Russian President Vladimir Putin promised in his New Year’s speech on Sunday that “Russia will never back down” after “firmly defending” its interests in 2023, and paid tribute to Russian soldiers without directly mentioning Ukraine, AFP, EFE and Agerpres reported.

“We have repeatedly proven that we can solve the most difficult tasks and will never give up, because there is no force that will separate us, force us to forget the memory and faith of our parents, stop us from developing,” Vladimir Putin said in a speech that was broadcast first on the Russian Far East, which has already moved to 2024 due to the time zone.

Unlike last year’s speech, when he was surrounded by soldiers in uniform, this time the Russian president spoke alone, against the background of an image of the Kremlin.

In 2023, “we firmly defended our national interests, freedom, security and values,” continued Putin, who assessed that Russia is now passing through a “historic stage” and declared 2024 the year of the “family.” support of traditional values.

He did not directly mention the conflict in Ukraine, which began almost two years ago, but instead praised the military, “all those who are in service, on the front lines of the struggle for truth and justice.” “You are our heroes. Our hearts are with you. We are proud of you and appreciate you,” Putin told the soldiers.

In last year’s speech, he stated, among other things, that “moral and historical truth” is on Russia’s side.

Its defense minister, Serhii Shoigu, said this week that by repelling a Ukrainian counteroffensive, the Russian military had accomplished its main goal at the end of the year. But, according to Ukraine’s Western allies, the Russian army lost at least 315,000 soldiers (killed and wounded) in the war started by Russia in February last year. After the failure of the Ukrainian counteroffensive, which liberated only a few villages, at the cost of heavy human and material losses among Ukrainian troops, not identified by Kyiv or its allies, Russian troops returned to the offensive in several areas of the front. .

According to the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian army, General Valeriy Zaluzhny, this war has become a conflict of attrition, in which both camps are consuming large resources without being able to achieve serious gains, so Ukraine needs new, technologically better weapons. to Russian and new troops to be able to advance. So far, Ukraine is trying to compensate for the failure of the counteroffensive with asymmetric warfare tactics, sabotage and strikes behind the front line and even on the territory of Russia against strategic objects.

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