Putin says the West will fight Russia directly

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been pressing allies for months to allow Ukraine to fire Western missiles including the US's long-range ATACMS and the UK's Storm Shadows deep into Russian territory.

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the 10th St. Petersburg International Unification Culture Forum in Saint Petersburg, Russia on September 12, 2024. Photo: Sputnik

According to US media, President Joe Biden may not allow Ukraine to use ATACMS missiles to attack inside Russia, but may not object to attacks with equivalent long-range missiles by the UK and France.

Specifically, the New York Times reported that the US could greenlight the use of the UK's Storm Shadow missiles and France's Scalp missiles to attack targets inside Russian territory if the two countries support such a move.

Mr Putin said such a move would drag countries supplying long-range missiles to Kiev directly into the war because satellite targeting data and actual programming of missile flight paths would have to be done by NATO servicemen because Kiev did not have that capability.

“So it is not a question of allowing the Ukrainian regime to attack Russia with these weapons. It is a question of deciding whether NATO countries will directly get involved in a military conflict,” Putin told Russian state television.

“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 war in Ukraine. This will be their direct involvement, and of course, this will significantly change the nature, the essence of the conflict.”

Russia will be forced to make "appropriate decisions" that Mr Putin called based on new threats.

The Russian president did not specify what those measures might be, but he has previously talked about arming Western adversaries with Russian weapons to attack Western targets abroad. Russia, the world’s largest nuclear power, is also considering revising its nuclear doctrine.

Hoang Anh (according to TASS, Sputnik, Reuters)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/ong-putin-noi-phuong-tay-se-chien-dau-truc-tiep-voi-nga-neu-de-ukraine-su-dung-ten-lua-tam-xa-post312133.html