Putin’s declaration follows Ukraine’s allegation that Russia fired an intercontinental ballistic missile at the city of Dnipro in central Ukraine overnight.
In a bold statement to the West, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Moscow has the right to attack nations whose weaponry Ukraine uses to attack Russian territory.
The Russian leader also emphasized that Moscow was prepared for “any scenario” in its fight with Kiev and the West, warning on Thursday that the conflict had taken on “elements of a global character.”
Following days of escalation in the almost three-year conflict, which has seen Ukraine launch missiles provided by the United States and the United Kingdom at Russian territory for the first time, Putin was giving a surprise speech to the country on public television.
“We consider ourselves entitled to use our weapons against the military facilities of those countries that allow their weapons to be used against our facilities,” Putin stated.
“In the event of an escalation of aggressive actions, we will respond just as decisively,” he added.
Throughout the battle, Putin has threatened the West on numerous occasions, accusing it of arming Ukraine, attempting to stop his military assault, and slapping Moscow with a slew of sanctions.
However, the warning that was given at a critical juncture in the fighting on Thursday night was among his most direct and severe.
“Ready for anything”
“The conflict in Ukraine has acquired elements of a global character,” he stated.
“We have always preferred to, and now are ready to resolve all disputed questions with peaceful means but we are also ready for any scenario,” Putin stated.
“Anyone who questions that is mistaken. “There’ll always be a reaction,” he continued.
Moscow launched an attack on Ukraine’s Dnipro to test a new intermediate-range missile. According to Putin, it used a new missile known as “Oreshnik,” which is Russian for “hazel,” to strike a missile plant.
Putin said that in order to give civilians time to flee to safety, Russia would give warnings in advance if it launched additional strikes against Ukraine using these missiles. Additionally, he issued a warning that Russian missiles would be impossible for US air defense systems to intercept.
Putin also asserted that Ukraine’s attempts to use Storm Shadow and ATACMS missiles to hit Russian border areas had failed.
Following months of demands from Kiev, departing US President Joe Biden earlier this week authorized Ukraine to employ the missiles to strike Russian territory.
Since Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election earlier this month, the Biden administration has increased military assistance to Kiev.
Trump has expressed doubts about U.S. assistance to Ukraine and said during the campaign that he could negotiate a peace agreement within hours of taking office.
