like-to-assure-you-that-there-is-no-organization-or-any-sort/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) ## More by Vladimir Putin > [We shall fight against them, throw them in prisons and destroy them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/we-shall-fight-against-them-throw-them-in-prisons-and-destroy-them/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [ Their \[the U.S.’s\] defense budget in absolute figures is almost 25 times bigger than Russia’s. This is what in defense is referred to as… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/their-the-u-s-s-defense-budget-in-absolute-figures-is-almost-25-times/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [Personally, I think that children should be left alone, they should be given an opportunity to grow up, to become aware of themselves and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/personally-i-think-that-children-should-be-left-alone-they-should-be/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [Yes, life in Chechnya so far looks more like a life after a natural disaster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/yes-life-in-chechnya-so-far-looks-more-like-a-life-after-a-natural/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [I'd rather not deal with such questions, because anyway it's like shearing a pig - lots of screams but little wool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/i-d-rather-not-deal-with-such-questions-because-anyway-it-s-like/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [Not everyone likes the stable, gradual rise of our country. 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Whoever wants it back has no brain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/whoever-does-not-miss-the-soviet-union-has-no-heart-whoever-wants-it/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [Anyhow, we obviously understand that, being a United States' ally and having a special relationship with it, the UK in its relations with Russian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/anyhow-we-obviously-understand-that-being-a-united-states-ally-and/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) [Explore all 793 Vladimir Putin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) ## More Asks quotes > [If you ask an introvert a question, wait until she thinks about it. Introverts think before speaking, not through speaking. 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