According to actor Bernie Eccleston, he would “still take a bullet” for war-mongering Russian ruler Vladimir Putin, who “believed he was doing the right thing” by directing his gruesome invasion of Ukraine.
The 91-year-old former owner of Formula 1 called the 69-year-old tyrant a “first class person” and “intelligent” in an odd interview on Good Morning Britain.
It follows news of Russian assaults on Ukrainian apartment buildings and shopping centers, the latter of which was denounced as a war crime by western officials.
Ecclestone referred to Putin as a “reasonable person” despite the fact that thousands of innocent civilians are presumed dead in the country in eastern Europe.
Ecclestone said that Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky was a comic before the war and seemed to “want to continue being one” while speaking from a bright rooftop in Ibiza.
The millionaire continued by asserting that if Zelensky had “spoken with Putin,” the invasion “might have ended differently.”
When questioned by journalist Kate Garraway about whether he thought Zelensky’s actions, as opposed to Putin’s, might have changed to prevent conflict, Ecclestone responded, “Absolutely.”
He continued: “He thought what he was doing was the right thing for Russia.
‘Unfortunately, like many business people, and certainly like myself, we occasionally make mistakes, and when you’ve made the mistake, you have to do your best to get out of it.’
“I believe if it had been conducted properly – I mean the other person in Ukraine, his profession.
I understand he used to be a comedian, and I believe he seems to want to continue that profession because I believe if he had thought about things he would have definitely made a significant effort to speak to Mr. Putin, who is a sensible person and would have listened to him and probably done something about it.”