Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned of a \u201creal\u201d risk of nuclear war if the Western countries sent troops to fight in Ukraine during an annual address to the nation two weeks ahead of the presidential election. \u201cThere has been talk about the possibility of sending NATO military contingents to Ukraine. But we remember the fate of those who once sent their contingents to our country\u2019s territory. But now the consequences for possible interventionists will be far more tragic,\u201d Putin said addressing parliament and other senior elites. \u201cThey must realise that we also have weapons that can hit targets on their territory. All this really threatens a conflict with the use of nuclear weapons and the destruction of civilisation. Don\u2019t they get that?\u201d Putin has previously spoken of the dangers of a direct confrontation between NATO and Russia, but his nuclear weapon warning on Thursday was one of his most explicit. Putin\u2019s warning comes in the wake of French President Emmanuel Macron\u2019s proposal on Monday of European NATO members sending ground troops to Ukraine. The United States, Germany, the United Kingdom and some other members rejected the suggestion. But Putin suggested that Western leaders remember the fate of those like Germany\u2019s Adolf Hitler and France\u2019s Napoleon Bonaparte, who unsuccessfully tried to invade his country in the past. The Russian leader previously pulled Moscow out of the START arms control treaty with the US last year and previously said he was \u201cnot bluffing\u201d when he stated he was ready to use nuclear weapons. Putin also said Russia was \u201cready\u201d for dialogue with the US on \u201cstrategic stability\u201d issues despite the invasion of Ukraine triggering the worst relations between Moscow and the West since the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. \u201cI look at these courageous people, sometimes very young guys, and without any exaggeration I can say my heart fills with pride. They will not back down, will not fail and will not betray,\u201d Putin said. His comments also come with the Kremlin revelling in its recent gains in Ukraine, an economy that has defied the devastating effects of sanctions, and signs of Western support for Ukraine becoming strained. On the war in Ukraine, Putin said the Russian army had increased its combat capabilities and is \u201cconfidently\u201d advancing across the front line. \u201cToday, when our homeland is defending its sovereignty and security and protecting the lives of our fellow countrymen in Donbas and Novorossiya [regions of Ukraine that Russia claims to have annexed], the decisive role in this righteous struggle belongs to our citizens, our unity, devotion to our native country and responsibility for its fate,\u201d he said. Earlier on Thursday, Russia said it fought off an attempted landing by Ukrainian special forces on the Tendra Spit sandbar in the Black Sea, killing \u201cup to 25\u201d Ukrainian personnel.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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