鑽石舞台

Address bythePresident oftheRussian Federation

February 24, 2022 06:00 TheKremlin, Moscow

Address bythePresident oftheRussian Federation.

President ofRussia Vladimir Putin:Citizens ofRussia, friends,

Iconsider it necessary today tospeak again about thetragic events inDonbass andthekey aspects ofensuring thesecurity ofRussia.

Iwill begin with what Isaid inmyaddress onFebruary21, 2022. Ispoke about our biggest concerns andworries, andabout thefundamental threats which irresponsible Western politicians created forRussia consistently, rudely andunceremoniously from year toyear. Iam referring totheeastward expansion ofNATO, which is moving its military infrastructure ever closer totheRussian border.

It is afact that over thepast 30 years we have been patiently trying tocome toanagreement with theleading NATO countries regarding theprinciples ofequal andindivisible security inEurope. Inresponse toour proposals, we invariably faced either cynical deception andlies orattempts atpressure andblackmail, while theNorth Atlantic alliance continued toexpand despite our protests andconcerns. Its military machine is moving and, asIsaid, is approaching our very border.

Why is this happening? Where did this insolent manner oftalking down from theheight oftheir exceptionalism, infallibility andall-permissiveness come from? What is theexplanation forthis contemptuous anddisdainful attitude toour interests andabsolutely legitimate demands?

Theanswer is simple. Everything is clear andobvious. Inthelate 1980s, theSoviet Union grew weaker andsubsequently broke apart. That experience should serve asagood lesson forus, because it has shown us that theparalysis ofpower andwill is thefirst step towards complete degradation andoblivion. We lost confidence foronly one moment, but it was enough todisrupt thebalance offorces intheworld.

Asaresult, theold treaties andagreements are no longer effective. Entreaties andrequests do not help. Anything that does not suit thedominant state, thepowers that be, is denounced asarchaic, obsolete anduseless. Atthesame time, everything it regards asuseful is presented astheultimate truth andforced onothers regardless ofthecost, abusively andbyany means available. Those who refuse tocomply are subjected tostrong-arm tactics.

What Iam saying now does not concerns only Russia, andRussia is not theonly country that is worried about this. This has todo with theentire system ofinternational relations, andsometimes even US allies. Thecollapse oftheSoviet Union led toaredivision oftheworld, andthenorms ofinternational law that developed bythat time– andthemost important ofthem, thefundamental norms that were adopted following WWII andlargely formalised its outcome– came intheway ofthose who declared themselves thewinners oftheCold War.

Ofcourse, practice, international relations andtherules regulating them had totake into account thechanges that took place intheworld andinthebalance offorces. However, this should have been done professionally, smoothly, patiently, andwith due regard andrespect fortheinterests ofall states andone’s own responsibility. Instead, we saw astate ofeuphoria created bythefeeling ofabsolute superiority, akind ofmodern absolutism, coupled with thelow cultural standards andarrogance ofthose who formulated andpushed through decisions that suited only themselves. Thesituation took adifferent turn.

There are many examples ofthis. First abloody military operation was waged against Belgrade, without theUN Security Council’s sanction but with combat aircraft andmissiles used intheheart ofEurope. Thebombing ofpeaceful cities andvital infrastructure went onforseveral weeks. Ihave torecall these facts, because some Western colleagues prefer toforget them, andwhen we mentioned theevent, they prefer toavoid speaking about international law, instead emphasising thecircumstances which they interpret asthey think necessary.

Then came theturn ofIraq, Libya andSyria. Theillegal use ofmilitary power against Libya andthedistortion ofall theUN Security Council decisions onLibya ruined thestate, created ahuge seat ofinternational terrorism, andpushed thecountry towards ahumanitarian catastrophe, into thevortex ofacivil war, which has continued there foryears. Thetragedy, which was created forhundreds ofthousands andeven millions ofpeople not only inLibya but inthewhole region, has led toalarge-scale exodus from theMiddle East andNorth Africa toEurope.

Asimilar fate was also prepared forSyria. Thecombat operations conducted bytheWestern coalition inthat country without theSyrian government’s approval orUN Security Council’s sanction can only be defined asaggression andintervention.

But theexample that stands apart from theabove events is, ofcourse, theinvasion ofIraq without any legal grounds. They used thepretext ofallegedly reliable information available intheUnited States about thepresence ofweapons ofmass destruction inIraq. Toprove that allegation, theUS Secretary ofState held up avial with white power, publicly, forthewhole world tosee, assuring theinternational community that it was achemical warfare agent created inIraq. It later turned out that all ofthat was afake andasham, andthat Iraq did not have any chemical weapons. Incredible andshocking but true. We witnessed lies made atthehighest state level andvoiced from thehigh UN rostrum. Asaresult we see atremendous loss inhuman life, damage, destruction, andacolossal upsurge ofterrorism.

