Chinanews.com, February 22. On February 21, Europe had a very uneasy day. A few hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered his State of the Union address, US President Joe Biden also gave a speech in Poland about the situation in Ukraine. .

The US media described the two speeches as "tit for tat", showing diametrically opposite worldviews.

　　What did Putin and Biden talk about?

What kind of signals can be seen from their statements?

On February 21 local time, US President Biden delivered a speech in Warsaw, Poland.

　　About the Ukraine crisis

　　The Ukraine crisis is a shared focus for both Biden and Putin.

The "New York Times" analyzed that Biden's choice to deliver a speech on the 21st did not lack the effect of creating "a split-screen picture of Putin talking about the Ukrainian issue on the same day".

　　Putin emphasized that it is impossible to "defeat Russia on the battlefield" and that "the West started the war, and Russia is using force to stop the war..."

　　In this regard, Biden said, "This war was never necessary" and vowed to continue to support Ukraine, "Ukraine will never be a victory for Russia."

　　From Russia's perspective, it is the West that provokes disputes regardless of Russia's interests.

Russia launched a special military operation against Ukraine to defend Russia itself and eliminate the "Nazi threat."

In the narrative of the United States, it is "Russia's invasion of Ukraine", and Ukraine, Europe, the United States, and NATO are all "under test."

　　Putin said in his speech that the West uses Ukraine both as a battering ram against Russia and as a training ground.

The West is preparing to turn Ukraine into a "launch pad full of weapons".

On February 21, 2023 local time, Russian President Vladimir Putin is delivering a State of the Union speech.

about sanctions

　　Putin said in his State of the Union address that Western sanctions against Russia had failed.

He described that the West hopes to use sanctions to make "(Russian) people suffer and cause instability in the country from within", but it has miscalculated.

Sanctions against Russia have instead punished the sanctioners themselves.

　　In the past year, the United States and its allies have imposed a large number of sanctions on Russia. The European Union alone has imposed nine rounds of sanctions on Russia, and the tenth round of sanctions has also been waved.

However, after massive sanctions against Russia and the “decoupling” of energy sources, contradictions in energy supply and supply chains began to emerge. Inflation rates in some European countries soared to more than 10%, and energy crises, food crises, and cost of living crises followed one after another.

　　But Biden seemed confident in the sanctions, saying in Poland that he "will continue to support the largest sanctions imposed on a country in history" and "will be announcing more sanctions with our partners this week."

　　As soon as Biden made this statement, followers followed suit.

U.S. Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo announced that a coalition of more than 30 countries, including the U.S., will impose new sanctions on Russia this week.

About aid to Ukraine

　　The delay of the Ukrainian crisis to this day is inseparable from the "fire" of the West, especially military aid.

　　Putin said that the total amount of Western military aid to Ukraine has reached 150 billion U.S. dollars to "arm the Kiev regime."

When Biden talked about military aid, he highlighted different "key points". He said that the EU and its member states have strengthened their commitment to Ukraine. In addition to security assistance, they have also strengthened economic, humanitarian, and refugee assistance.

Data map: On February 10, local time, U.S. aircraft delivered military aid supplies to Boryspil International Airport in Kiev, Ukraine.

About the New START Treaty

　　Putin announced that Russia will suspend its implementation of the "New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty" signed with the United States.

　　This treaty is the only remaining arms control treaty between the United States and Russia, and its importance is self-evident.

　　However, Russia and the United States decided to extend the validity period of the treaty until 2026 in 2021. Why did the situation change a year later?

　　Putin explained that the United States asked Russia to resume the implementation of the "New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty", including allowing inspections of Russia's nuclear facilities. Such remarks are simply "an absurd drama".

The United States requires Russia to fulfill all the provisions of the "New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty", but it "does what it wants".

The United States has obvious intentions to consolidate its global dominance in disregard of the interests of Russia and other countries.

　　As soon as Russia's "big move" came out, it aroused widespread repercussions internationally.

　　Although Biden did not respond in his speech in Poland, U.S. Secretary of State Blinken responded immediately, calling Russia's decision "disappointing" and "irresponsible", saying that he was still ready to negotiate with Russia on arms control issues at any time.

speech details

　　Biden paid a lot of attention to Putin in his speech. According to CNN, Biden accused the Russian leader in very sharp language, and even named Putin 10 times in his speech.

In contrast, Putin mentioned the United States 11 times and NATO 10 times in his State of the Union address, which lasted 1 hour and 45 minutes, but "not once named Biden."