Putin Warns Western Nations Against Supplying Long-Range Missiles to Ukraine

On Wednesday, June 5, President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia issued a stark warning regarding the supply of long-range missiles from Western nations to Ukraine. He emphasized that allowing these missiles to be used to attack inside Russia would be considered a “dangerous step” and could lead to retaliatory actions against Western targets. Mr. Putin expressed his concerns during a news conference, stating that the potential missile supply to Ukraine could pose a threat to Russia’s security.

Possible Reciprocal Action

Mr. Putin questioned the rationale behind supplying such weapons to a war zone and suggested that Russia would reserve the right to respond in kind. He stressed that if Western countries were considering sending long-range missiles to strike Russian territory, Russia should also have the right to deploy similar weapons to regions where strikes could be made against countries supporting the missile supply to Ukraine.

Frayed Relations with Germany

Germany was singled out by Mr. Putin, who cited the supply of battle tanks to Ukraine as an initial blow to Russian-German relations. However, he expressed even greater dismay at Germany’s authorization for the use of missiles capable of striking targets on Russian territory. He underlined that this development was severely damaging Russo-German relations.