Russian President Putin Confronts United States With Latest Speech
Vladimir Putin accused the United States of making the world a more dangerous place because of its “illegal” unilateral military action in a speech before a security conference in Munich. He attacked the United States for the use of excessive military force, plans to build anti-missile defenses in Europe and numerous other western policies.
The audience included the US defense secretary Robert Gates, presidential contender John McCain and Washington lawmakers. Putin declared an end to the unipolar world, calling it a failure for not only the United States, but also the world.
In reference to the war in Iraq, Putin was quoted as saying “unilateral illegal actions have not resolved any single problem,” implying that many more people had died because of United States military action.
Putin also raised issue with the US missile defense plans, which he feels could trigger an arms race. He claimed the justification for the system was not valid since no “rogue” states currently would be able to reach European soil with their missiles. Robert Gates says the current US defense system is not aimed at Russia but was not willing to sign a binding agreement stating that.
One of the only positive comments Putin made in the speech was towards US President Bush, who he described as a “decent man”.
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