TIANJIN, China — Russian President Vladimir Putin sought on Monday to defend his Ukraine offensive to Moscow’s allies, blaming the West for triggering the three-and-a-half year war that has killed tens of thousands and devastated much of eastern Ukraine. “This crisis was not triggered by Russia’s attack on Ukraine, but was a result of a coup in Ukraine, which was supported and provoked by the West,” Putin said at a summit of the the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation in the Chinese city of Tianjin. That is a reference to Ukraine’s 2013-2014 pro-European revolution, which ousted a pro-Russian president. READ: Putin expected […]... Keep on reading: Putin defends Ukraine invasion at China summit, blames West