VLADIMIR Putin’s address at the 22nd annual Valdai Discussion Club in Sochi on October 2, 2025 was framed as a stock-taking of a world order in transition. Western attempts to establish global hegemony have accelerated the emergence of multipolarity, with Russia, China, India and other centres of power playing increasingly important roles. Putin’s central normative claim was that Russia seeks equality rather than domination. From this, he drew two institutional demands: global governance is possible only through consensus and international institutions must better reflect the weight of the Global South. He called for reforms in bodies including the IMF, WTO and UN Security Council, arguing that global decisions cannot remain concentrated among a few countries.

Technology was another major theme. Putin warned that artificial intelligence is exceeding human capabilities in some domains and will transform the parameters of life. AI could reshape warfare, he cautioned, creating risks of uncontrolled use and “digital totalitarianism”. His principle was that AI must remain under human control and within national technological sovereignty. Russia’s ability to produce its own weapons and technological systems has enabled it to withstand external pressure and past state collapse.

Putin said Russia has “no aggressive intentions” towards NATO, dismissed Western fears as “hysteria” and advised Europeans to “calm down, sleep tight and deal with your own........

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