During his inaugural campaign speech for the upcoming March presidential election, Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed to shape Russia into a “sovereign, self-sufficient” entity, asserting its autonomy in the face of Western influence.
Having held power since the year 2000, Putin is set to participate in the March election, which lacks substantial opposition and is anticipated to extend his presidency until at least 2030.
The election is scheduled just over two years after initiating Moscow’s Ukraine offensive, a move that triggered substantial Western sanctions against Russia.
“We must remember and never forget and tell our children: Russia will be either a sovereign, self-sufficient state, or it will not be there at all,” Putin said during a congress of the ruling United Russia party.
Putin had expressed his intention to prioritize “sovereignty” during his fifth term in the Kremlin, emphasizing this loosely defined concept as one of his key objectives.
We will only make decisions ourselves without foreign tips from abroad,” Putin told United Russia members to applause.
Russia cannot, like some countries, give away its sovereignty for some sausage and become someone’s satellite,” the 71-year-old said.
He accused the West of wanting to “sow internal troubles” in Russia.
“But such tactics did not work,” he said.
The seasoned leader of the Kremlin remarked, “We still have a lot to do for the interests of Russia” and that the country faced “historic tasks.”
Every political rival of Putin finds themselves either incarcerated or living in exile, as Moscow has implemented restrictions on criticizing its Ukraine campaign.
