Vladimir Putin has warned the U.S. and NATO would be ‘at war’ with Russia if the West lets Ukraine use long-range missiles.
US and British foreign ministers met President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Wednesday with the war at a pivotal point.
American officials have also been discussing easing restrictions on the use of weapons that could strike deep inside Russia.
Putin said the move from the West would ‘change the very nature of the conflict’, and issued a severe threat against giving Zelensky more firepower.
‘It would mean that NATO countries, the US, European countries, are at war with Russia,’ he told a state TV reporter on Thursday.
‘If that’s the case, then taking into account the change of nature of the conflict, we will take the appropriate decisions based on the threats that we will face.’
Vladimir Putin has warned the U.S. and NATO would be ‘at war’ with Russia if West lets Ukraine use long-range weapons
American officials have also been discussing easing restrictions on the use of weapons that could strike deep inside Russia (pictured: Kamala Harris, Joe Biden and Chuck Schumer attend a ceremony marking the 23rd anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks)
He added that clearing the way for Ukraine to use missiles that can hit Russian targets ‘is a decision on whether NATO countries are directly involved in the conflict or not”.
Putin’s warning came 24 hours before President Joe Biden is set to meet British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the White House.
The ICC has issued arrest warrants for several Russian officials, including President Vladimir Putin for the unlawful deportation of children during the war.
A warrant on the same grounds was issued for Maria Lvova-Belova, Russian commissioner for children’s rights.
Also subject to warrants are Sergei Shoigu, head of Russia’s Security Council, and Viktor Sokolov and Sergey Kobylash, who are accused of directing attacks against civilian sites.
Russia has dismissed the warrants as meaningless and “null and void”.
Zelensky has put pressure on the West to give him more firepower and air defenses after a series of Russian rocket attacks.
Antony Blinken announced Washington would provide more than $700 million in aid, while foreign secretary David Lammy said Britain would stump up a further £600 million ($781 million) in the latest show of support for Kyiv.
Putin visits the S. M. Kirov Military Medical Academy in Saint Petersburg on Thursday
Putin (second right) receives an icon of the St. Alexander Nevsky as a gift from Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill (left) during his visit to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery in St. Petersburg on Thursday
Putin speaks during a plenary session of the 10th St. Petersburg International United Cultures Forum
Putin’s warning came 24 hours before President Joe Biden is set to meet British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the White House
Putin (left) kisses Alexander Nevsky’s relics during his visit to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery
Putin and Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and all Russia visit the Holy Trinity St. Alexander Nevsky Lavra Monastery on Thursday to honour the 300th anniversary of the transfer of the holy prince’s relics from the city of Vladimir to St. Petersburg
There is no word yet on whether Zelensky will succeed in securing that which he really covets – a green light from the White House and Downing Street to begin launching Western-supplied long-range missiles at targets on Russian soil.
If Ukraine’s Western allies lift the ban, Kyiv’s soldiers will soon be able to strike Russian military assets as deep as 300km (190 miles) inside Russia with the likes of the US ATACMS and Anglo-French Storm Shadow missiles – a capability that could significantly impact the course of the conflict.
The Institute for the Study of War, a US think-tank, last month established a list of nearly 250 high value military and paramilitary targets within range of the weapons that could be demolished by Ukraine.
Among the main targets laid out by the ISW include as many as 16 Russian air bases, a slew of brigade and division headquarters, artillery and missile units central to Russia’s air defence capabilities, and a variety of logistics hubs supplying Vladimir Putin’s units on the frontlines.
Targeting these sites could cripple Russian logistics, command, and combat support, significantly reducing Moscow’s offensive capabilities in occupied Ukrainian territory – even if Putin’s troops redeploy most strategic bombing aircraft further east.
The Kursk nuclear power station and several nuclear weapons stockpiles also pose theoretical targets.
Ukraine has already authored several attacks deep into Russia, including on targets in the capital Moscow, a number of oil refineries and ammunition dumps.
But those strikes have been conducted by kamikaze drones which are considerably limited in their scale and are highly susceptible to Russian jamming and air defence systems.
Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022 with tens of thousands of troops, triggering the biggest confrontation between Russia and the West since the depths of the Cold War.
Putin casts the conflict as part of an existential battle with a declining and decadent West which he says humiliated Russia after the Berlin Wall fell in 1989 by encroaching on what he considers Moscow’s sphere of influence, including Ukraine.
The West and Ukraine describe the invasion as an imperial-style land grab and have vowed to defeat Russia on the battlefield. Russia controls over 18% of Ukrainian territory.
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