INSTANT VIEW: Russian President Medvedev address to nation

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, in his first annual address to the federal assembly on Wednesday, proposed extending the presidential term to six years from four years.

Medvedev also threatened to station new missiles in its western outpost of Kaliningrad if the United States deploys an anti-missile system which Moscow says threatens its security.

Following are the reactions of analysts and officials:

RONALD SMITH, CHIEF STRATEGIST AND HEAD OF RESEARCH, ALFA BANK, MOSCOW

"Medvedev was very assertive in his delivery, especially when discussing points of disagreement with the United States. The United States was mentioned repeatedly, and President Medvedev appeared to be staking out strong positions on various issues ahead of the entry of the new American presidential administration."

ROLAND NASH, RENAISSANCE CAPITAL, MOSCOW

"It seems it was his attempt at the birth of "Medvedevism." He seems to be trying to step out of (Prime Minister and former President Vladimir) Putin's shadow. He is looking to establish his own vision, which we have not really seen from Medvedev so far.

"I think he did that. The decentralization theme is very important, since it is very different to what we saw under Putin. Constitutional changes are also key.

"His whole theme about anti-corruption and social justice came through quite strongly. I think he looked more presidential than we have seen of him so far. I was quite impressed."

COL-GEN LEONID IVASHOV, HEAD OF INSTITUTE OF GEOPOLITICAL PROBLEMS, MOSCOW

"The retaliatory steps proposed by the president today are correct but insufficient. They deal with a particular case, while we need a systematic approach, including in Russia's relations with the West.

"As long as the West only creates security problems for us and poses threats, we need to counterbalance this with our own resources, as well as by expanding to the east and south where we have potential allies."

SERGEI KNYAZEV, CONSTITUTIONAL COURT JUDGE

"The message is substantial. From my point of view, it will allow for the development of civil society and strengthening of the state."

CHRIS WEAFER, URALSIB BANK, MOSCOW

"This is a speech designed very much for a domestic audience ... and the incoming U.S. administration. This was not a message aimed at investors or the business community. It is too early to make any strong statements about the economy.