Tucker Carlson To Interview Vladimir Putin

Tucker Carlson said he is interviewing Vladimir Putin during a visit to Moscow, making him the first member of the U.S. media to be granted an interview with Russia’s president since that country’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Carlson, a far-right commentator and former Fox News star, said in a video posted to X that it was important to understand Putin’s views given how the war is reshaping the world. The U.S. has provided billions of dollars in financial, humanitarian and military assistance for Ukraine.

The interview will be posted on X and TuckerCarlson.com, the website of the commentator’s media startup, Carlson said. It is likely to be posted on Thursday, according to people familiar with the matter. “Most Americans have no idea why Putin invaded Ukraine, or what his goals are now,” Carlson said in the video. “They’ve never heard his voice. That’s wrong. Americans have a right to know all they can about a war they’re implicated in, and we have the right to tell them about it because we are Americans too.”

Carlson’s critics say he has been soft on Russia. In posts on X this week, former Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger eacted to news of Carlson’s visit to Moscow by calling him a “traitor” and posted a poll asking whether Carlson is on Putin’s payroll.