Putin Lauds Russian Unity in His New Year’s Address as Ukraine War Overshadows Celebration

Russian President Vladimir Putin visits an exhibition dedicated to the key events of the outgoing Year of Teachers and Mentors at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, on Dec. 27, 2023. Gavriil Grigorov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP

Russian President Vladimir Putin praised Russia’s “united society” in his prerecorded New Year’s address to the nation, the country’s state news agencies reported Sunday.

Mr. Putin addressed Russians in a video that ran under four minutes long, significantly shorter than the New Year’s speech he gave last year, according to state news agency RIA Novosti. Millions of people were expected to watch the new address when it airs on TV as each Russian time zone region counts down the final minutes of 2023 on Sunday.