After U.S. President Donald Trump delivered his marathon speech to Congress Tuesday night, media outlets around the world pored over the messages, facts and falsehoods.
In Russia, state media outlet RIA Novosti tracked how many times Trump referred to Vladimir Putin, comparing the speech to when U.S. President Joe Biden delivered his last State of the Union address in March 2024.
The outlet pointed out that Biden mentioned the Russian president seven times, speaking about the need to “stop Putin” and “stand up to Putin.”
Trump, on the other hand, mentioned Putin just once, saying he probably recognized he had a “chance” to invade Ukraine, after seeing what he called the “incompetence” of the Biden administration during the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.
It was a simple comparison meant to drive home a point: the Trump administration appears much more favourable for Moscow — even if the Kremlin appears …