©picture alliance / press.media | Shatokhina Natalia
Russian President Vladimir Putin blames the West for Russia’s problems.
Vladimir Putin has once again held the West responsible for Russia’s problems and the setbacks in the war against Ukraine. According to him, his country is under “unprecedented pressure,” and the West is attempting to weaken and destabilize Russia through sanctions and political pressure.
Putin spoke on Sunday in Moscow at a congress of his United Russia party, where the party’s strategy for the September parliamentary elections was being finalized. He said that the West is failing to defeat Russia militarily and is therefore trying “disrupt the political situation” and stir up internal unrest. He referred to Ukraine as a “battering ram” in the confrontation with Russia.
The President also referred to the ongoing sanctions against Russia. According to him, these are not only illegitimate but also demonstrate that the West is not giving Russia a fair chance. “We see the problems; we are aware of them,” Putin said. At the same time, he emphasized that Russia will guarantee the long-term security of the country, its citizens, and its borders.
In doing so, Putin reiterated the Kremlin’s long-standing line of communication. The war and the economic headwinds are portrayed as the result of hostile Western pressure, not of Russia’s own policies or the invasion of Ukraine. By linking that message to a party congress, he is also clearly giving his narrative a domestic political dimension, with an eye toward the September elections. Putin’s statements are entirely in line with the familiar propaganda narrative in which Moscow presents the war as a struggle against the West itself. In doing so, Putin continues to insist that Russia will withstand the pressure and that attempts to strategically defeat the country will fail.
©picture alliance / press.media | Shatokhina Natalia