Biden to call out Putin by name in SOTU address, warning of chaos if 'dictators do not pay a price for their aggression'
- President Joe Biden will call out Russian President Vladimir Putin his first State of the Union address.
- Biden will say "Putin's war" in Ukraine was "premeditated and unprovoked," according to prepared remarks, released ahead of the speech.
US President Joe Biden will use his first State of the Union address to argue that history shows leaders like Vladimir Putin will only be emboldened if they do not face consequences for threatening others.
"Throughout our history, we've learned this lesson: when dictators do not pay a price for aggression, they cause more chaos," Biden plans to say, according to his prepared remarks. "They keep moving. And the costs and threats to America and the world keep rising."
Biden calls out Putin by name in the speech — and defends the existence of NATO, saying the organization still matters in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine last week.
"Putin's war was premeditated and unprovoked," Biden says. "He rejected efforts at diplomacy. He thought the West and NATO wouldn't respond. And he thought he could divide us here at home. Putin was wrong. We were ready."
The remarks come after the Biden administration for the first time ever sanctioned Putin himself, as well as the oligarchs who have helped prop up his two decades of rule. The administration has also provided arms to Ukraine's military while ruling out any direct intervention by US or NATO forces.