Russia could provide weapons to others to strike Western targets: Putin

President Vladimir Putin issued a warning on Wednesday, saying that if NATO collaborators permit Ukraine to use their weapons to attack Russian territory, Russia may supply others with long-range missiles so they may attack Western targets. In addition, he restated Moscow’s commitment to using nuclear weapons in the event that its sovereignty is threatened. The recent measures by the West, he made it clear in his address, will further erode world security and may result in “very serious problems.” Moscow reserves the right to respond in a same manner, he continued, adding that such moves would indicate that they are involved in the fight against the Russian Federation.

Recently, the US and Germany gave Ukraine permission to use the long-range weaponry they are giving it to strike certain targets on Russian territory. On Wednesday, a senator from the United States and an international official reported that Ukraine had used American munitions inside Russia in accordance with recently approved directives from President Joe Biden for the deployment of American armaments for the strictly defined goal of protecting Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city.

According to Putin, Moscow will take necessary actions since the use of some weapons supplied by the West entails military personnel from those nations operating the missiles and picking targets. According to the US military, neither the targets nor the missiles it sends to Ukraine are within its control. When asked whether Russia could use nuclear weapons in response to inquiries from some media, Putin stated that Moscow’s security doctrine lays out the requirements for doing so. He mentioned, “If somebody’s actions threaten our sovereignty and territorial integrity, we consider it possible to use all means at our disposal.”

Puttin went on to say that neither Donald Trump nor Joe Biden will win the US presidential vote in November; neither will have any impact on Russia-US relations. Citing an alleged letter he addressed to Biden, Putin asserted that if Washington ceased arming Kyiv, hostilities might finish in two or three months. He claimed that the West had possibilities to put an end to the conflict in Ukraine but chose not to do anything.

The president of Russia added that no nation would disclose its military losses in combat, but he did not elaborate when he asserted that Ukraine had suffered five times more casualties than Russia. He added, “There are over 6,400 Ukrainian soldiers being held in Russia, and over 1,300 Russian troops are being held captive in Ukraine.” Independent scrutiny of the assertions couldn’t be possible, and estimates from the West placed Russia’s losses significantly higher than those of Ukraine.