“FROM THE ANALYST” THREATS OF NUKES AND ORWELLIAN SPEECHES

Putin spent two hours yesterday boring an audience of carefully selected characters to death with his ‘state of the federation’ speech. Most of it was domestic policy and outlandish claims about the health of the economy that sounded positively fantastical.
His threats on nuclear weapons use against any NATO Member that sends troops to defend Ukraine came through sharply. He’s genuinely afraid that NATO would change the balance of the war against him.
The tedious ramblings of a boring dictator were broadcast on every TV station, in cinemas (with apparently minuscule attendance), and on ominous building sized screens around Moscow reminiscent of some dystopian sci-fi film. 20m high images of a bald dwarf, puffy faced and wearing makeup making threats about Armageddon to a hall full of people too afraid to fall asleep.
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