President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia said the West faced the prospect of nuclear conflict if it intervened more directly in the war in Ukraine, using an annual speech to the nation on Thursday to escalate his threats against Europe and the United States.
Mr. Putin said Western countries that were helping Ukraine strike Russian territory “must, in the end, understand” that “all this truly threatens a conflict with the use of nuclear weapons, and therefore the destruction of civilization.”
“We also have weapons that can strike targets on their territory,” Mr. Putin said. “Do they not understand this?”
Putin has finished his annual State of the Nation address. Here are some key takeaways from his speech:
"They have announced the possibility of sending Western military contingents to Ukraine … The consequences for possible interventionists will be much more tragic.”
"They should eventually realise that we also have weapons that can hit targets on their territory. Everything that the West comes up with creates the real threat of a conflict with the use of nuclear weapons, and thus the destruction of civilisation.”
"Western countries do not just want to restrain the development of the Russian Federation: “Instead of Russia, they need a dependent, fading, dying space where they can do whatever they want.”
Here are the top political news stories for today.
@Bl4ckBoxRodLibertarian2yrs2Y
After a backlash against his warning that Western troops may enter Ukraine to fight Russia directly Emmanuel Macron triggered the biggest collective back paddle in history. What did we learn from this?
NATO is a clown circus that sacrificed a comedian to sell more tickets.
@Freedom1984Democrat2yrs2Y
To me that looks like a good cop/bad cop game between the passionate Macron and the cautions rational Olaf Scholz. They want to demonstrate how close the EU is to escalation.
@Mandat3FaithGreen2yrs2Y
Putin: “lets talk cease fire”
Biden Admin : “no”
NATO: “no”
Almost like they want full scale war… the money machine is already turning.
@ReferendumBarryGreen2yrs2Y
The West really needs to learn how to get along with Russia. Russia attempted diplomacy numerous times re Ukraine, starting back in 2008 when admission to NATO was first brought up. It tried with the Minsk Accords. It tried right before the war. It tried with settlement talks during the war.
The simple fact is Russia has legitimate national security concerns. Until these are acknowledged, we will have war.
This doesn’t mean Russia has to get its way - but it is the beginning of negotiation.
War or peace? It’s up to us to chose.
Russia really needs to learn how to get along with the West. Russia needs to stay within its borders, not threaten its neighbors, and not interfere in their societies, economies, and infrastructure. If it would do that, there would be no need for NATO.
Russia already chose war, and will do so again if not stopped. And it's not for us to negotiate on behalf of Ukraine. We support them so they can negotiate their fate from a position relatively equal to that of Russia.
@JusticeQuokka2yrs2Y
Exchange “Russia” with “NATO” (and vice versa) and your statement is also true. But it is Russia who sent in the tanks, proving that it is NATO and Ukraine that has the security risk.
One notices that the nuclear rhetoric from the Kremlin increases every time it hears noises from the West that threatens its messaging and world view. The diplomatic response to Putin should really be "is this the only song you know?"
The current situation also lays bare how naïve the Biden Administration's "slow roll" of assistance to Ukraine really was - half measure upon half measure to hold the line, but not affect a positive outcome, with the assumption that bipartisan support would continue indefinitely. And now we are in a place where we may be abandoning a fledgling democracy in Eastern Europe. I hope I am wrong, but history is likely to show the West will only find itself in a bigger horror for its lack of real commitment to stopping Putin.
Alright, Napoleon Macron, Joe Brandon, Turtle McConnell, time to back off ... if you don't want the human race to be annihilated
@GovernmentWhitingGreen2yrs2Y
Pick up the phone Joe. It's that black thing with all the buttons on your desk. Tell the operator to connect you with Mr. Putin. Ask him for a meeting on neutral ground in the Seychelles so you can enjoy a holiday while your boss talks with Mr. Putin. DON'T touch the red button!
@C1v1cSadieLibertarian2yrs2Y
Russia won't play the globalist game of open borders and embracing wokeism.
Putin holds all the cards.
Trump has already said he's going to negotiate a peace in Ukraine, whereas Biden never will. We're going to have to wait till 2025 for a resolution.
@Make-America-MAGA-Again2yrs2Y
If Trump was in the White House, there would have never been a war in the first place. Putin is the only current world leader trying to bring peace to the world by removing NAZIs from power.
@9KFJVFJRepublican2yrs2Y
We should stay out of the war there is a reason we left Afghanistan
@9KFJLFY2yrs2Y
A Nuclear war is stupid, we shouldn't destroy each other just because of some angry old people arguing.
@9KFGNJN2yrs2Y
There’s a way to de-escalate without NATO being involved.
@9KFG27N2yrs2Y
US or England should assassinate Putin ASAP.
@9KFFTHG2yrs2Y
important for US citizens to understand where the US stands on current foreign affairs
@9KFDQ492yrs2Y
We need to send more equipment to Ukraine, so Russia can't annex unlawful territory and commit war crimes against civilians.
putin is dangerous and will take over the world if given the chance
I feel instead of sending so much money end the attack.
@9KF4YSTRepublican2yrs2Y
It is not good, and it will not end well.
@9KDN9J4Libertarian 2yrs2Y
Deescalate as effectively as possible.
@9KF3RJV2yrs2Y
I think this war is very wild and has been active for a long time. The us keeps funding which I don’t agree with and it needs to be them against Russia not the Us and Israel
@9KDZDMG2yrs2Y
i mean nuclear war is not a good way because it will affect more than just Ukraine
@9KDTT562yrs2Y
Real nuclear war is something that is agreed upon globally to never happen because of the damage it could cause. This should not be overlooked.
@9KDRJTN2yrs2Y
Theres no need for war, we should be able to live just like others because a lot of people are innocent losing their lives.
@9KDM6ZC2yrs2Y
This whole war thing, if one bomb get shot off, it will send us into world war three, I think the other two are also very important but a world war could kill millions.
@9KDLMLS2yrs2Y
too dangerous and risky, it's going way too far
@YearlyJakeLibertarian2yrs2Y
In the future we will look back on this period of history as an idyllic time before every tinpot dictator, not just one or two of them, could threaten to destroy the world. Yet the technology exists, and no technology can be suppressed or contained forever. Always, the only response to new threats is the implementation of countering technology at a more rapid pace.
@BubblyYakTranshumanist2yrs2Y
Putin is showing signs of desperation as pressure is building against him. We can only hope that someone, an insider with better judgement will step in to put a halt to Putin’s madness should he take a step too far.
@Gr4ssrootBatDemocrat2yrs2Y
If the West sincerely wants Ukraine to prevail, then it will prevail.
So far, Russian nuclear threats have been highly successful in constraining Western responses to the war on Ukraine.
@ISIDEWITH2yrs2Y
@ISIDEWITH2yrs2Y
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