Putin Warns West Against Involvement in Ukraine Conflict With Long-Range Missiles

Russian President Vladimir Putin has briefed his colleagues in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) on the current situation in the special military operation in Ukraine and new Russian weapons. He stated that the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff are selecting targets in Ukraine, which may include decision-making centers in Kiev.

"The Kiev regime has repeatedly tried to strike important state facilities in Russia, including in St. Petersburg and Moscow. And these attempts continue," said Putin.

In response to the ongoing strikes on its territory, Russia hit military targets in Ukraine using a hundred missiles overnight.

"It was these weapon systems we used over the past two days in response to continued ATACMS missile strikes on Russian territory. A total of 100 systems, 100 missiles of different classes, which I just mentioned, and 466 strike drones were used. Last night, we launched a combined strike using 90 missiles of similar classes and 100 drones, hitting 17 targets—military sites, defense and industrial facilities, and their supporting systems," said Putin.

Putin added that those who follow the orders of the usurpers of power in Ukraine become accomplices in their crimes, referring to the fact that Zelensky's presidential mandate expired some months ago.

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"They [the Ukrainian authorities] are completely illegitimate today, and from a purely legal point of view, they do not even have the right to give orders to the armed forces, as they are usurpers of power. By the way, those who execute these orders also become accomplices in crimes of this kind," Putin said.

The supply of even the most modern weapons to Ukraine will not change the situation on the battlefield, Putin stated. However, he warned that allowing Kiev to strike Russian territory with long-range missiles means direct involvement of the West in the conflict.

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"As is known, Western officials announced in early November that they would permit the Ukrainian Armed Forces to strike Russian territory with long-range precision weapons of Western manufacture. We have repeatedly pointed out that this will mean the direct involvement of these countries in the armed conflict, since the use of this weapon without the direct participation of NATO military personnel or specialists is simply impossible," Putin said at a session of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) Security Council.

Speaking about the strikes on Russian territory with ATACMS missiles, Putin stated that Russia will always respond.

"As I have said repeatedly, there will always be a response from our side," he said.

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"Currently, the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff of the Russian Army are selecting targets for strikes on Ukrainian territory. These could include military facilities, defense industry enterprises, or decision-making centers in Kiev. Especially since the Kiev regime has repeatedly tried to strike important state facilities in Russia, including in St. Petersburg and Moscow," the president added.

Putin also reminded that the Russian Kh-101 missile significantly exceeds European systems in range.

"The air-launched Storm Shadow missile, the French Scalp, and the German Taurus have a warhead of around 450-480 kilograms in TNT equivalent, with a range of 500-650 kilometers, with the Taurus reaching 650 kilometers. The Russian counterpart to these systems is the air-launched Kh-101 missile, which has a comparable warhead in terms of power, but significantly exceeds each of the European systems in range," he said.