Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered threatening remarks against the West in his annual state of the nation address on April 21.
“Organizers of any provocations against our security will be sorry like they’ve never been sorry about anything in their lives,” he said, getting applause from the loyal parliament.
Putin’s 17th annual address comes amid the escalated tensions between Russia on the one side, and Ukraine and the West on the other . Since late March, Russia has been building up its military presence in the occupied Crimea and near the eastern border of Ukraine, and escalating its anti-Ukrainian propaganda. It sparked fears of a full-scale invasion.
“No one should cross the red lines with Russia. And where those lines are, we will decide on our own in each case,” Putin said. “We don’t want to burn bridges, but if someone wants to burn them or even blow them up, our response will be tough and fast.”
He claimed that “other countries have been blaming Russia for everything for no reason at all,” apparently referring to accusations of interference in U.S. elections and blowing up an arms depot in the Czech Republic.
Ukraine
Putin didn’t directly address Ukraine, the Donbas, or the international rebuke to Russia’s military buildup near Ukraine’s borders. It came as a surprise, given that the country has been at the center of Russia’s tensions with the West.
While Russia’s military has been fighting Ukrainian forces in the Donbas covertly since Russia started its war on Ukraine in 2014, the recent buildup sparked fears of an open, full-blown invasion.
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Zelensky publicly addressed Putin on April 20, offering him to meet in the Donbas, where the war is taking place. He said that Ukraine doesn’t seek war but is ready to fight. Putin and his representatives didn’t respond to the suggestion.
On April 20, the U.S. State Department reiterated its vision of Russia as the sole aggressor in the region.
“Let me be clear: Russia is the aggressor here,” spokesman Ned Price said at a briefing on April 20. “We have seen no indication whatsoever that Ukraine is engaging in provocations or escalating intentions – tensions. What we have seen is a Russian disinformation campaign designed to falsely blame Ukraine for the Kremlin’s own actions.”
Read also: Will Ukraine be able to survive Russian attack?
Earlier, U.S. President Joe Biden, in a phone call with Putin, called upon him to deescalate the military buildup and also suggested a meeting in a neutral country. Putin’s administration signaled reluctance, saying it would “take time” to organize such a meeting. At the same time, the U.S. imposed additional sanctions on Russia, targeting companies, individuals, and sovereign debt.
Belarus
The only mentions of Ukraine came when Putin made parallels with Belarus.
Recently, Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko claimed that he stopped a planned coup and an assassination attempt.
Putin reproached the supposed coup, comparing it to the 2013-2014 EuroMaidan Revolution in Ukraine that ousted Kremlin-backed President Viktor Yanukovych. Russia’s propaganda has been posing the revolution in Ukraine as a coup orchestrated by the West — a conspiracy that is believed to be meant to discourage Russians from protesting.
“You can think what you want of Lukashenko but an assassination plan is too much,” Putin said. “It is telling that the West doesn’t condemn such flagrant actions.”
Belarus has been in turmoil since August when Lukashenko pronounced himself the winner of the presidential election that is widely seen as rigged. Hundreds of thousands of Belarusians have protested every week for months, demanding a fair election and supporting the opposition candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya.
While the international community, including Ukraine, didn’t recognize Lukashenko as president, Russia did.
Domestic challenges
Putin’s 17th annual state of the nation address was backdropped by domestic challenges to his rule. Supporters of Alexey Navalny, an imprisoned opposition leader who survived an apparent poisoning attempt by state services, are set to rally around the country hours after his address. Even before the rallies started, the Russian police started arresting activists and journalists.
Putin didn’t mention Navalny or the opposition in his 1.5-hour address.
The Russian president dedicated most of his address to domestic issues, mainly the response to COVID and social programs.
Faced with domestic challenges and the parliamentary elections approaching in September, Putin put forward a number of new social payments to various categories of citizens, such as families with small children. He also said that the government needs to do more to control prices.
When speaking of COVID-19, which took up a relatively small part of the address, Putin praised Russia’s response to the pandemic, saying that it saved lives.
Officially, the Russian government says that more than 200,000 Russians died of COVID-19. Unofficially, the toll is estimated to be over 350,000, meaning that Russia had one of the highest COVID-19 death rates per capita.
Putin urged the people of Russia to get vaccinated and achieve herd immunity by autumn, using the Russian-developed Sputnik vaccine.
Among other issues, Putin addressed climate change and suggested fees for industries that exploit natural resources, said Russia must decrease emissions by 20% by 2024. He spoke at length about the Russian economy and regional development, urging local leaders to come forward with infrastructure projects.
