Moscow, 20 December (H.S.): Russian President Vladimir Putin unequivocally supported United States President Donald Trump during his annual year-end press conference on Friday, affirming that the American leader was entirely justified in launching a multibillion-dollar lawsuit against the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) for disseminating edited clips of a pivotal speech.

The controversy stems from a BBC documentary that allegedly manipulated footage of President Trump's January 6, 2021, address to supporters, splicing segments to falsely imply he directly incited the storming of the U.S. Capitol. Trump, now serving his second term following his reelection in November 2024 and inauguration in January 2025, filed the defamation suit in a Miami federal court, seeking at least $10 billion in damages for what his legal team describes as a brazen attempt to tarnish his reputation and influence the electoral process.

The broadcaster has issued a formal apology to President Trump, acknowledging the editing error while pledging a robust defense in court proceedings.

Speaking at the marathon event in the Kremlin, which blended press interactions with public call-ins and drew millions of viewers nationwide, President Putin highlighted the incident as emblematic of broader media malpractices. He criticized Western outlets for undermining journalistic integrity through selective editing, positioning President Trump's action as a principled stand against such distortions.

The BBC's response included internal overhauls to its editorial processes amid the fallout, though no further concessions have been made.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar