Russian State of the Nation Address

Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered his annual State of the Nation address before the State Council at the Kremlin in Moscow. In one of his last major speeches as president, he highlighted the country’s successes during his tenure, including economic growth although corruption still a problem. He talked about his strategy for the development of the country until 2020. He warned that excessive economic dependence on energy could threaten Russia’s existence, and that the country can not afford to get dragged into a new arms race. He criticized the expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization into Eastern Europe and the former Soviet republics, and in particular U.S. plans to deploy elements of a missile-defense system in the Czech Republic and Poland.

Provided by the courtesy of Russia Today TV.

Translation from Russian into English was by voiceover. close