On Tuesday, February 21, Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered a speech to members of both houses of parliament and to military commanders and soldiers.
Putin, in particular, noted that he is making this address at a time “which we all know is a difficult, watershed moment for our country, a time of cardinal, irreversible changes around the world, the most important historic events that shape the future of our country and our people, when each of us bears a colossal responsibility."
"Step by step, carefully and consistently, we will resolve the tasks facing us. Since 2014, the (people of the) Donbas had been fighting, defending their right to live on their own land, to speak their native language. They fought and did not give up in the conditions of blockade and constant shelling, undisguised hatred on the part of the Kyiv regime. They believed and expected that Russia would come to their rescue. Meanwhile, we did our best to solve this problem by peaceful means. We patiently tried to negotiate a peaceful way out of this most difficult conflict, but a completely different scenario was being prepared behind our backs," Russian leader said.
He reiterated that the people of Ukraine have become the hostage of the Kyiv regime and its Western overlords, who have effectively occupied this country in the political, military and economic sense.
“Today's Ukrainian regime essentially serves not the national interests but those of third countries," Putin said.
According to him, the elites of the West intend to transform a local conflict into a phase of global confrontation.
“This is exactly how we understand it all and we will react accordingly, because in this case we are talking about the existence of our country,” said Putin. “But they also cannot fail to realize that it is impossible to defeat Russia on the battlefield. Therefore, they are conducting more and more aggressive information attacks against us.”
He further noted that the West elites distort historical facts, constantly attack Russian culture, the Russian Orthodox Church, and other traditional religions of Russia.
“Look at what they do with their own peoples: the destruction of the family, cultural and national identity, perversion, and the abuse of children are declared the norm. And priests are forced to bless same-sex marriages,” Putin said, noting that millions of people in the West understand they are being led to a real spiritual catastrophe.
Criticizing the United States, he emphasized that no country in the world has as many military bases abroad as the United States.
Concerning Russia’s economy, Putin said that Western countries want to make the Russian people suffer with sanctions, “but their calculations did not materialize as the Russian economy and the management turned out to be much stronger than they thought.”
According to him, many basic civilian sectors of the domestic economy not only have not shrunk, but have actually increased production.
“Russian farmers harvested a record crop of over 150 million tons of grain, including over 100 million tons of wheat. By the end of the agricultural year, that is, by June 30, 2023, we will be able to bring the total volume of grain exports to 55-60 million tons. Even 10-15 years ago that seemed like a fairy tale, an impossible plan,” Russian president said, adding that those imposing sanctions are punishing themselves.
