Spain’s King Felipe VI has denounced the Russian war against Ukraine and its consequences in his Christmas speech to the nation.

The conflict has “already caused a level of destruction and ruin that is hard to imagine,” the monarch said in his Christmas address broadcast on radio and television on Saturday evening.

King Felipe warned of the consequences of a war of “global significance” that has affected Spain’s security.

Against this backdrop, he said, Spain must “strengthen collective defence” with its allies.

At the same time, however, peace must be sought with the international community.

Democracy and the European Union are “the two pillars” on which Spain’s present and future are based, the 5-year-old monarch explained.

But there were three main risks facing democracies today, King Felipe warned: these were “division,” the “deterioration of coexistence” and the “erosion of institutions.”

In his speech, which was recorded a few days ago and lasted about 12 minutes, the head of state also spoke about the economic and energy crises as well as inflation in many countries.

Spanish families, he said, were badly affected by this, adding that “The rise in prices, especially food, is causing households to feel insecure.”

(dpa/NAN)