Vladimir Putin warns Western countries of ‘real threat’ of nuclear conflict

The Russian president welcomed the progress of his army on the front, two weeks before the presidential election which he should unsurprisingly win.

Vladimir Putin warned Western countries on Thursday February 29 against “real threat” of nuclear war in the event of an escalation of the conflict in Ukraine, in his annual address to the nation, an annual high mass during which the president defines the priorities for Russia. Comforted by Russian successes in Ukraine, the Russian head of state welcomed the progress of his troops, two weeks before a presidential election which he should win without surprise.

In a calm tone, under very regular applause from the public, he returned to the controversial remarks of his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, who this week raised the possibility of sending Western troops to Ukraine. “The consequences of these interventions would really be more tragic”he said from Gostiny Dvor, a palace near Red Square in Moscow.

“They must understand that we too have weapons capable of hitting targets on their territory.”

Vladimir Poutine

during his annual address to the nation

“Everything they are inventing at the moment, in addition to frightening the whole world, is a real threat of conflict with the use of nuclear weapons and therefore the destruction of civilization”continued the Russian president. “So they don’t understand that?”, he asked himself aloud during a speech lasting just over two hours before the country’s political, military, economic and religious elite. The Russian president appears in better shape than a year ago, when his army was subject to humiliating retreats in the south and northeast of Ukraine, after an abortive attempt to seize Kiev in the spring 2022.

Satisfaction on the Ukrainian front

Since then, the Ukrainian army has failed in its counter-offensive launched in the summer of 2023 and is lacking ammunition, due to lack of agreement in Washington and due to the slowness of European deliveries. Russian soldiers, more numerous and better armed, recently succeeded in seizing the fortress town of Avdiïvka, in the east of the country, and are continuing their push into this sector. “The armed forces are advancing confidently in several directions”rejoiced Vladimir Putin, believing that “the absolute majority of the Russian people” supported the war.

During his speech, the head of the Kremlin also boasted of “flexibility and resistance” of the Russian economy, despite a barrage of Western sanctions. The Russian president also attacked the current American authorities, accusing them of “want to show that they run the world as before” and to make “demagogy” ahead of the US presidential election in November. According to him, Russia is “ready for a dialogue” with the United States on questions of “strategic stability”.

Demographic issues

Vladimir Putin also defined new strategic directions in his speech. In particular, he has set a program to be fulfilled by 2030, at the end of the next presidential term which he should win in an unopposed election organized from March 15 to 17. He praised the “traditional values” defended by the Kremlin, ensuring that Russia was one of the “bastions” in the face of a West deemed depraved.

“A family with many children must become the norm”, he said, while Russia has been facing serious demographic problems for many years. After a first part of a speech devoted to the international situation, he made multiple promises of social assistance, particularly for veterans and their families, and announced investments in infrastructure, education, digital and new technologies, culture or even environmental protection.