Put Western troops on the ground in Ukraine and get a global nuclear war in return. That was the clear threat issued Thursday by Russian President Vladimir Putin as he told the West to keep out of the fight between Moscow and Kyiv.
AP reports he spoke in a state-of-the-nation address ahead of next month’s election he’s all but certain to win, underlining his readiness to hold Russian gains in Ukraine at any cost.
In a thinly veiled reference to French President Emmanuel Macron’s statement earlier this week that the future deployment of Western ground troops to Ukraine is possible, Putin warned it would lead to “tragic” consequences for the countries who decide to do that, repeating earlier threats of igniting global nuclear conflagration.
As Breitbart News reported, Macron said sending Western soldiers to Ukraine “could not be ruled out” and that “we must do whatever we can to obtain our objective.”
“Nothing should be excluded. We will do everything that we can to make sure that Russia does not prevail”, Macron said, while expressing his belief Russia was preparing to take more territory not just in Ukraine, but in other countries too.
Russian President Vladimir Putin walks on stage before delivering his annual state of the nation address, on February 29, 2024, in Moscow, Russia. Just over two years since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Putin is expected to be re-elected in the 2024 Presidential Elections, scheduled for March. (Contributor/Getty Images)
Putin noted while accusing Russia of plans to attack NATO allies in Europe, Western allies were “selecting targets for striking our territory and selecting the most efficient as they think striking assets and talking about the possibility of sending a NATO contingent to Ukraine.”
“We remember the fate of those who sent their troop contingents to the territory of our country,” the Russian leader said. “Now the consequences for the potential invaders will be far more tragic.”
“Don’t they understand it?” he continued, alleging that Western leaders are playing with options of deeper involvement in the conflict, as in a simulation. “Those people haven’t been through any tough challenges and they have forgotten what war means.”
The 71-year-old emphasized Russia’s nuclear forces are in “full readiness,” boasting the military has deployed potent new weapons, some of them tested on the battlefield in Ukraine.
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