The leitmotif of the president’s speech was the special military operation in Ukraine, about which he said his objective is to defend the population, guarantee their security and eliminate the threat from the neo-Nazi regime established in that nation after the 2014 coup.

In his speech, Putin considered it was the West that started the war and Russia used force -and will use it- to stop it.

Putin also recalled that while Moscow was doing everything possible to resolve this problem by peaceful means and patiently negotiating a way out of the conflict, a completely different scenario was being prepared behind its back.

Another significant moment in his message to the Federal Assembly and to the entire Russian people was the announcement that the Eurasian nation was suspending its participation in the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, known as START III.

In that sense, he described as “absurd theater” the calls of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) for Russia to “comply with START III” and allow Western experts to inspect military and nuclear facilities in the current situation of confrontation.

Likewise, he addressed other issues such as the social security of participants in combat actions, the equipment of the Army, the training of soldiers and the fight against terrorists and saboteurs.

An important element was the reference to the modernization of the military-industrial complex and the results of the national strategy designed to confront and defeat the Western sanctions packages against Moscow.

Putin outlined the nation’s socio-economic goals, mentioning issues such as the standard of living of the population, demographics, income and salary increases, as well as the affordability of food and medicine prices.

The Russian head of state did not neglect support for the new regions of Russia. For this, he urged the entire country to guarantee its development, with the aim of reaching the same level as the other territories of the Federation.

(Taken from Orb)