Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned Western nations that there is a genuine risk of nuclear war if they send their own troops to fight in Ukraine.
Addressing parliament and other members of the country’s elite on Thursday, Putin warned that Moscow has weapons that are capable of striking targets in the West.
Putin also repeated his accusation that the West is bent on weakening Russia.
He suggested Western leaders did not understand how dangerous their meddling in Russia’s internal affairs could be.
He prefaced his warning with a specific reference to an idea floated by French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday.
Macron suggested that European NATO members should send ground troops to Ukraine.
The suggestion, however, was quickly rejected by the United States, Germany, Britain, and others.
“(Western nations) must realize that we also have weapons that can hit targets on their territory,” said Putin.
“All this really threatens a conflict with the use of nuclear weapons and the destruction of civilization. Don’t they get that?!”
Putin, who was speaking ahead of a March 15-17 presidential election when he is certain to be re-elected for another six-year term, lauded what he said was Russia’s vastly modernized nuclear arsenal,