12 minutes ago
Putin says the West is punishing itself with sanctions
President Putin said on Tuesday that Western allies were “punishing” themselves with economic sanctions against Russia.
Putin said in his rebuttal speech that the West had “not succeeded” in its military and economic “aggression” against Russia.
“Those who initiate sanctions are punishing themselves. They have caused inflation in their own countries, factory closures, collapse of the energy sector. They are telling their citizens that the Russians are to blame,” he said. Speech translation.
Putin said the sanctions were an attempt to destabilize Russian society, but he insisted its economy should remain strong. He added that Russia has all the necessary financial resources to guarantee its national security and development.
“Sanctions are a means, but the objective of the West and I say directly is to force the persecution of our citizens. They are trying to destabilize our society from within, but their efforts are not justified and are not succeeding,” he said.
– Karen Gilchrist
22 minutes ago
Putin announced state funds to support veterans and families
A family watches a TV broadcast of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s annual State of the Nation Address in Moscow on February 21, 2023.
Yuri Katopnov | Afp | Good pictures
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday announced a state fund to support soldiers and families of fallen soldiers in response to Russia’s so-called “special military operation” in Ukraine.
Putin said the fund would provide “social, medical and psychological support” to soldiers and their families.
Announcing the fund during his State of the Nation Address, Putin said the fund would contribute to education, entrepreneurship, business development and home care.
“We all understand, I understand how difficult it is now for the wives, sons, daughters of fallen soldiers, their parents, who raised worthy guardians of the father,” he said.
Putin did not disclose the value of the fund. The announcement comes days before the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion.
– Karen Gilchrist
41 minutes ago
“They started the war,” Putin says, accusing the West of provoking Russia
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday during his annual State of the Nation address that Western allies had “started a war” in Ukraine.
Speaking in Moscow, Putin accused the West of building up military groups on Russia’s borders.
“I want to repeat, they started the war and we used force to stop it,” Putin said, according to a translation of the speech.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Moscow has described the conflict as a “special military operation”.
“We did everything possible to resolve this issue in a peaceful way. We were patient to come out of this terrible conflict. However behind our backs a completely different scenario is being prepared,” he said.
– Karen Gilchrist
An hour ago
Blinken calls Putin’s war a ‘strategic failure’
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken on Tuesday called President Putin’s war a “strategic failure”.
“One year after President Putin attacked Ukraine, it is clear that his war has been a strategic failure in every sense,” Blinken said at a news conference with Greek Foreign Minister Nicos Dentias in Athens.
It comes as Putin is set to deliver his assessment of Russia’s so-called “special military operation” in Ukraine during a State of the Nation address in Moscow.
– Karen Gilchrist
An hour ago
China warns countries against ‘fueling the fire’ in Ukraine conflict
Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang has warned some countries against “fueling the flames” of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Greg Baker | Afp | Good pictures
China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang on Tuesday called on some countries to stop “fueling the fire” in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, in an apparent retaliation against Western allies.
“China is deeply concerned that the Ukraine conflict will continue to escalate or spiral out of control,” Qin said during a speech at the Foreign Ministry in Beijing. We call on some countries to immediately stop burning fires.
The comments come as the United States has warned China against providing military support to Russia, which Beijing has said it has not done.
China’s top diplomat Wang Yi will visit Moscow on Tuesday to meet with President Vladimir Putin.
President Xi Jinping is expected to deliver a “peace speech” on Friday, marking the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
– Karen Gilchrist
An hour ago
Italian Prime Minister Meloni meets Zelensky in Kiev
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni speaks at a press conference in Berlin, Germany.
Maja Hidij | Getty Images News | Good pictures
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will meet President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Tuesday to reiterate her country’s support for Ukraine as he seeks to smooth tensions in his right-wing coalition.
The trip comes a week after his coalition partner Silvio Berlusconi, the head of Forza Italia, blamed Zelensky for Russia’s aggression in Ukraine.
His visit comes a day after US President Joe Biden made a surprise visit to the Ukrainian capital on Monday to mark the war’s one-year anniversary.
– Karen Gilchrist
An hour ago
Putin delivers keynote address expressing latest views on Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin will deliver a closely watched speech at 9:00 a.m. London time in which he is expected to outline his latest thinking on what he continues to refer to as “special military action” in Ukraine.
“At such an important and very critical moment in our development, in our lives, everyone is waiting for a message, hoping to hear an assessment of what is happening, the special military operation,” a Kremlin spokesman told state television. A Reuters translation.
Addresses to military commanders and soldiers will be delivered to both houses of the Russian parliament in Moscow.
This comes as the war approaches its one-year anniversary on February 24.
– Jenny Reid
An hour ago
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