Status: 12/31/2022 6:20 p.m
The Russian President also gave a New Year’s speech – this time in a military base in front of soldiers instead of in the Kremlin. He accused the West of wanting to destroy Russia and using Ukraine to do so.
In his New Year’s speech, Russian President Vladimir Putin accused western countries of lying and aggression. The West is trying to take advantage of the conflict in Ukraine, Putin said in his video address, which was shown on state television in all eleven time zones of the country.
Visiting soldiers
Putin had his New Year’s speech recorded at a military headquarters in an unspecified location, surrounded by soldiers. In recent years, Putin has always been seen in front of the Kremlin giving the New Year’s speech. He thanked the military for their commitment in the war zone and called on them to fight. At the same time, he conceded that there was still a lot to be done – also with a view to equipping the army with modern weapons. According to the Kremlin, Putin visited the southern military district to talk to the commanders and soldiers.
In his speech, Putin said: “It was a year of difficult, necessary decisions, important steps towards maintaining Russia’s full sovereignty and with a tremendous consolidation in our society.” He reiterated his claim that Moscow had no choice but to send troops to Ukraine because the country threatened Russia’s security.
Ukraine and its people are being used to destroy Russia, Putin once again claimed. “We have never allowed that to anyone – and we will not allow it in the future either,” he said in an authoritarian, combative tone.
“For years, the Western elites have hypocritically assured all of us that they have peaceful intentions, including solving the most difficult conflict in Donbass,” Putin said.
“West lied”
The President recently referred to statements by ex-Chancellor Angela Merkel, who said in an interview that the peace plan for Donbass was also concluded with the aim of making Ukraine stronger. “The West lied about peace and was preparing for aggression. And today it’s not even ashamed to admit it openly.”
He also addressed the sanctions Western countries imposed on Russia. “This year we were declared a real sanctions war,” he said. However, the complete destruction of Russian industry, the financial sector and transport that the West had expected did not materialize.