Russia Threatens To Arm West's Enemies With Long-Range Missiles
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday warned that Moscow might provide long-range weapons to strike Western targets if NATO allies allow Ukraine to use their arms against Russian territory, reported BBC News.
Putin also reiterated Russia’s readiness to use nuclear weapons if it sees a threat to its sovereignty.
Several Western countries including the United States have given Ukraine the green light to strike targets inside Russia.
Addressing foreign reporters, Putin said such action could lead to “very serious problems”. He said:
If someone thinks it is possible to supply such weapons to a war zone to attack our territory and create problems for us, why don’t we have the right to supply weapons of the same class to regions of the world where there will be strikes on sensitive facilities of those countries?
That is, the response can be asymmetric. We will think about it.
Putin, however, did not specify which countries Moscow could supply weapons to.
The Russian president singled out Germany, which recently told Ukraine it was free to hit targets inside Russia with long-range German-made weapons. He said:
When they say that there will be more missiles which will hit targets on Russian territory, this definitively destroys Russian-German relations.
US President Joe Biden recently permitted Ukraine to use American-supplied weapons to strike targets in Russia, but only near the Kharkiv region.
The White House has said Ukraine cannot use long-range ATACMS missiles on Russian soil.
UK Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron has said it is up to Ukraine to decide how to use British weapons.
Ukraine claims North Korean missiles are being used inside Ukrainian territory, while Western intelligence agencies say Russia has been using Iranian-made drones in the conflict.
Putin was speaking to foreign journalists at the annual St Petersburg International Economic Forum.
Asked by Reuters about the risk of nuclear escalation over Ukraine, Putin said the West was wrong to assume that Moscow would never use nuclear weapons. He said:
For some reason, the West believes that Russia will never use it.
We have a nuclear doctrine, look what it says. If someone’s actions threaten our sovereignty and territorial integrity, we consider it possible for us to use all means at our disposal.
This should not be taken lightly, superficially.
Putin also scoffed at the idea that Russia has plans to attack NATO territory. He said:
You should not make Russia out to be the enemy. You’re only hurting yourself with this, you know?
hey thought that Russia wanted to attack Nato. Have you gone completely crazy? That is as thick as this table.
Who came up with this? It is just complete nonsense, you know? Total rubbish.
Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The war has been raging since.
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