Vladimir Putin has stepped up his forays into the West as President Joe Biden, fresh from a visit to Kiev, praised Western democracies for standing up to Russian aggression.
In an eventful week leading up to the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Friday, Mr Putin spoke first.
He claimed that the West had enabled Nazi Germany and turned Ukraine into a neo-Nazi regime that was “anti-Russian”.
Hours later, Mr. Biden said that dictators understood only one word: “No, no, no!”
“Putin thought the world would turn around, he was wrong,” he said, adding that NATO is more united than ever. He added that Kiev stands strong, proud, tall and free, and Western support for Ukraine will not fail.
Welcoming him at the Royal Castle in Warsaw, Polish President Andrzej Duda said that by traveling to Kiev, Mr. Biden has shown the free world that he is not afraid of anything. NATO’s role was to defend and support the free world, and Ukraine “must win this war”.
Mr Putin’s speech barely touched on Russia’s military advances in Ukraine and gave no indication of how the war might end. Major news regarding Russia’s military came from Yevgeny Prigozhin, leader of the Wagner mercenary group, who accused the chief of staff and the defense minister of trying to destroy his group and starve it of weapons. .
Russia’s president announced that he was suspending the New START nuclear arms control treaty signed with the United States in 2010. The deal limits the number of nuclear warheads and NATO, and UK leaders have pushed for revisions.
He also announced that he had put the new ground system on combat duty. He had already threatened last year to use “all means at our disposal” to protect Russia and the territory it has seized in Ukraine.
The truth was the opening casualty of Mr. Putin’s long speech, stonewalling by the Kremlin at an exhibition center.
“They started the war … we are using force to stop it,” President Putin asserted in his address to both houses of Russia’s parliament.
There are no Western troops in Ukraine, but Russia’s Foreign Ministry doubled down on the claim on Tuesday, summoning US Ambassador Lynne Tracy, and saying that Washington would withdraw “US NATO troops and equipment” from Ukraine. “Steps should be taken for evacuation of .
Mr Putin has blamed the West and Nato countless times in the past, and he responded to many of his claims in his TV address on the day of the attack a year ago. He reminded Russians of the war in Iraq and the bombing of Belgrade, but glossed over Russia’s long and destructive role in the Syrian civil war, its invasion of neighboring Georgia or its land grab in Crimea.
When he spoke, it was a deadly reminder of the human cost of Europe’s deadliest attack since World War II.
Last November, six people were killed and many were injured when Russian shells fell on the city of Kherson, which was liberated from Russian forces. A bus stop, a pharmacy and residential areas in the city center were targeted, and local media said a kindergarten was among the buildings hit.
In his nightly address on Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia’s attacks “did not and could not have a military purpose”, and were aimed at sowing the seeds of “terrorism”.
He added that Ukrainian forces are holding their positions on the front line in eastern Ukraine – where much of the current fighting is taking place – despite facing intense pressure.
