By Oyintari Ben
Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Western nations of starting and fuelling the war in Ukraine on Tuesday, almost a year after Moscow’s aggressive invasion of its neighbour that has claimed tens of thousands of lives.
Putin claimed that Russia and Ukraine were the victims of Western deceit in his long-delayed state-of-the-nation address and that Russia, not Ukrainian, was the country fighting for its very survival.
Days before the war’s first anniversary on Friday, Putin stated in a speech, “We are not attacking the Ukrainian people. The Kyiv dictatorship and its Western patrons have essentially invaded the country and turned Ukraine into a hostage.”
The Russian president repeatedly cited many complaints in his speech as justification for the internationally denounced conflict and disregarded international calls for his country to withdraw from Ukrainian territory that it had annexed.
In the address broadcast on all state TV stations, Putin stated, “Western elites are not trying to conceal their aims, to inflict a “strategic loss” on Russia.” “They want to escalate the regional conflict into a global conflict.”
As “it will be a matter of our country’s existence,” he continued, Russia is ready to retaliate.
Despite the Constitution’s need to do so, Putin did not give a speech in 2022, as his army advanced into Ukraine and had numerous setbacks.
Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Kremlin, stated before the address that the Russian leader will emphasise the “special military operation” in Ukraine, as Moscow refers to it, as well as Russia’s economy and social problems.
Numerous observers had assumed it would also address Moscow’s rift with the West, and Putin opened by blistering those nations.
“They are the ones who started the conflict. And we are employing force to end it,” Putin stated in front of parliamentarians, government representatives, and former Ukrainian troops.
Putin added that Russia would stop participating in a deal meant to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons.
In 2010, Russia and the US signed the so-called New START Treaty.
It restricts the use of missiles that can carry atomic weapons and limits the number of long-range nuclear warheads they can deploy.
Putin stated in a powerful speech on Tuesday that Russia has not yet completed its withdrawal from the treaty.
If the US does so, Putin warned, Russia must be prepared to resume nuclear weapon tests.
