Russian President Vladimir Putin has vowed to persist with the year-long war in Ukraine and accused the NATO alliance, led by the United States, of exacerbating the conflict in the deluded belief that it could defeat Moscow in a worldwide confrontation.
Surrounded by four Russian tricolour flags, Putin informed the country’s political and military elites that Russia would “thoroughly and consistently achieve the goals before us.” He stated that Russia had done everything in its power to avoid war, but Western-backed Ukraine had been plotting to invade Russian-controlled Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014.
Putin claimed that the West had unleashed chaos and war in many regions across the world by letting the genie out of the bottle. “The people of Ukraine have become hostages of the Kyiv regime and its Western overlords, who have essentially taken over this country politically, militarily, and economically,” Putin added.
According to Putin, they seek to convert the local conflict into a global confrontation, and he stated that “we comprehend it this way and will respond accordingly.”
In response, Western officials have criticised Putin’s remarks, emphasising that Russia is the aggressor in the conflict, which has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of people. The UN has also expressed concern over the violence, urging for a peaceful settlement. The war began in 2014 when Russia annexed Crimea, and Russian-backed separatists seized large portions of Ukraine’s eastern Donbass region, resulting in a years-long conflict.
Read more:
