Putin Warns of War with U.S., NATO if Ukraine Gains Long-Range Missiles

Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a stern warning this week, cautioning the United States and NATO that allowing Ukraine to use long-range Western-supplied missiles to strike inside Russian territory could lead to direct conflict between Russia and Western nations. Putin’s remarks come during discussions between U.S. President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on whether to lift existing restrictions on Ukraine’s use of these weapons.

Putin’s message was clear: if Ukraine is allowed to strike deep into Russian territory using Western-made long-range missiles, this would escalate the conflict dramatically. According to Putin, such an action would mark the direct involvement of NATO countries in the war in Ukraine.

“This will mean that NATO countries, the U.S., and European countries are at war with Russia,” Putin said on Thursday. He added that if this scenario were to unfold, Russia would "make appropriate decisions based on the threats that will be created for us."

Putin’s remarks serve as a stark reminder of the high stakes surrounding Ukraine’s ongoing defense efforts. Ukraine has been fighting Russian forces since the full-scale invasion began in February 2022, and Kyiv has consistently asked its Western allies for advanced weaponry to defend its territory and push back Russian advances.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been urging the U.S. and NATO for months to remove the restrictions on Ukraine’s use of long-range missiles. These weapons would allow Ukraine to target military installations deep inside Russia, which Zelenskyy argues is necessary to defend against Russian aggression.

Currently, the U.S. and its allies provide Ukraine with military aid, but they have set limits on how and where Ukraine can use certain weapons. The long-range missiles in question are seen as a game-changer for Ukraine’s defense strategy, but Western nations have been hesitant to allow their use inside Russia, fearing it could provoke a wider conflict.

Throughout the war, Putin has repeatedly warned NATO not to supply Ukraine with advanced weapons, claiming that doing so would expand the conflict beyond Ukraine’s borders. These warnings have often come with threats of retaliation, though Putin has not specified what actions Russia would take in response.

Former CIA Moscow station chief Dan Hoffman explained that Putin has relied on a strategy of rhetorical escalation to slow down Western military aid to Ukraine. “Putin's war in Ukraine has been a massive failure – hundreds of thousands of casualties, a brain drain, a million Russians have fled, Sweden and Finland are now NATO members, the list goes on,” Hoffman said. However, he noted that Putin has been somewhat successful in using threats to delay the delivery of critical military equipment to Ukraine.

"He makes these threats because he knows they work," Hoffman argued, suggesting that Putin’s warnings are aimed at creating hesitation among Western leaders. Hoffman also stated that the U.S. should not "micromanage how Ukrainians conduct their war" and should instead provide them with the necessary weapons to defend their country.

The latest development in this ongoing debate is a meeting between U.S. President Biden and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, where the two leaders are expected to discuss whether to lift the restrictions on Ukraine’s use of long-range missiles. This meeting is significant, as it could determine whether Ukraine gains the ability to strike deep into Russian territory, a move that could drastically shift the dynamics of the war.

While Biden has faced pressure from both sides of the political spectrum to provide Ukraine with more advanced weaponry, including tanks, F-16s, and long-range missiles, the decision to lift the strike bans would be a major escalation. It remains to be seen how the U.S. and UK will approach this issue, but the consequences of their decision could be profound.

Many defense officials in the U.S. and NATO believe that Ukraine’s victory in the war is essential to maintaining stability in Europe. They argue that if Russia is not stopped in Ukraine, Putin’s ambitions could extend beyond the country’s borders, posing a threat to other nations in Europe.

Russian officials, however, have been drawing "red lines" since the start of the war, warning that the U.S. and its allies would become "parties to the conflict" by providing Ukraine with advanced military aid. Putin’s latest warning is just one in a series of threats aimed at deterring further Western support for Ukraine.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer addressed Putin’s warning during his flight to Washington, D.C. "Russia started this conflict. Russia illegally invaded Ukraine. Russia can end this conflict straight away. Ukraine has the right to self-defense," Starmer said, affirming his country’s support for Ukraine’s right to defend itself.

As the war drags on, the possibility of an escalation beyond Ukraine’s borders looms large. While the U.S. and its allies have so far been cautious about providing Ukraine with weapons that could provoke Russia, the growing pressure to lift restrictions on long-range missiles indicates that a shift in strategy may be coming.

Putin’s threats of retaliation have been a central part of his war strategy, but whether Russia would actually take steps to escalate the conflict remains uncertain. Experts note that while Russia has drawn multiple "red lines" throughout the war, many of these have been crossed without triggering significant Russian responses.