Putin warns Europe of ‘destruction of cities’ as dispute over NATO pre-emptive strike reaches new level

Statement by Vladimir Putin about the possible “large-scale destruction of European cities” in the event of a NATO war against Russia became the sharpest warning from Moscow in recent years.

The reason was the controversy surrounding the ideas “preventive strike” by the alliance on Russian targetsvoiced by the leadership of the NATO Military Committee.

It all started with an interview with the Chairman of the Committee, Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, given Financial Times. In it, he mentioned that NATO was considering “preemptive action” in response to cyberattacks, sabotage and airspace incidents that the alliance attributes to Russia. No concrete evidence was provided, but the rhetoric provoked an immediate reaction from Moscow.

Putin responded as harshly as possible, emphasizing that in the event of a direct attack, “the war with Europe will be different, not like the conflict in Ukraine.” According to him, Russia is conducting military operations in the Ukrainian direction “surgically,” but if there is an attack from Europe, the response will be “such that after it there will be no one to negotiate.” This statement actually indicates a readiness to use strategic or non-strategic means of mass destruction.

NATO’s reaction came through an anonymous comment from a senior alliance official published by the BBC and Telegraph. He stated that “the Russian army does not have the resources to defeat Europe in a conventional war.” However, the fact remains obvious: both Russia and the European members of the alliance recognize the impossibility of a full-scale conflict without the involvement of the United States, which automatically means the risk of the outbreak of World War III.

The key point is that Putin was not talking about a classic operation, but about the use of weapons comparable in destructive power to nuclear potential. New Russian missiles such as RS-26 “Oreshnik”are capable of destroying the administrative center of a large metropolis without resorting to classic nuclear warheads. At the moment, Europe does not have the means to counter such systems.

Russia has at its disposal a whole range of the latest weapons designed to overcome missile defense. European states participating in a potential NATO operation would inevitably become the targets of a massive strike – including cities in countries that traditionally consider themselves out of the risk zone.

Additional tension was caused by the recent statement by the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, addressed to Athens: “You will receive our answer soon.” It was made in the context of a discussion of the possible participation of individual European countries in military initiatives against Russia.

The final picture looks extremely alarming. Rhetoric about preemptive strikes by NATO is combined with direct warnings from Moscow about its readiness to launch strikes leading to the destruction of entire cities. This increases the risk of a strategic mistake: one wrong step can be enough for a local political statement to lead to a global catastrophe.

Source link