INTERNACIONAL
Putin warns US, NATO risk war with Russia if long-range strike bans lifted for Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin this week issued an ominous warning against the U.S. and its NATO allies and said they risk being «at war» with Moscow if Ukraine is allowed to use long-range weapons to hit targets inside Russia.
Ukrainian President Voldymyr Zelenskyy has been pushing the U.S. and NATO for months to remove any and all restrictions they have on Kyiv’s use of Western-supplied long-range weapons and permit it to hit military targets deep in Russia.
But Putin on Thursday drew a red line and said, «This will mean that NATO countries, the U.S. and European countries are at war with Russia.»
BIDEN ADMIN FACES MOUNTING PRESSURE TO ALLOW UKRAINE TO STRIKE INSIDE RUSSIA WITH US MISSILES
«And if this is so, then, bearing in mind the change in the very essence of this conflict, we will make appropriate decisions based on the threats that will be created for us,» he added, according to a translation posted by NBC News.
The comments were issued one day ahead of talks at the White House where President Biden will meet with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to discuss lifting the current strike bans on Friday.
Putin did not lay out what actions Russia would take against the West should Washington and London lift their strike restrictions, but the Kremlin chief has long relied on escalated rhetoric in his war strategy to deter Western aid for Ukraine.
Since the onslaught of the war, Putin has warned NATO against supplying Kyiv with lethal aid, and at nearly every step of the way he has warned the war could spread beyond Ukraine’s borders – a strategy that one expert says has achieved its intended effect on Washington.
UKRAINE HITS MOSCOW IN LARGEST DRONE STRIKE SINCE WAR BEGAN
«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,» former CIA Moscow station chief Dan Hoffman told Fox News Digital. «The only thing he succeeded at is rhetorical nuclear brinkmanship and other threats, trying to induce the Biden administration not to give Ukraine what they need, when they need it, to defend themselves.»
Hoffman said Putin’s remarks were likely tailored to President Biden and his administration, which has repeatedly been slow to send Ukraine sorely needed defense equipment like tanks, F-16s and long-range ATACMS missiles before then reversing course and eventually agreeing to send the top weaponry.
«He makes these threats because he knows they work,» Hoffman argued. «We shouldn’t be micromanaging how [Ukrainians] conduct their war.
«Just give them the weapons. They have every lawful right to defend themselves,» he added.
Defense officials on both sides of the aisle have argued it behooves the U.S. and NATO to arm Kyiv in its war against Russia, as many believe Putin will not stop with his deadly ambitions in Europe if he gains a win in Ukraine.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
It remains to be seen whether Putin will actually escalate the war beyond Russia and Ukraine’s borders, should Biden and Starmer agree on Friday to lift strike bans.
Though White House national security communications advisor John Kirby told reporters Friday not to expect any announcement regarding the strike bans.
«I wouldn’t be looking for an announcement today, about the long range strike capabilities,» he said. «There’s no change to our policy with respect to that.»
Russian officials have been drawing «red lines» since 2022, along with issuing warnings that the U.S. would become «a party to the conflict» by providing Ukraine with defensive aid.
Starmer responded to Putin’s apparent threat while aboard his flight to D.C. on Thursday and told a reporter for The Guardian, «Russia started this conflict. Russia illegally invaded Ukraine. Russia can end this conflict straight away. Ukraine has the right to self-defense.»
INTERNACIONAL
Russia condemns exploding pagers that wounded Hezbollah members across Lebanon: ‘Explosive situation’
The Russian government is speaking out against the apparent use of exploding pagers to simultaneously strike thousands of individuals connected with a terrorist group in Lebanon.
Over 3,000 members of the Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group were injured on Tuesday after a near simultaneous detonation of the organization’s pagers erupted across Lebanon, killing at least 12.
«What has happened, whatever it is, is certainly leading to an escalation of tensions,» Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the press, according to translations from Agence France-Presse.
HEZBOLLAH PAGERS THAT EXPLODED WERE MADE IN HUNGARY, TAIWANESE COMPANY SAYS
«The region itself is in an explosive situation,» he added. «And every incident like this has the potential to be a trigger.»
The pagers started heating up and exploding around 3:30 p.m. Tuesday. The blasts were concentrated in areas where Hezbollah has a strong presence, particularly a southern Beirut suburb and in the Beqaa region of eastern Lebanon and in Damascus, Lebanese security officials and a Hezbollah official told the Associated Press.
Russia maintains a strategic alliance with Iran, which backs Hezbollah as a proxy combatant against Israel.
«We strongly condemn the unprecedented attack on friendly Lebanon and its citizens, which constitutes a flagrant violation of its sovereignty and a serious challenge to international law through the use of unconventional weapons,» said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, according to Agence France-Presse.
HEZBOLLAH’S NEIGHBORS: ISRAELI BORDER COMMUNITY UNDER CONSTANT ATTACK FROM TERROR GROUP
She added, «Amid growing tension along the Lebanese-Israeli border, such irresponsible actions are fraught with extremely dangerous consequences, as they provoke a new round of escalation.
A senior U.S. official has confirmed to Fox News that Israel was behind the explosions as fresh blasts are being reported in Beirut.
Lebanon Health Minister Firas Abiad told reporters Wednesday morning that many of the wounded had severe injuries to the eyes, and others had limbs amputated.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has affirmed his nation’s intent to bolster cooperation with Russia in the coming months.
«My government will seriously follow ongoing cooperation and measures to upgrade the level of relations between the two countries,» Pezeshkian told Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu on Tuesday.
He continued, «Relations between Tehran and Moscow will develop in a permanent, continuous and lasting way. Deepening and strengthening relations and cooperation between Iran and Russia will reduce the impact of sanctions.»
Fox News Digital’s Stephen Sorace and Greg Norman contributed to this report.
-
POLITICA2 días ago
A fin de mes se definiría la condena a Cristina Kirchner por la causa Vialidad
-
POLITICA2 días ago
Luis Caputo cruzó a gobernadores e intendentes K: “Siguen subiendo impuestos para perjudicar al país”
-
POLITICA3 días ago
“Son delincuentes y los vamos a seguir hasta abajo de la cama”, la dura respuesta del Gobierno al gremio aeronáutico
-
ECONOMIA1 día ago
En una señal al mercado, el Gobierno ya compró los dólares para pagar los intereses de deuda de enero
-
POLITICA1 día ago
Jubilados protestan en contra de la celebración de Javier Milei por el veto a la reforma jubilatoria
-
POLITICA21 horas ago
Javier Milei celebró que «la inflación está bajando» pese a los aumentos de las tarifas