Overall, it appears that nearly everywhere, inmany regions oftheworld where theUnited States brought its law andorder, this created bloody, non-healing wounds andthecurse ofinternational terrorism andextremism. Ihave only mentioned themost glaring but far from only examples ofdisregard forinternational law.

This array includes promises not toexpand NATO eastwards even byaninch. Toreiterate: they have deceived us, or, toput it simply, they have played us. Sure, one often hears that politics is adirty business. It could be, but it shouldn’t be asdirty asit is now, not tosuch anextent. This type ofcon-artist behaviour is contrary not only totheprinciples ofinternational relations but also andabove all tothegenerally accepted norms ofmorality andethics. Where is justice andtruth here? Just lies andhypocrisy all around.

Incidentally, US politicians, political scientists andjournalists write andsay that averitable 「empire oflies」 has been created inside theUnited States inrecent years. It is hard todisagree with this– it is really so. But one should not be modest about it: theUnited States is still agreat country andasystem-forming power. All its satellites not only humbly andobediently say yes toandparrot it attheslightest pretext but also imitate its behaviour andenthusiastically accept therules it is offering them. Therefore, one can say with good reason andconfidence that thewhole so-called Western bloc formed bytheUnited States inits own image andlikeness is, inits entirety, thevery same 「empire oflies.」

Asforour country, after thedisintegration oftheUSSR, given theentire unprecedented openness ofthenew, modern Russia, its readiness towork honestly with theUnited States andother Western partners, andits practically unilateral disarmament, they immediately tried toput thefinal squeeze onus, finish us off, andutterly destroy us. This is how it was inthe1990s andtheearly 2000s, when theso-called collective West was actively supporting separatism andgangs ofmercenaries insouthern Russia. What victims, what losses we had tosustain andwhat trials we had togo through atthat time before we broke theback ofinternational terrorism intheCaucasus! We remember this andwill never forget.

Properly speaking, theattempts touse us intheir own interests never ceased until quite recently: they sought todestroy our traditional values andforce onus their false values that would erode us, our people from within, theattitudes they have been aggressively imposing ontheir countries, attitudes that are directly leading todegradation anddegeneration, because they are contrary tohuman nature. This is not going tohappen. No one has ever succeeded indoing this, nor will they succeed now.

Despite all that, inDecember 2021, we made yet another attempt toreach agreement with theUnited States andits allies ontheprinciples ofEuropean security andNATO’s non-expansion. Our efforts were invain. TheUnited States has not changed its position. It does not believe it necessary toagree with Russia onamatter that is critical forus. TheUnited States is pursuing its own objectives, while neglecting our interests.

Ofcourse, this situation begs aquestion: what next, what are we toexpect? If history is any guide, we know that in1940 andearly 1941 theSoviet Union went togreat lengths toprevent war oratleast delay its outbreak. Tothis end, theUSSR sought not toprovoke thepotential aggressor until thevery end byrefraining orpostponing themost urgent andobvious preparations it had tomake todefend itself from animminent attack. When it finally acted, it was too late.

Asaresult, thecountry was not prepared tocounter theinvasion byNazi Germany, which attacked our Motherland onJune22, 1941, without declaring war. Thecountry stopped theenemy andwent ontodefeat it, but this came atatremendous cost. Theattempt toappease theaggressor ahead oftheGreat Patriotic War proved tobe amistake which came atahigh cost forour people. Inthefirst months after thehostilities broke out, we lost vast territories ofstrategic importance, aswell asmillions oflives. We will not make this mistake thesecond time. We have no right todo so.

Those who aspire toglobal dominance have publicly designated Russia astheir enemy. They did so with impunity. Make no mistake, they had no reason toact this way. It is true that they have considerable financial, scientific, technological, andmilitary capabilities. We are aware ofthis andhave anobjective view oftheeconomic threats we have been hearing, just asour ability tocounter this brash andnever-ending blackmail. Let me reiterate that we have no illusions inthis regard andare extremely realistic inour assessments.

Asformilitary affairs, even after thedissolution oftheUSSR andlosing aconsiderable part ofits capabilities, today’s Russia remains one ofthemost powerful nuclear states. Moreover, it has acertain advantage inseveral cutting-edge weapons. Inthis context, there should be no doubt foranyone that any potential aggressor will face defeat andominous consequences should it directly attack our country.

Atthesame time, technology, including inthedefence sector, is changing rapidly. One day there is one leader, andtomorrow another, but amilitary presence interritories bordering onRussia, if we permit it togo ahead, will stay fordecades tocome ormaybe forever, creating anever mounting andtotally unacceptable threat forRussia.

