Putin warns NATO risks 'war' with Russia over Ukraine long-range missiles
President Vladimir Putin warned Russia would be “at war” with the United States and its allies if they allow Ukraine to strike deeper inside Russia with long-range Western weapons.
President Vladimir Putin has warned that Russia would be “at war” with the United States and its allies if they lift restrictions on Ukraine's use of long-range Western weapons.
Putin's vow to follow such a move with “appropriate decisions” was his latest, perhaps most drastic attempt to draw red lines over NATO members' backing for Kyiv, and it came on the eve of a meeting in Washington where the issue is expected to be high on the agenda.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will hold talks with President Joe Biden later Friday, as London clashed with Moscow over the expulsion of six diplomats accused of spying — accusations the U.K. dismissed as "baseless."
The U.S. and its allies have appeared increasingly open to letting Ukraine use long-range Western missiles to strike deep inside Russia, the culmination of a monthslong push by Kyiv that has sparked the Kremlin's fury.
“We are not talking about allowing or not allowing the Ukrainian regime to strike Russia with these weapons,” Putin said Thursday in comments to propagandist Pavel Zarubin. “We are talking about deciding whether NATO countries are directly involved in the military conflict or not.”
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