NEW – February 21, 2023
The nearly two-hour presidential address to the Federal Assembly on February 21, 2023, as is almost always typical of Putin’s speeches of this level, was unexpected. First of all, in its tone and in its priorities.
The tone was absolutely calm and confident, and if to try to write down the priorities of the message a posteriori, not in the order of their significance, and not in the order of their utterance (although this order is also of considerable importance), but in the order of some general coherence, then the following picture can be approximately modelled.
The modern world has entered an era of radical and irreversible changes (which has led to the emergence of new ones, as well as to the revival or aggravation of previous conflicts). The Special Military Operation is one of these conflicts, during which there is a fight not only for the historical lands of Russia, for their reunification, but also for the very existence of our people and our state, since the Western elites brought a neo-nazi regime to power in Ukraine in exactly the same way as they previously brought the Nazi regime to power in Germany. The goal of such actions is to inflict a “strategic defeat” on Russia, and this goal in the eyes of the West justifies any means to achieve it.
The concepts of honour, trust, and decency are not about these Western elites who practically occupied Ukraine, unleashed a conflict there, and rejected all attempts by Russia to resolve the situation peacefully and create a new international security architecture. Russia is using force to end this conflict, and it is doing it as responsibly, consistently and accurately as possible.
However, the West, on the contrary, is making every effort to escalate the conflict, spending $150 billion on direct assistance to the neo-nazi Kiev regime, as well as deploying not only a military, informational, but also an economic front against Russia (regardless of its own losses from anti-Russian sanctions).
But as a result, nothing was achieved — Russia turned out to be much stronger than its opponents expected. And our country’s main priority now is not victory over the neo-nazi Kiev regime “at any cost”, no “guns instead of butter” will be needed, its goal is to transform the entire current system of international relations with access to leading technological, social, financial and economic positions. We have all the necessary and sufficient conditions for this, and we need to make the most of them.
This goal is incompatible with the former positioning of Russia as a source of raw materials for the global free market, and in general, the situation when key technologies, sales markets and cheap loans for our country were located exclusively in the West is a thing of the past. Therefore, the financial and economic interests of domestic and, in general, post-Soviet elites abroad will no longer be taken into account to the same extent (apparently, not to mention their protection).
These elites, who are now facing the realisation of Putin’s forecast “Torture yourself swallowing dust!” must make a choice: either they remain in the West in the status of “food”, or they connect their future with Russia with guaranteed support from the state and society.
Now the front line passes through the hearts of tens of millions of our compatriots, and the slogans “For Victory! For the Motherland!” get a powerful response across the country. At the same time, it is guaranteed that all elections, including the presidential election in 2024, will be held in a timely manner and in full compliance with Russian legislation.
For Western “partners” a statement was made specifically that our country has not yet withdrawn from the strategic offensive arms treaty, but suspends its participation in it, and in the event of resumption of nuclear tests by the United States (or other states that are members of the “alliance of democracies”, the same UK or France) reserves the right to conduct such tests.
Here it should be specially noted that given the modern weapons systems that Russia currently possesses, one can at least roughly imagine the consequences of testing “Poseidon” or “Avangard” in the international waters of the World Ocean — this prospect is unlikely to cause a surge of enthusiasm in Washington, London or Tokyo… Russia will respond to any challenges. The truth is ours!
There is no doubt that the reaction of the alliance of democracies that have just threatened Putin, our country and all of us personally with a war of annihilation, will follow this calm and balanced speech of the Russian president.
Not only “in hot pursuit”, but also in the longer term. As was the case with the Munich Speech of 2007 and the federal address of 2018. And by what this reaction turns out to be, it will be possible to judge how adequate the public leaders of the collective West are. Although this point, it seems, is already becoming less and less important — and for purely objective reasons.
Vladimir Vinnikov
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