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Putin's speech was also broadcast to the public - as here in Sevastopol, on the Crimea peninsula annexed by Russia
Photo: Alexey Pavlishak / REUTERS
In his State of the Union address, Russian President Vladimir Putin blamed the West for the war he started in Ukraine.
The Kremlin chief also announced that he intends to suspend the New Start nuclear disarmament treaty between Russia and the United States.
The appearance immediately triggered reactions in the West.
The US government has dismissed Putin's allegations as absurd.
"No one is attacking Russia," US President Joe Biden's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, told reporters on Tuesday.
The notion that "Russia was in any way militarily threatened by Ukraine or anyone else" was therefore an "absurdity."
Putin had previously blamed the West for the escalation of the Ukraine conflict and accused it of wanting to “do away with Russia once and for all”.
US President Biden traveled to the Ukrainian capital Kiev on Monday and assured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of “unshakeable” US support and further arms deliveries.
After his return to Poland, he plans to give a speech at Warsaw Castle later on Tuesday.
The US government has also reacted to Putin's announcement that it intends to suspend the "New Start" treaty on nuclear disarmament between Moscow and Washington.
Russia's decision is irresponsible and the United States is closely monitoring what Moscow is actually doing, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday.
»Strategic failure in every respect«
"Russia's announcement to suspend participation is very regrettable and irresponsible," Blinken told reporters in the Greek capital, Athens.
“We will closely monitor what Russia is actually doing.
We will, of course, ensure that in any event we are adequately armed for the security of our own country and our allies," he said.
"A year after Putin's attack on Ukraine, it is clear that his war is a strategic failure in every sense," Blinken added.
"If we allow this to go unpunished, we'll be opening a Pandora's box around the world, where might dictates what is right." Nobody wanted this war, the US Secretary of State went on to say.
"Everyone wants it to end as soon as possible."
Stoltenberg calls for compliance with "New Start".
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also criticized the Russian announcement to suspend New Start.
"With today's decision on 'New Start', the entire arms control architecture has been dismantled," said the Norwegian in Brussels on Tuesday.
He urged Russia to reconsider the decision and respect existing agreements.
"More nuclear weapons and less arms control make the world more dangerous," he said.
NATO has been openly accusing Russia of violating the agreement for several weeks.
Russia's refusal to allow US inspections on its territory undermines the future of the treaty, said a Feb. 3 statement from the 30 allies.
This also applies to the country's refusal to convene a meeting of the bilateral advisory commission within the contractually agreed period.
Meloni calls Putin's speech "propaganda"
During her visit to Ukraine, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni described Putin's speech as "propaganda".
She was hoping for more constructive statements, Meloni said during a visit to the city of Irpin.
“A part of my heart was hoping for other words, for a step forward.
It was propaganda.«
Meloni of the post-fascist Fratelli d'Italia heads a right-wing government.
Your allies Matteo Salvini of the Lega and Silvio Berlusconi of Forza Italia are much friendlier to the Russian government.
col/AFP/Reuters
