Putin warns of NATO involvement if Ukraine gets long-range missiles
Putin warned on Thursday that if the West allows Ukraine to strike Russian territory with long-range missiles, it will "mean nothing other than the direct participation of Nato countries - the US and European countries - in the war." He added that Russia would be forced to make decisions based on the arising threats.
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On Thursday in Saint Petersburg, journalists asked Putin what the West's consent to the use of long-range missiles to attack targets in Russia would mean.
"This isn’t about allowing or banning the Kyiv regime from striking Russian territory. It does that already with drones and by other means. But when we talk about high-precision, long-range weapons made in the West, this is a completely different matter... The Ukrainian army is not able to strike with modern, high-decision, long-range systems. It can’t do this," said Putin. "It is only possible with intelligence data from satellites that Ukraine doesn’t have, data that’s only from satellites of the European Union, the USA, Nato satellites," he emphasized.
In his opinion, Ukrainians are not capable of independently using Western long-range weapons to attack targets in Russia. They need satellite intelligence, which Ukraine doesn't have. They would have to obtain it from American or European satellites. "Ukrainian servicemen cannot do this. Therefore, this is not about permitting or not permitting the Ukrainian regime to strike Russia with these weapons," he argued.
According to Putin, the discussion is, therefore, not about whether to grant Ukraine permission to use Western long-range weapons but whether NATO should become directly involved in this conflict.
"[If such a decision is made], it would mean nothing other than the direct participation of Nato countries - the US and European countries - in the war in Ukraine. It is their direct participation. And, of course, this substantially changes the very essence, the nature of the conflict. It would mean that Nato countries, the US, European countries, are at war with Russia," said Putin.
"If that is the case, we will take corresponding decisions based on the threats that will be created to us," he added.
The discussion in the West continues
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has long appealed to the United States and other Western allies to allow Ukrainian forces to use the long-range missiles provided to them to strike deep into Russian territory to increase pressure on Moscow and force it to end the war.
Washington has so far refused to issue such permission for fear of an escalation that could lead to a direct conflict with Russia. However, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken promised to consider Ukraine's military requests urgently on Wednesday in Kyiv.
The AFP agency reminds us that President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer are scheduled to hold talks on the matter on Friday.
In September last year, the United States provided Ukraine with a small number of ATACMS systems, which have a range of about 170 miles.
