During a UN Security Council meeting, British Foreign Secretary David Lammy compared Russian President Vladimir Putin to a slave owner and described him as the head of a mafia state.
Lammy emphasized that Russia had violated international law by invading Ukraine, claiming falsely that it was acting in the interest of the so-called Global South.
"Your invasion is in your own interests — yours alone," Lammy said, addressing Putin. "To expand your mafia state into a mafia empire built on corruption," he added, as quoted by Politico.
Drawing a historical comparison, Lammy referred to the era of slavery, noting that his perspective comes not only as a British official but also as someone personally connected to that history.
"I stand here also as a black man, a descendant of those who were taken from Africa in chains at gunpoint to be slaves. As a descendant of those who rose up and fought in the great revolt of the enslaved. Imperialism, I know it when I see it. And I will call it what it is," Lammy declared.
Western leaders have not shied away from using strong language to criticize Putin in the past.
In February, U.S. President Joe Biden referred to Putin as a "son of a bitch" while discussing threats like climate change and nuclear conflict.
“The existential threat to humanity is climate change, but we also have to be prepared for the risk of nuclear conflict with people like Putin,” Biden said at the time.
Biden has previously called Putin a "butcher" on several occasions, including in 2022, shortly after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. More recently, in March, he reiterated this term while advocating for higher taxes on wealthy Americans to support Ukraine’s defense efforts.
In August, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky referred to Putin as a "sick old man" during his speech on Ukraine's Independence Day.
Interestingly, criticism of Putin has also come from within Russia.
In September, Russian Z-blogger Yegor Guzenko, who runs the popular Telegram channel "Thirteenth," harshly criticized Putin, referring to him as a “grandfather who soiled himself.” Guzenko further claimed that power in Russia has been seized by traitors who “sit in the Kremlin.”
