Blinken issues latest anti-Kremlin rant in Russia Day message
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has accused Russia of oppressing its own people and committing atrocities against the people of Ukraine, amid Washington’s unending propaganda offensive against Moscow.
Blinken made the accusation on Sunday on Russia Day, which celebrates the end of the communist Soviet Union bloc and the beginning of the nation’s democracy.
Blinken accused the Kremlin of crack-downing on its own citizens, who “deserve to live their lives free of repression and to be able to exercise their human rights and fundamental freedoms without fear of retribution.”
“Too many Russian citizens are behind bars for the ‘crime’ of speaking truth to power about their government’s actions,” Blinken said in a statement. “This internal repression is occurring as the Kremlin is waging an unprovoked and unjustified war against a sovereign, neighboring state.”
“Russia’s government is attempting to keep its citizens in the dark about the atrocities it is committing against the people of Ukraine,” Blinken added.
Russia on June 12, 1990, broke free from the Soviet Union and emerged about a year later as the Russian Federation.
Blinken on Sunday connected the observation of Russia Day to the current state of Russia.
“On this Russia Day, we recognize the desires of the people of Russia who still seek – as they did in June 1990 – freedom and dignity, often at great personal risk,” he said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin declared a military campaign against Ukraine in late February, accusing Kiev of failing to implement the terms of a peace agreement for the breakaway regions of Donetsk and Luhansk. At the time, Putin said one of the goals of what he called the "special military operation" was to "de-Nazify" Ukraine.
Ever since, the US and its Western allies have been sending heavy weaponry to Ukraine and sharing intelligence with the government in Kiev, while imposing unprecedented sanctions on Russian officials and entities.
European Union leaders agreed last week to effectively cut around 90% of oil imports from Russia to the continent by the end of the year.
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