Putin lashes out at West, defends Ukraine invasion in major speech

Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Western countries Tuesday of igniting and sustaining the war in Ukraine dismissing any blame for Moscow almost a year after the Kremlins unprovoked invasion of its neighbour that has killed tens of thousands of peopleIn his longdelayed stateofthenation address Putin cast Russia and Ukraine as victims of Western doubledealing and said Russia not Ukraine was the one fighting for its very existenceWe arent fighting the Ukrainian people Putin said in a speech days before the wars first anniversary on Friday Ukraine has become hostage of the Kyiv regime and its Western masters which have effectively occupied the country The speech reiterated a litany of grievances that the Russian leader has frequently offered as justification for the widely condemned war and ignored international demands to pull back from occupied areas in UkraineObservers are expected to scour it for signs of how Putin sees the conflict which has become bogged down and what tone he might set for the year ahead The Russian leader vowed no military letup in Ukrainian territories he has illegally annexed apparently rejecting any peace overtures in a conflict that has reawakened fears of a new Cold War Instead he offered his personalized version of recent history which discounted arguments by the Ukrainian government that it needed Western help to thwart a Russian military takeoverWestern elites arent trying to conceal their goals to inflict a strategic defeat to Russia Putin said in the speech broadcast by all state TV channels They intend to transform the local conflict into a global confrontation He added that Russia is prepared to respond to that as it will be a matter of our countrys existenceWhile the Constitution mandates that the president deliver the speech annually Putin never gave one in 2022 as his troops rolled into Ukraine and suffered repeated setbacksBefore the speech Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the Russian leader would focus on the special military operation in Ukraine as Moscow calls it and Russias economy and social issues Many observers predicted it would also address Moscows fallout with the West and Putin began with strong words for those countriesAlso read West started the war we are using force to end it Russian President Vladimir PutinIts they who have started the war And we are using force to end it Putin said before an audience of lawmakers state officials and soldiers who have fought in UkrainePutin accused the west of the West of launching aggressive information attacks and taking aim at Russian culture religion and values because it is aware that it is impossible to defeat Russia on the battlefield He also accused Western nations of waging an attack on Russias economy with sanctions but declared they hadnt achieved anything and will not achieve anythingUnderscoring the anticipation ahead of time some state TV channels put out a countdown for the event starting Monday and Russias state news agency RIA Novosti on Tuesday morning said the address may be historicThe Kremlin this year has barred media from unfriendly countries the list of which includes the US the UK and those in the EU Peskov said journalists from those nations will be able to cover the speech by watching the broadcast Peskov told reporters that the speechs delay had to do with Putins work schedule but Russian media reports linked it to the multiple setbacks Russian forces have suffered on the battlefield in UkraineThe Russian president had postponed the stateofthenation address before In 2017 the speech was rescheduled for early 2018 Last year the Kremlin has also canceled two other big annual events Putins press conference and a highly scripted phonein marathon where people ask the president questionsAnalysts expected Putins speech would be tough in the wake of US President Joe Bidens visit to Kyiv on Monday Biden plans to give his own speech later Tuesday in Poland where hes expected to highlight the commitment of the central European country and other allies to Ukraine over the past yearWhite House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said that Bidens address would not be some kind of head to head with Putins This is not a rhetorical contest with anyone else he saidThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever