In a speech late last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed that Russia’s goals in Ukraine would be fulfilled and warned Western leaders against getting more involved in the war, saying it could increase the risk of nuclear conflict, the Associated Press reported.
Putin’s warning came just days after French President Emmanuel Macron said the West should not rule out the future deployment of NATO ground troops in Ukraine.
The Russian president blasted NATO for accusing Moscow of planning to attack the West while “selecting targets for striking our territory” and discussing the possibility of sending NATO troops to Ukraine.
Alluding to the failed attempts by both Napoleon and Nazi Germany to invade Russia in the past, Putin said Russia remembered “the fate of those” who sent troops into Russian territory, and warned that the “consequences” for invading Russia today would be “far more tragic.”
In his two-hour state-of-the-nation address, Putin portrayed NATO leaders as irresponsible and reckless and warned that the West should remember that Russia possesses weapons that could hit targets in their countries. He said what NATO was suggesting “raises the real threat of a nuclear conflict” that would destroy civilization.
The Russian leader warned that his country’s nuclear forces were at “full readiness” and said its military had powerful new weapons, including the Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile that is now part of Russia’s nuclear forces, as well as the atomic-powered Burevestnik cruise missile and the atomic-powered Poseidon nuclear-armed drone.
Putin dismissed the West’s claims that Russia was threatening to attack NATO, describing them as “ravings.” He also addressed the claim from US intelligence that Russia was considering deploying nuclear weapons in space, saying the claims were part of a scheme by the US to bring Russia back to the negotiating table for nuclear arms control talks.
Putin argued that the Biden administration was trying to show the American people ahead of the 2024 presidential election that “they continue to rule the world.”
