Russian president warns Germany, threatens western nations
For the first time since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Vladimir Putin spoke with international news agencies in St. Petersburg. He cautioned against the complete collapse of Russian-German relations and threatened the West with an "asymmetrical response".
Putin expressed concern over the potential delivery of German Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine, which he had attacked. "If it's now said that (in Ukraine) there are also some missiles that can attack objects on Russian territory, then that would certainly destroy Russian-German relations," Putin told journalists during a meeting with major international news outlets in St. Petersburg. The delivery of German tanks to Ukraine last year was a blow to many in Russia, said the Russian president.
Putin was queried about Russia's reaction if Germany provided long-range Taurus cruise missiles to Kiev. Russian-German ties are already strained due to Russia's assault on Ukraine. He did not specify which areas would be further "shattered" if Taurus missiles were delivered.
The Russian leader also warned of an "asymmetrical response" if Russian territory is attacked with weapons supplied by the West to the Ukraine. "We're thinking about the fact that if someone thinks it's possible to provide weapons into the combat zone to carry out attacks on our territory (...), why shouldn't we have the right to deploy such weapons in world regions where attacks on sensitive objects of those countries are carried out that do this in relation to Russia?" he said.
Putin had previously been asked about the delivery of long-range weapons to Ukraine - including ATACMS rockets from the United States.
There was a recent successful attack with US HIMARS rocket launchers on a Russian air defense system in Belgorod near the Kharkiv region. Threats and warnings from the Kremlin are usually part of the agenda, with many observers considering them a way to deter the West from additional weapons deliveries.
Putin on Ukrainian POWs
The Kremlin leader estimated that there were over 6,000 Ukrainian prisoners of war after two years of invasion in the neighboring country. This number is much higher than the number of Russian soldiers and officers in Ukrainian captivity, claimed Putin. Ukraine has 1,348 Russians in captivity, while Russia has 6,365 prisoners of war from the neighboring country. The figures could not be independently confirmed.
Putin said that no conflict party makes clear statements about losses. However, the numbers are similar to the prisoner situation. Again, Putin asserted that Ukraine has significantly higher losses than Russia in the war. The Ukrainian side, on the other hand, stressed that there are significantly more Russian than their own soldiers who were killed in the war.
According to a report by the US foreign broadcaster Radio Liberty, in the coming days, two daughters of Vladimir Putin, Katerina Tikhonova and Maria Vorontsova, will appear in St. Petersburg. Tikhonova is the head of the company Innopraktika and is expected to connect online to a panel discussion. Vorontsova, a member of the Presidium of the Russian Association for the Promotion of Science, is expected to be present in person.
