LIVE – Vladimir Putin to the Russians: “The goal of the West is to destroy Russia”

Vladimir Putin assured that these “special operations” were carried out by both “professional soldiers” and “volunteers, patriots.” A statement that must be understood as a response to the accusations of an army that struggles to recruit and mobilize and even send prisoners to the front that emerged in the press.

This morning an expected speech recorded last night by Vladimir Putin is broadcast. He attacked the international community: “The goal of the West is to destroy our country.” An objective that would explain, according to the dictator, Western support for Ukraine.

He explained his invasion of Ukraine by his desire to protect Russia from an “imminent attack” by presenting this aggression as “a logical decision”, while continuing to speak of a simple “special military operation”.

All of these announcements come after Russian setbacks in early September, when Moscow’s army withdrew from the Kharkiv region under pressure from Kyiv forces, heavy on supplies of Western weapons and equipment.

The Ukrainian army also launched a counteroffensive in the Kherson region in the south. It is also on the offensive in the Luhansk region, which Moscow had fully conquered in the spring at the cost of months of death fighting.

The separatist powers of the Lugansk and Donetsk regions announced these “referendums”, as did the Russian occupation authorities of Kherson and Zaporizhia. These elections, scheduled for this week, will take place as Ukraine enters its eighth month of war and all these areas are the subject of fighting.

These votes, following the model of the one that formalized the annexation of the Crimean peninsula by Russia in 2014, denounced by Kyiv and the West, have been the subject of preparations for several months.

In response, Ukraine promised to “liquidate” the Russian “threat”. “Ukraine will solve the Russian question. The threat can only be liquidated by force,” the head of the Ukrainian presidential administration, Andriï Yermak, wrote on Telegram, denouncing “blackmail” by Moscow, motivated by “fear of defeat.” . “.

Hello everyone and welcome to this live stream dedicated to Vladimir Putin’s speech. The Russian president will address his fellow citizens, a few hours after the authorities installed by Moscow in four regions of Ukraine announced the urgent holding on September 23 and 27 of “referendums” on annexation by Russia.