Even now, with NATO’s eastward expansion thesituation forRussia has been becoming worse andmore dangerous bytheyear. Moreover, these past days NATO leadership has been blunt inits statements that they need toaccelerate andstep up efforts tobring thealliance’s infrastructure closer toRussia’s borders. Inother words, they have been toughening their position. We cannot stay idle andpassively observe these developments. This would be anabsolutely irresponsible thing todo forus.

Any further expansion oftheNorth Atlantic alliance’s infrastructure ortheongoing efforts togain amilitary foothold oftheUkrainian territory are unacceptable forus. Ofcourse, thequestion is not about NATO itself. It merely serves asatool ofUS foreign policy. Theproblem is that interritories adjacent toRussia, which Ihave tonote is our historical land, ahostile 「anti-Russia」 is taking shape. Fully controlled from theoutside, it is doing everything toattract NATO armed forces andobtain cutting-edge weapons.

FortheUnited States andits allies, it is apolicy ofcontaining Russia, with obvious geopolitical dividends. Forour country, it is amatter oflife anddeath, amatter ofour historical future asanation. This is not anexaggeration; this is afact. It is not only avery real threat toour interests but tothevery existence ofour state andtoits sovereignty. It is thered line which we have spoken about onnumerous occasions. They have crossed it.

This brings me tothesituation inDonbass. We can see that theforces that staged thecoup inUkraine in2014 have seized power, are keeping it with thehelp ofornamental election procedures andhave abandoned thepath ofapeaceful conflict settlement. Foreight years, foreight endless years we have been doing everything possible tosettle thesituation bypeaceful political means. Everything was invain.

AsIsaid inmyprevious address, you cannot look without compassion atwhat is happening there. It became impossible totolerate it. We had tostop that atrocity, that genocide ofthemillions ofpeople who live there andwho pinned their hopes onRussia, onall ofus. It is their aspirations, thefeelings andpain ofthese people that were themain motivating force behind our decision torecognise theindependence oftheDonbass people’s republics.

Iwould like toadditionally emphasise thefollowing. Focused ontheir own goals, theleading NATO countries are supporting thefar-right nationalists andneo-Nazis inUkraine, those who will never forgive thepeople ofCrimea andSevastopol forfreely making achoice toreunite with Russia.

They will undoubtedly try tobring war toCrimea just asthey have done inDonbass, tokill innocent people just asmembers ofthepunitive units ofUkrainian nationalists andHitler’s accomplices did during theGreat Patriotic War. They have also openly laid claim toseveral other Russian regions.

If we look atthesequence ofevents andtheincoming reports, theshowdown between Russia andthese forces cannot be avoided. It is only amatter oftime. They are getting ready andwaiting fortheright moment. Moreover, they went asfar asaspire toacquire nuclear weapons. We will not let this happen.

Ihave already said that Russia accepted thenew geopolitical reality after thedissolution oftheUSSR. We have been treating all new post-Soviet states with respect andwill continue toact this way. We respect andwill respect their sovereignty, asproven bytheassistance we provided toKazakhstan when it faced tragic events andachallenge interms ofits statehood andintegrity. However, Russia cannot feel safe, develop, andexist while facing apermanent threat from theterritory oftoday’s Ukraine.

Let me remind you that in2000–2005 we used our military topush back against terrorists intheCaucasus andstood up fortheintegrity ofour state. We preserved Russia. In2014, we supported thepeople ofCrimea andSevastopol. In2015, we used our Armed Forces tocreate areliable shield that prevented terrorists from Syria from penetrating Russia. This was amatter ofdefending ourselves. We had no other choice.

Thesame is happening today. They did not leave us any other option fordefending Russia andour people, other than theone we are forced touse today. Inthese circumstances, we have totake bold andimmediate action. Thepeople’s republics ofDonbass have asked Russia forhelp.

Inthis context, inaccordance with Article 51 (Chapter VII) oftheUN Charter, with permission ofRussia’s Federation Council, andinexecution ofthetreaties offriendship andmutual assistance with theDonetsk People’s Republic andtheLugansk People’s Republic, ratified bytheFederal Assembly onFebruary22, Imade adecision tocarry out aspecial military operation.

Thepurpose ofthis operation is toprotect people who, foreight years now, have been facing humiliation andgenocide perpetrated bytheKiev regime. Tothis end, we will seek todemilitarise anddenazify Ukraine, aswell asbring totrial those who perpetrated numerous bloody crimes against civilians, including against citizens oftheRussian Federation.

It is not our plan tooccupy theUkrainian territory. We do not intend toimpose anything onanyone byforce. Atthesame time, we have been hearing anincreasing number ofstatements coming from theWest that there is no need any more toabide bythedocuments setting forth theoutcomes ofWorld War II, assigned bythetotalitarian Soviet regime. How can we respond tothat?

