Putin commemorates 80th anniversary of Nazi defeat in Stalingrad

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Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Thursday the Russian people on the 80th anniversary of the Nazi defeat in the Russian city of Stalingrad, stressing the importance of the battle as an existentialist one of a tormented by unconquered country.

"Dear veterans, friends. Today we are celebrating one of the most important fateful dates in the history of our country and the whole world. Exactly 80 years ago, here, on Stalingrad land, on the banks of the great Russian river Volga, the hated and cruel enemy was stopped and irrevocably reversed," Putin said, speaking at a memorial show in honor of the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Battle of Stalingrad.

"This battle was not just a battle for the city. The very existence of a tormented, but unconquered country was at stake, the outcome of not only the Great Patriotic War but the entire World War II was determined," the Russian leader stressed.

"Everyone felt and realized this both in the trenches and in the rear. We, as it has been more than once in our history, rallied in a decisive battle and won. The Battle of Stalingrad rightfully went down in history as a radical turning point in the Great Patriotic War," he added.

Touching on the present, Putin stressed that Nazism in its modern guise was posing a threat to Russia, saying that the Russians were forced to once again rebuff the collective West.

"Now, unfortunately, we see that the ideology of Nazism, already in its modern guise, in its modern manifestation, again creates direct threats to the security of our country," Putin said. "We are once again forced to repulse the aggression of the collective West."

Furthermore, he highlighted how Russia was once again being threatened by German Leopard tanks, saying they were going to fight against Russia on Ukrainian soil with the hands of the Banderites.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz vowed to deliver 14 Leopard 2 battle tanks to Ukraine, government spokesperson Steffen Hebestreit told reporters last Wednesday.

Then, Germany's European partners will deliver Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine while Germany will offer a new package for the anti-Russia war. The package will include ammunition, system maintenance, and assistance in logistics, Hebestreit stated

Germany's decision to send the Leopard tanks to Ukraine stems from talks with the country's European and International partners, given that significant consequences will follow such a decision. 

In turn, the Russian Embassy in Germany cautioned that "this extremely dangerous decision shifts the Ukrainian conflict to a new level of standoff," adding that "Berlin’s choice to supply tanks to Kiev means the final rejection of Germany’s historical responsibility to the Russian people."

The objective now is to "quickly raise two tank battalions with Leopard 2 tanks for Ukraine." This will happen over two stages. First, "Germany will provide a company of 14 Leopard 2 A6 tanks from the stocks of the Bundeswehr."

Then, Germany's European partners will deliver Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine while Germany will offer a new package for the anti-Russia war. The package will include ammunition, system maintenance, and assistance in logistics, Hebestreit stated

Germany's decision to send the Leopard tanks to Ukraine stems from talks with the country's European and International partners, given that significant consequences will follow such a decision. 

Russia has a means of responding to those who threaten it, and this response is not limited to armored vehicles, Putin underlined.

"Those who threaten us, apparently, do not understand the simple truth: all of our people have grown up and took in with their mother's milk the traditions of our people, the generation of victors who created our country with their work, sweat, and blood, and passed it on to us as a legacy."

Moreover, Putin said that those who were dragging Germany into a new war with Russia, expecting to win, did not understand that a modern war with Russia would be different.

These warnings come after assertions from Western officials that time might be on Russia's side in the ongoing Ukraine war, marking a complete diversion from their assertions last year, when they were claiming the opposite, as per a Wall Street Journal report.

According to the newspaper, Western governments were convinced last spring that the longer the war went on, the more likely Kiev was to win. The WSJ noted, however, that this confidence was tanking.

The general sentiment current is quite the contrary, as the officials in question now fear that Moscow might be able to "gain the upper hand" in the war, though the WSJ argued that this line of reasoning served as a supporting argument for the West's decision to continue pumping arms into Ukraine.

Concurrently, certain officials do not believe that increasing the flow of arms into Ukraine would be a "realistic" way of expediting the war and reaching its culmination, the newspaper said. Additionally, it is being argued that Ukraine would not be able to carry out offensives in 2023 similar to those in 2022.