Condemning Russia's "premeditated and unprovoked" attack on Ukraine, US President Joe Biden on Tuesday (local time) said that Russian President Vladimir Putin is isolated from the world more than ever.
Biden's remarks came during the first State of Union address delivered by him to a joint session of Congress at the Capitol on Tuesday (local time).
The US President said that Putin rejected repeated efforts at diplomacy and thought that the West and NATO wouldn't respond.
"We prepared extensively and carefully. We spent months building a coalition of other freedom-loving nations from Europe and the Americas to Asia and Africa to confront Putin. I spent countless hours unifying our European allies. We shared with the world in advance what we knew Putin was planning and precisely how he would try to falsely justify his aggression," said Biden. "We are inflicting pain on Russia and supporting the people of Ukraine. Putin is now isolated from the world more than ever," he said, adding that the US, along with its allies, is now enforcing powerful economic sanctions against Russia. Biden further said that they are cutting off Russia's largest banks from the international financial system and preventing Russia's central bank from defending the Russian Ruble making Putin's USD 630 Billion "war fund" worthless. "We are choking off Russia's access to technology that will sap its economic strength and weaken its military for years to come," he said.
He further announced that American airspace will be closed for Russian flights, which will further isolate Russia.
"The Ruble has lost 30 per cent of its value. The Russian stock market has lost 40 per cent of its value and trading remains suspended. Russia's economy is reeling and Putin alone is to blame," he stated. Biden clarified that American forces are not going to Europe to fight in Ukraine, but to defend its NATO Allies - in the event that Putin decides to keep moving west. "For that purpose, we've mobilized American ground forces, air squadrons, and ship deployments to protect NATO countries including Poland, Romania, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia," he said, adding that the US will not engage in conflict with Russian forces with Ukraine. "Putin has unleashed violence and chaos. But while he may make gains on the battlefield - he will pay a continuing high price over the long run," he added.
Calling Putin a "dictator" invading a foreign country, US President announced that the US, along with 30 other countries, will release 60 million barrels of oil from reserves around the world "to help blunt gas prices here at home" that rose as a consequence to Ukraine-Russia conflict.
( With inputs from ANI )
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