President Joe Biden will use his first State of the Union address to slam Russia’s attack on Ukraine as war rages on Europe’s borders.
Biden has devoted considerable efforts to rallying allies against Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, uniting European nations in imposing record sanctions on Moscow.
In his address to Congress on Tuesday night, Biden will argue that Putin made a strategic failure in attacking Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, under the assumption that NATO members would not respond, according to a preview of the president’s prepared remarks.
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“Putin’s war was premeditated and unprovoked,” Biden will say. “He rejected efforts at diplomacy, he thought the West and NATO wouldn’t respond, and he thought he could divide us here at home.”
The Biden administration has criticized Moscow’s “pretense of diplomacy” in the build-up to the war, with Biden expected to say trans-Atlantic allies were ready for the outcome in spite of this.
“Putin was wrong. We were ready,” Biden will tell the nation.
The president has often talked of the need to protect democracy and is expected to reprise the theme Tuesday night, telling Congress that Western allies must confront aggressors or face the consequences later.
“Throughout our history, we’ve learned this lesson: When dictators do not pay a price for their aggression, they cause more chaos. They keep moving, and the costs and threats to America and the world keep rising,” the president will continue.
And he will endorse NATO’s aim of securing peace and stability and back Washington’s role in the trans-Atlantic alliance, which has played an important role in supporting Ukraine amid the start of the war.
“It matters. American diplomacy matters,” Biden will add.
The president’s address will focus additionally on major economic problems facing the country and his agenda.
But the war overseas has prompted a significant response by the president since beginning early last week, with frequent calls to allies and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The two spoke for about 30 minutes earlier in the day, the White House said Tuesday.
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Ukraine Ambassador Oksana Markarova will join other selected guests in first lady Jill Biden’s box for the address.
