Vladimir Putin: west has tried to contain Russia for decades

Vladimir Putin has accused the west of trying to contain and subvert Russia “for decades, if not centuries”, in a fierce and uncompromising attack during his state of the nation speech.

Analysts were curious to see whether the president would take a conciliatory tone in his annual speech to Russia’s political elite, as the rouble slides and relations with the west are at a low point over the unrest in Ukraine.

Instead, Putin opened with a fierce defence of Russia’s annexation of Crimea, calling it a “historic rejoining” of a region as important to Russia as Temple Mount was to Jerusalem.

He said that if the recent events in Crimea had not happened, the west would have simply found another excuse to contain Russia with sanctions, recalling that in the 1990s the west had tried to break up Russia “along the Yugoslavian scenario”. He warned that the sanctions and angry rhetoric from the west would only have the opposite effect to that intended.

“For some European countries, national pride is seen as a luxury, but for Russia it is a necessity,” said Putin, adding that it was pointless to use threats when speaking to Russia.]

“The policy of containment was not invented yesterday. It has been applied to our country for many, many years … Every time when anyone only thinks Russia has become strong, independent, such instruments are applied immediately.”

Putin again called the events in Kiev a coup and said Russia had shown it would intervene on the side of “truth and justice” to defend its compatriots. Putin and Russian officials have repeatedly denied the mounting evidence that the Russian army has been active in east Ukraine, one of the reasons for harsher sanctions from the west.

He also touched on violence in the Chechen capital of Grozny on Thursday morning, where gunmen and police officers have clashed, leaving at least 16 dead. Putin described the attackers as rebels, suggesting they were receiving support from abroad, and said he was confident that authorities would bring the situation under control.

In the economic section of his speech, Putin said sanctions should prove an impetus for increased internal growth, and promised new, liberalised rules for small businesses and an amnesty on returning potentially dirty money to Russia. Capital outflow has been a problem for Russia for years, as rich businesspeople prefer to store their wealth in Britain, Cyprus and elsewhere.

“I propose a full amnesty for capital returning to Russia,” Putin said. “… This means that if people legalise their resources, they get a guarantee that they won’t be bothered … won’t be asked about the sources … there will be no questions from the tax and law enforcement bodies to them. This should be done and done once.”

Putin also suggested new rules for small and medium businesses designed to free them from the stranglehold of corrupt officials. He suggested that if a company had passed all checks successfully for three years, it should go three years without further checks.

Putin has often spoken about the need to fight corruption and improve the climate for small businesses; it remains to be seen if his words can be translated into real action to reduce corruption and stimulate business.

Putin complained about speculation on the rouble rate, which has been falling dramatically in recent weeks because of western sanctions and the falling oil price.

“We know who is speculating on the rouble. There are levers to influence these people, and the time has come to use them,” the president said.

He wrapped up the hour-long speech by again attempting to portray western sanctions as an opportunity.

“The difficulties that we face also bring us new possibilities. We are ready to answer any challenge of the times and come out victorious.”

He was frequently interrupted by applause from the audience, which was made up almost entirely of Kremlin-appointed regional governors and pro-Kremlin MPs. But the enthusiasm seemed more lukewarm than in previous years, perhaps due to increasing worries about the rouble and the economic situation. Publicly, however, everyone remains on message.

“I liked the economic part of his speech,” said Valentina Matviyenko, the speaker of Russia’s upper house of parliament, in a television interview shortly after the speech. “We need not to panic but everyone should deal with the situation we have now, roll up their sleeves and get to work.”

Story by: Shaun Walker in Moscow ( Photograph: Metzel Mikhail/Itar-Tass Photo/Corbis )

Source: The Guardian

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