Putin chides West, defends Ukraine invasion in major speech
Moscow (AP): Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Western countries Tuesday of igniting and sustaining the war in Ukraine, dismissing any blame for Moscow almost a year after the Kremlin's unprovoked invasion of its neighbour that has killed tens of thousands of people.
In his long-delayed state-of-the-nation address, Putin cast Russia and Ukraine as victims of Western double-dealing and said Russia, not Ukraine, was the one fighting for its very existence.
"We aren't fighting the Ukrainian people," Putin said in a speech days before the war's first anniversary on Friday. Ukraine "has become hostage of the Kyiv regime and its Western masters, which have effectively occupied the country."
The speech reiterated a litany of grievances that the Russian leader has frequently offered as justification for the widely condemned war and ignored international demands to pull back from occupied areas in Ukraine.
Observers are expected to scour it for signs of how Putin sees the conflict, which has become bogged down, and what tone he might set for the year ahead. The Russian leader vowed no military let-up in Ukrainian territories he has illegally annexed, apparently rejecting any peace overtures in a conflict that has reawakened fears of a new Cold War.
Instead, he offered his personalized version of recent history, which discounted arguments by the Ukrainian government that it needed Western help to thwart a Russian military takeover.
"Western elites aren't trying to conceal their goals, to inflict a strategic defeat' to Russia," Putin said in the speech broadcast by all state TV channels. "They intend to transform the local conflict into a global confrontation."
He added that Russia is prepared to respond to that as "it will be a matter of our country's existence."
While the Constitution mandates that the president deliver the speech annually, Putin never gave one in 2022, as his troops rolled into Ukraine and suffered repeated setbacks.
Before the speech, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the Russian leader would focus on the "special military operation" in Ukraine, as Moscow calls it, and Russia's economy and social issues. Many observers predicted it would also address Moscow's fallout with the West and Putin began with strong words for those countries.
"It's they who have started the war. And we are using force to end it," Putin said before an audience of lawmakers, state officials and soldiers who have fought in Ukraine.
Putin accused the west of the West of launching "aggressive information attacks" and taking aim at Russian culture, religion and values because it is aware that "it is impossible to defeat Russia on the battlefield."
He also accused Western nations of waging an attack on Russia's economy with sanctions but declared but they hadn't "achieved anything and will not achieve anything."
Underscoring the anticipation ahead of time, some state TV channels put out a countdown for the event starting Monday, and Russia's state news agency RIA Novosti on Tuesday morning said the address may be "historic."
The Kremlin this year has barred media from "unfriendly" countries, the list of which includes the U.S., the U.K. and those in the EU. Peskov said journalists from those nations will be able to cover the speech by watching the broadcast.
Peskov told reporters that the speech's delay had to do with Putin's "work schedule," but Russian media reports linked it to the multiple setbacks Russian forces have suffered on the battlefield in Ukraine.
The Russian president had postponed the state-of-the-nation address before: In 2017, the speech was rescheduled for early 2018.
Last year the Kremlin has also canceled two other big annual events Putin's press conference and a highly scripted phone-in marathon where people ask the president questions.
Analysts expected Putin's speech would be tough in the wake of U.S. President Joe Biden's visit to Kyiv on Monday. Biden plans to give his own speech later Tuesday in Poland, where he's expected to highlight the commitment of the central European country and other allies to Ukraine over the past year.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said that Biden's address would not be "some kind of head to head" with Putin's.
"This is not a rhetorical contest with anyone else," he said.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
UP Cong holds statewide protest seeking probe into FIR against Swami Avimukteshwaranand
Lucknow (PTI): The Uttar Pradesh Congress on Wednesday staged a statewide protest demanding a fair and transparent inquiry into the FIR lodged against Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati and those who filed the complaint against him.
In a statement issued here, the party said memorandums addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi were submitted through district magistrates in all districts of the state.
Uttar Pradesh Congress spokesperson Manish Hindvi told PTI that the memorandums were handed over through the district administration in all 75 districts.
In the memorandum, the party alleged that Saraswati and his disciples were "unnecessarily harassed and humiliated" by police on the occasion of Amavasya and were prevented from taking a ritual bath (at the Magh Mela). It further alleged that some disciples were manhandled and taken to a police station.
The memorandum also claimed that an FIR was later registered against Saraswati, his disciple Swami Mukundanand Brahmachari and several unidentified persons in a sexual harassment case. It termed the case a "conspiracy" aimed at tarnishing the seer's reputation.
Citing Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution, the memorandum stated that these provisions guarantee religious freedom and the right of religious denominations to manage their own affairs.
It described the position of shankaracharya held by Saraswati as "one of the highest spiritual posts in Sanatan tradition" and alleged that the entire episode appeared to have been "orchestrated in a planned manner".
"We request that the background of the persons who got the FIR registered be investigated in a transparent manner by a retired high court judge and strict action be taken against them," the memorandum said.
It also sought a "fair and transparent probe" into the allegations levelled against Saraswati so that the truth could be established.
Earlier, Uttar Pradesh Congress president Ajay Rai had told reporters in Varanasi after meeting Saraswati that the party stood firmly with him.
The Congress said it would continue to press for an impartial inquiry into the entire episode.
On February 21, an FIR was lodged in Prayagraj against Saraswati and his disciple Mukundanand Brahmachari on charges of sexually abusing two persons, including a minor, over the past year at a gurukul and religious congregations, including the recently concluded Magh Mela.
Days after he was booked, Saraswati had said on Monday that he would not oppose his arrest and asserted that the "fabricated story" would be exposed sooner or later.
At a press conference on Wednesday, Saraswati alleged that criminals rule in Uttar Pradesh, level allegations and influence investigations, as he denied having any contact with the two persons for whose alleged sexual abuse he has been booked.
_vb_77.jpeg)
_vb_00.jpeg)
