President Putin issues new warning to NATO
Russian President Vladimir Putin said the decision to lift restrictions on Ukraine's use of Western weapons means the United States and its allies will be directly 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 Kiev has so far used against Crimea and Donbass. However, in recent days, the US and UK have suggested that they could allow the deployment of these weapons deep inside Russian territory.
"We are not talking about allowing or prohibiting the Kiev authorities from attacking Russian territory," Putin stressed on September 12. "They have done so, using drones and other means." President Putin added that Ukraine is not capable of using long-range systems provided by the West, noting that targeting for such attacks requires intelligence from NATO satellites, while firing solutions "can only be brought in by NATO servicemen."
“If this decision is made, it will mean nothing other 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, Mr. Putin added, Russia will “make appropriate decisions based on the threats we face.”
Some restrictions on the use of Western-supplied weapons were originally 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 providing up to $200 billion in arms to Ukraine. Kiev has been calling for the restrictions to be lifted since May.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his British counterpart David Lammy have hinted that the 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 allegations “psychological warfare” by countries heavily involved in supplying weapons to Ukraine.
President Putin has previously warned that NATO members must realize “what they are playing with” when discussing plans to allow Kiev 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 Russia would respond by shooting down the weapons in question and then retaliate against those responsible.
One of the possible responses that Putin mentioned at the time was equipping Western enemies with long-range precision weapons./.
