Joe Biden vowed in his first State of the Union address to defend democracy threatened by war in Europe, pledging to punish Vladimir Putin for invading Ukraine.

Speaking to political leaders in Washington, Biden began the address by underscoring unity against Russia within the US and among its allies. Amid such a crucial time for global politics, Biden sent a message to the world: The West is united in its response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and condemns the Russian leader for his aggression.

Speaking before a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night, Biden accused the Russian president of trying to “shake the foundations of the free world” with a “premeditated and unprovoked” invasion of its Democratic neighbour.

But he said the Russian leader had “badly miscalculated”, underestimating the response of the US and its allies, including ordinary Ukrainians.

“He thought he could roll into Ukraine and the world would roll over,” Biden said. “Instead, he met a wall of strength he never imagined, Putin was wrong. We were ready.”

The President also boasted of the West’s unanimity in the face of Russia’s aggression, saying their united front is “inflicting pain on Russia and supporting the people of Ukraine” and “choking off Russia’s access to technology that will sap its economic strength and weaken its military for years to come.”

Speaking to an anxious nation, Biden detailed the administration’s efforts to prevent an invasion of Ukraine by declassifying intelligence and making Moscow’s plans public while claiming credit for rallying a global response, to impose crippling sanctions on Russian banks, industries, companies, elite oligarchs and Putin himself.

“We spent months building a coalition of other freedom-loving nations from Europe and the Americas to Asia and Africa to confront Putin. I spent countless hours unifying our European allies. We shared with the world in advance what we knew Putin was planning and precisely how he would try to falsely justify his aggression. We countered Russia’s lies with truth. And now that he has acted, the free world is holding him accountable,” he said.

The President celebrated the impact actions will have on “Russian oligarchs and corrupt leaders who have bilked billions of dollars off this violent regime, no more.”

“We are joining with our European allies to find and seize your yachts, your luxury apartments, your private jets. We are coming for your ill-begotten gains,” he said.

He also asserted that “Russia’s economy is reeling and Putin alone is to blame.”

Putin, for his part, was not expected to watch the speech, according to Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov. “The President usually does not watch TV addresses,” Peskov said in response to a question from CNN

Biden again affirmed that the US would not send troops to fight Russia in Ukraine, but he made clear he would “defend every inch of territory of Nato countries with the full force of our collective power”.

As part of the White House’s efforts to isolate Putin, Biden announced on Tuesday night that the US would shut its airspace to Russian aircraft, following similar decisions by European Union nations and Canada, and would seek to mitigate the consequences of isolating oil-rich Russia by agreeing with other world powers to release 60m barrels of oil from their strategic reserves.

“When dictators do not pay a price for their aggression, they cause more chaos,” Biden warned.

The war in Ukraine brought rare bipartisanship to the House chamber, where members of both parties rose to applaud Biden when he disparaged Putin.

Hailing the “fearlessness” and the “iron will” of the Ukrainian people, Biden introduced the visibly emotional Ukrainian ambassador to the US, Oksana Markarova.

He asked the chamber to stand with him and send “unmistakable signal”, a message of solidarity with the Ukrainian people.

“Light will win over darkness,” he told her.

And he also encouraged all in the chamber to show that support with a resounding standing ovation, and said the US and its allies have “an unwavering resolve that freedom will always triumph over tyranny.”

Watch video below: