Russian President Vladimir Putin’s Victory Day speech: Key points

Russian President Vladimir Putin addressed the people of his country on Monday to mark the annual Victory Day celebrations. Putin spoke from Moscow’s Red Square and touched base with ongoing “special operation” in Ukraine.

Putin did not declare an all-out war against Ukraine on Monday afternoon, contrary to multiple media reports. In contradiction, his address did not refer to the ongoing conflict much.

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Putin started off with a message for his troops in Ukraine. “Today you are defending what your grandfathers and great-grandfathers fought for”, the Russian President said in an attempt to boost the confidence of his forces.

While not giving away too much about the Kremlin’s future plans in relation to the Ukrainian operation, Putin said, “Our duty is to do everything so that the horror of a global war does not happen again”, according to reports from AFP.

Putin then moved on to slam Western nations for their actions over the last two months. He accused the Western alliance of “preparing for the invasion” of Russia by creating “threats next to our [Russia’s] borders.

Putin also said that the Western alliance, particularly NATO countries, were never ready to take the diplomatic path with Moscow. “NATO countries did not want to hear us. They had very different plans and we could see that”, the Russian President said in his Victory Day address.

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He added that the Russian troops were fighting for the country’s security in Ukraine and observed a minute of silence to honor the troops who fell in combat, according to reports from Associated Press.

The Russian military also showcased a large parade to mark this year’s Victory Day in Moscow. The procession at the Red Square included tanks, personnel carriers and vehicles carrying large intercontinental ballistic missiles. However, an airshow was missing from the celebrations after the drill was called off due to rough weather.