BidenDConqueror:
Adriel Kasonta, a London-based foreign affairs analyst and former chairman of the International Affairs Committee at the Bow Group think tank, who was one of the first to predict that Russia would overcome Western sanctions. Putin's speech indicated that Russia is on track towards a self-sufficient economy, Kasonta said.

Sputnik: What are your personal impressions of the president's speech?
Adriel Kasonta: My personal impression from President Vladimir Putin's speech is that he proved again that he's a remarkable, I would say, outstanding leader of his people and his country by delivering this well-rounded speech. In my opinion, there was no stone left unturned. He addressed every single aspect of the activity of the country, the social aspect, the spiritual aspect, the military aspect, the technological aspect, the economical aspect. You can name it.

I mean, he's very well known for being a very coherent and concise speaker. But this speech was given at a very important time in history, not only for Russia, but also for the entire world. And by delivering this speech, this is my understanding of the speech, is that President Vladimir Putin made a very clear statement that Russia under his rule doesn't want to fight with Ukraine or any other country, but Russia doesn't want to be subjugated or be used or manipulated by external actors. Perhaps that was an allusion to the United States and its hegemonic appetite.

Countries like Russia are saying "no" to the attempts by other countries and other people to tell them how they should govern themselves and how their societies should be governed. Because as President Vladimir Putin rightly said during his speech, Russia is a world in itself. It is a distinct civilization that inherited certain values from the past and from its ancestors, and it's willing to live up to the standard set by their ancestors.
And in this particular regard, I will refer to the spiritual undertones of his speech, when he drew a distinction between the Western comprehension of society where, according to Friedrich Nietzsche, “God is dead,” and we know what the Western societies are doing, they literally abandoned religion and are trying to create different social constructs which are going against not only the Bible, not only the Torah, not only the Quran, but constructs that are going against a spiritual or even a religious life. That distinction was made.

And I think that was the main foundation of the speech, saying that “we are not willing to fight anyone without a purpose. But our purpose is to self-preserve ourselves, our culture, and we don't want to embrace what is being set as a standard somewhere else, because we do not agree with this.” And I think that every single human being, every single sovereign nation should have this choice, a God-given choice, to make its own decision about its future and how society and the country should conduct itself as a sovereign entity within international society or the international community framework.

Sputnik: How will the address be assumed in the West? What kind of reaction do you expect to follow?
Adriel Kasonta: Obviously, there is no doubt that in the West, President Vladimir Putin's words will be misconstrued, this speech will be ridiculed, certain words and speech figures will be taken out of context in order to portray Russia as a terrorist state, a state that is an aggressor, which is not the case, and also to portray Russia as a failing state, to turn this speech against Russia.

Because I wouldn't expect, taking into account the current atmosphere of hostility and Russophobia in the West, to hear anything or read anything objective about Russia. We know that every single assessment, even provided by the so-called Russian experts in the West, is not based on truth or facts. It is based on Western imagination. It is based on the Western need to preserve itself in contrast to “the other.” And in this particular case, “the other,” the foe, the enemy is Russia. The West, in order to sustain its so-called, perceived “unity,” needs a real or an imagined threat that will keep Western countries or the collective West united.

So, I would not expect anything good, anything objective coming from the Western press. I think that this speech will be ridiculed and it will be used against Russia, and it will be used as an excuse to continue fuelling the conflict in Ukraine.

Sputnik: Putin said that Russia cannot be defeated on the battlefield and warned that if the West supplies long-range weapons to Ukraine, then that will only force Russia to push these weapons even farther from its borders. How do you interpret these remarks?
Adriel Kasonta: We have to bear in mind that Russia is a nuclear power and there's a purpose why many countries around the world have a nuclear arsenal. I mean, what is the purpose of the United States having a nuclear arsenal? What is the reason for Israel having a nuclear arsenal? What is the reason for France having a nuclear arsenal? I mean, the reason for having a nuclear arsenal is to not be defeated on the battlefield.