Putin Warns NATO Over Calls to Allow Ukraine to Strike Russia
The Russian leader's blunt rhetoric mirrored that from his officials, who say Ukrainian attacks on Russian territory could prompt a direct military confrontation with NATO countries arming Ukraine.
MOSCOW/BRUSSELS — Russian President Vladimir Putin warned NATO on Monday against allowing Ukraine to strike targets inside Russia with Western-supplied weapons, questioning the wisdom of the alliance's top official who suggested lifting restrictions on such attacks, writes Winston Mwale.
Putin said he had thought NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg was "a reasonable person" until Stoltenberg recently opened the door to Ukraine using long-range weapons to hit Russia.
The Russian leader said such strikes could not happen without support from NATO intelligence and targeting data.
"When I spoke to him back then he seemed a reasonable person, not suffering from any dementia, and if he speaks about attacking Russia with these weapons... he must know they cannot be used without satellite imaging, reconnaissance, by highly-trained professionals," Putin said.
Stoltenberg said Monday in Bulgaria that current U.S. restrictions on Ukraine striking inside Russia "really reduce the ability of the Ukrainian forces to defend themselves."
Some NATO allies are pushing the U.S. to lift the limitations amid Russia's recent gains in Ukraine's east.
The NATO chief's comments reflect growing Western alarm over Russian battlefield advances and determination to help Ukraine push back the invasion.
While supplying billions in military aid, the U.S. has so far prohibited American weapons from targeting Russia itself to avoid potential wider escalation.
But as the war grinds on, the pressure is mounting from allies who insist Ukraine needs to hit Russian weapons production facilities and other strategic assets enabling the onslaught.
Putin warned that allowing long-range strikes into Russia would dramatically escalate the conflict.
He pointed to Storm Shadow cruise missiles as one type of weapon that suppliers could pre-program for attacks without Ukrainian involvement.
The Russian leader's blunt rhetoric mirrored that from his officials, who say Ukrainian attacks on Russian territory could prompt a direct military confrontation with NATO countries arming Ukraine.
At the same time, Russia's seizure of villages in Kharkiv and Donetsk and bombardment of civilian areas has triggered urgent Western calls for Ukraine to have whatever capability is needed to repel the new offensives.