Russian President Vladimir Putin warned America on Sunday (28/7) that if Washington places long-range missiles in Germany, Russia will place similar missiles within striking distance of Western territory.
The US said on July 10 that it would begin deploying long-range missiles in Germany in 2026, in preparation for a long-term deployment. The missiles to be deployed include the SM-6, Tomahawk cruise missiles and hypersonic weapons that are still in development.
In a speech to sailors from Russia, China, Algeria and India to mark Russian Navy Day in St. Petersburg, the former imperial capital, Putin warned the United States that such a move risked triggering a Cold War-style missile crisis.
“The flight time to target such a missile on our territory, which in the future may be equipped with a nuclear warhead, will be about 10 minutes,” Putin said.
“We will take similar steps, taking into account the actions of the US, its satellites in Europe and in other regions of the world,” he added.
Putin, who sent his troops into Ukraine in 2022, sees the war as part of a historic struggle against the West, which he says insulted Russia after the Soviet Union fell in 1991 by encroaching on what it saw as the limits of Moscow's sphere of influence.
Ukraine and the West say Putin is engaged in an imperial-style land grab. They have vowed to defeat Russia, which now controls about 18% of Ukraine, including Crimea and parts of four eastern regions.
Russia says the territories, once part of the Russian empire, are now part of Russia again and will never be returned.
The cold War?
Russian and US diplomats say their diplomatic relations are now at their worst since the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. Both Moscow and Washington are pushing for de-escalation, while both have taken steps towards escalation.
Putin said the US was stoking tensions and moving Typhon missile systems to Denmark and the Philippines, and compared the US plan to NATO's decision to deploy Pershing II missile launchers in Western Europe in 1979.
Soviet leaders, including General Secretary Yuri Andropov, feared that the deployment of the Pershing II missiles was part of an elaborate US-led plan to weaken the Soviet Union by eliminating its political and military leadership. (ps/ab)