Theoutcomes ofWorld War II andthesacrifices our people had tomake todefeat Nazism are sacred. This does not contradict thehigh values ofhuman rights andfreedoms inthereality that emerged over thepost-war decades. This does not mean that nations cannot enjoy theright toself-determination, which is enshrined inArticle 1 oftheUN Charter.

Let me remind you that thepeople living interritories which are part oftoday’s Ukraine were not asked how they want tobuild their lives when theUSSR was created orafter World War II. Freedom guides our policy, thefreedom tochoose independently our future andthefuture ofour children. We believe that all thepeoples living intoday’s Ukraine, anyone who want todo this, must be able toenjoy this right tomake afree choice.

Inthis context Iwould like toaddress thecitizens ofUkraine. In2014, Russia was obliged toprotect thepeople ofCrimea andSevastopol from those who you yourself call 「nats.」 Thepeople ofCrimea andSevastopol made their choice infavour ofbeing with their historical homeland, Russia, andwe supported their choice. AsIsaid, we could not act otherwise.

Thecurrent events have nothing todo with adesire toinfringe ontheinterests ofUkraine andtheUkrainian people. They are connected with thedefending Russia from those who have taken Ukraine hostage andare trying touse it against our country andour people.

Ireiterate: we are acting todefend ourselves from thethreats created forus andfrom aworse peril than what is happening now. Iam asking you, however hard this may be, tounderstand this andtowork together with us so astoturn this tragic page assoon aspossible andtomove forward together, without allowing anyone tointerfere inour affairs andour relations but developing them independently, so astocreate favourable conditions forovercoming all these problems andtostrengthen us from within asasingle whole, despite theexistence ofstate borders. Ibelieve inthis, inour common future.

Iwould also like toaddress themilitary personnel oftheUkrainian Armed Forces.

Comrade officers,

Your fathers, grandfathers andgreat-grandfathers did not fight theNazi occupiers anddid not defend our common Motherland toallow today’s neo-Nazis toseize power inUkraine. You swore theoath ofallegiance totheUkrainian people andnot tothejunta, thepeople’s adversary which is plundering Ukraine andhumiliating theUkrainian people.

Iurge you torefuse tocarry out their criminal orders. Iurge you toimmediately lay down arms andgo home. Iwill explain what this means: themilitary personnel oftheUkrainian army who do this will be able tofreely leave thezone ofhostilities andreturn totheir families.

Iwant toemphasise again that all responsibility forthepossible bloodshed will lie fully andwholly with theruling Ukrainian regime.

Iwould now like tosay something very important forthose who may be tempted tointerfere inthese developments from theoutside. No matter who tries tostand inour way orall themore so create threats forour country andour people, they must know that Russia will respond immediately, andtheconsequences will be such asyou have never seen inyour entire history. No matter how theevents unfold, we are ready. All thenecessary decisions inthis regard have been taken. Ihope that mywords will be heard.

Citizens ofRussia,

Theculture andvalues, experience andtraditions ofour ancestors invariably provided apowerful underpinning forthewellbeing andthevery existence ofentire states andnations, their success andviability. Ofcourse, this directly depends ontheability toquickly adapt toconstant change, maintain social cohesion, andreadiness toconsolidate andsummon all theavailable forces inorder tomove forward.

We always need tobe strong, but this strength can take ondifferent forms. The「empire oflies,」 which Imentioned inthebeginning ofmyspeech, proceeds inits policy primarily from rough, direct force. This is when our saying onbeing 「all brawn andno brains」 applies.

We all know that having justice andtruth onour side is what makes us truly strong. If this is thecase, it would be hard todisagree with thefact that it is our strength andour readiness tofight that are thebedrock ofindependence andsovereignty andprovide thenecessary foundation forbuilding areliable future foryour home, your family, andyour Motherland.

Dear compatriots,

Iam certain that devoted soldiers andofficers ofRussia’s Armed Forces will perform their duty with professionalism andcourage. Ihave no doubt that thegovernment institutions atall levels andspecialists will work effectively toguarantee thestability ofour economy, financial system andsocial wellbeing, andthesame applies tocorporate executives andtheentire business community. Ihope that all parliamentary parties andcivil society take aconsolidated, patriotic position.

Attheend oftheday, thefuture ofRussia is inthehands ofits multi-ethnic people, ashas always been thecase inour history. This means that thedecisions that Imade will be executed, that we will achieve thegoals we have set, andreliably guarantee thesecurity ofour Motherland.

Ibelieve inyour support andtheinvincible force rooted inthelove forour Fatherland.

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