Former F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone described Russian President Vladimir Putin as a “first-class person” who has made “mistakes” while criticizing Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy for “not listening” to the Kremlin.
Bernie Ecclestone, the former head of Formula One, has defended Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine, stating that he would “take a bullet” for the Russian leader.
Thursday morning on ITV’s Good Morning Britain, Ecclestone referred to Putin as “intelligent” and “a first-class individual” who “believed he was doing the right thing for Russia.”
The 91-year-old stated, “Unfortunately, he’s like many businesspeople, including me, in that he makes mistakes from time to time, and when you make a mistake, you must do your best to recover.”
In addition, he criticized the Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy for not exerting sufficient effort to reach out to his Russian competitor.
Ecclestone stated, “The other person in Ukraine, I believe he used to be a comedian, and it appears he wants to continue in that profession because if he had considered the situation, he would have made a concerted effort to speak to Putin, who is a reasonable individual, and Putin would have listened to him and could have probably done something about it.”
When it was pointed out that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of innocent people, Ecclestone said, “It wasn’t intentional.”
When questioned if he was implying that President Zelenskyy should have “done more to avert the war – and that it might have been avoided by Zelenskyy’s acts, not by a change in Putin’s conduct,” the auto magnate said, “Absolutely.”
“I’m confident Ukraine could have gotten out of it if they’d chosen to,” he added.
Since February, when Russia attacked Ukraine, Ecclestone has not communicated with his “buddy”.
However, he stated, “I’m certain he wishes he hadn’t started this entire mess, but it didn’t begin as a battle.”
In addition, he criticized the decision to ban Russian athletes following Moscow’s military action.
When asked if the Russian Grand Prix and the ban on Russian drivers should be removed from the F1 schedule, Ecclestone stated: “I’m not in a position to do anything about that right now.
“I’m unsure if I would have intervened at the time, but I certainly wouldn’t do so now, and I believe it’s unfair to prevent Russian athletes, especially drivers, from participating in their sport.
“They did not initially engage in this activity. They ought not to be punished”.
