President Putin issues new warning to NATO.
Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that the decision to lift restrictions on Ukraine's use of Western weapons means that the US and its allies will directly become involved in the conflict with Russia and will face an appropriate response.
The West has sent Ukraine long-range missiles such as Storm Shadows and ATACMS, which Kyiv has so far used against Crimea and Donbass. However, in the past few days, the United States and Britain have suggested that they may allow the deployment of these weapons deep within Russian territory.
"We are not talking about allowing or prohibiting the Kiev authorities from attacking Russian territory," Putin emphasized on September 12. "They have done so, using drones and other means." President Putin added that Ukraine is incapable of using long-range systems supplied by the West, noting that targeting for such attacks requires intelligence from NATO satellites, while firing solutions "can only be implemented by NATO servicemen."
"If this decision is made, it will mean nothing more than the direct involvement of NATO countries, the United States, and European countries in the conflict in Ukraine," President Putin criticized. "Of course, their direct involvement will significantly change the nature of the conflict."
With that in mind, Putin added, Russia will “make the appropriate decisions based on the threats we face.”
Some restrictions on the use of Western-supplied weapons were initially put in place to allow the United States and its allies to claim they were not directly involved in the conflict with Russia, while still supplying Ukraine with up to $200 billion worth of weapons. Kyiv has been calling for the lifting of these restrictions since May.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his British counterpart David Lammy have hinted that restrictions could be lifted this week, citing Iran's transfer of ballistic missiles to Russia. Tehran has denied transferring any missiles to Moscow, calling the accusations "psychological warfare" by countries deeply involved in supplying weapons to Ukraine.
President Putin has previously warned NATO members to be aware of "what they are playing with" when discussing plans to allow Kyiv to strike deep into Russian territory with Western-supplied weapons. Speaking to major news agencies on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in June, the Russian president said his country would respond by shooting down suspected weapons and then retaliating against those responsible.
One possible response that Putin mentioned at the time was to equip Western enemies with long-range precision weapons.
