President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia has issued an unusually specific warning to the West, “Don’t allow Ukraine to use your long-range missiles to strike Russian territory.”
He warned that such a decision would mean that NATO countries were “at war with Russia” and that it would “clearly change the very essence, the very nature of the conflict.”
Putin noted that the Ukrainians alone cannot operate the long-range missiles, because they require Western technical help and satellite guidance.
There is good reason for immediate concern as US President Joe Biden appears to be on the verge of clearing the way for Ukraine to launch long-range Western weapons deep inside Russian territory, as long as it doesn’t use arms provided by the United States, European officials said.
The issue, which has long been debated in the administration, is coming to a head on Friday with the first official visit to the White House by Britain’s new Prime Minister, Keir Starmer.
Incidentally, Russia announced on Friday that it had decided to expel six British diplomats from the country, accusing them of engaging in espionage and sabotage work, in a move that highlighted the deepening tensions between Moscow and London. The controversy over the use of long-range missiles started with a headline in Kommersant newspaper. It said: “Vladimir Putin draws his red line.” It further posed the question: But will the West cross it? And, if it does, how will Russia respond?’’ Russia has, of course, drawn red lines before. It has also seen them being crossed. Western leaders have generally ignored what is widely interpreted as nuclear sabre-rattling.
Earlier this month, Russia’s deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov announced that Russia was set to revise its nuclear doctrine: the document that lays out under what circumstances Moscow may consider using nuclear weapons. Ryabkov indicated that the decision to revise the doctrine was “connected with the escalation course of Western adversaries”.
