AP
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Russian President Vladimir Putin warned the US that supply of long-range missiles to Ukraine will seriously undermine relations between Moscow and Washington, but will not change the situation on the battlefield where Russian troops are slowly and steadily advancing.
The possibility of US Tomahawk cruise missiles being supplied to Kiev indicates a “qualitatively new stage of escalation, including Russia-US relations.”
The Russian leader pointed out that if Tomahawk missiles were supplied to Ukraine, Russian air defense would damage Russia if it quickly adapted to the new threat. “It certainly won’t change the balance of power on the battlefield,” he added, highlighting the continued profitability of Russian troops against Ukraine.
When asked about dismissing Russia as a “paper tiger” after more than three and a half years of fighting, Putin claimed that Russia faces all NATO allies in support of Kiev.
“We’re fighting the entire NATO block. We keep moving, keep moving forward, feel confident. We are paper tigers. What is NATO itself?” he said. “Paper Tiger? Please deal with this paper Tiger at the time.”
The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Putin’s remarks.
At the same time, President Putin welcomed President Donald Trump’s efforts to support peace negotiations in Ukraine, describing the August summit in Alaska as productive.
“It was good to try and find a possible way to resolve the Ukraine crisis,” he said.
Putin also reaffirmed his offer to the United States to expand the last remaining nuclear weapons control agreement for another year after it expired in February. The 2010 New Start Treaty limits countries to less than 1,550 nuclear warheads and 700 deployed missiles and bombers.
“If they don’t need it, we don’t need it either,” he said, adding, “We’re confident about the nuclear shield.”
While praising Trump and trying to highlight potential common interests, the Russian president sent harsh warnings to Ukraine’s western allies against attempting to seize a vessel that would carry Russian oil to global markers. He argued that it amounted to copyright infringement, and could trigger a strong response while making the global oil market sharply unstable.
A claim to laugh at drones threatens a strong response to Western “copyright infringement”
Asked about the detention of an oil tanker off the Atlantic coast of France, which President Emmanuel Macron has linked to the shadow fleet of so-called aging tankers in Russia of uncertain ownership that has eschewed Western sanctions, Putin cast Macron as an attempt to distract the public from the country’s internal issues, leaving the French leader to napoleon.
He strongly warned the West against such actions, claiming it would violate international maritime law and would denies the risk of causing military conflict. “It’s a pirate, how do you deal with pirates? You destroy them,” he said.
Putin also scoffed at Western claims that Russia could be involved in recent drone flights through Denmark, and cast them as part of NATO’s efforts to “burn tensions to boost defence spending.”
NATO’s invasion into airspace, which denounced Russia, reached an unprecedented scale last month. A pack of Russian drones jumped into Poland, Estonia complained about the invasion of Russian fighter jets, and European officials who explain that Moscow had tested NATO’s response in Denmark, Germany and other countries have seen many unidentified drones.
The European Minister of Defense has agreed to develop a “drone wall” along the border to better detect, track and intercept drones that violate European airspace.
Putin has rejected Western allegations of aggressive planning against NATO allies as “nonsense” aimed at distracting the public from domestic issues.
“We are closely watching the expansion of militarization in Europe,” he said. “Are all these words just words, or is it time for us to take measures? We should not doubt that Russia’s measures will not take long.”
When asked about the assassination of Charlie Kirk, President Putin called it a “heinous crime” that reflected the “deep division” of American society. He welcomed Kirk as a hero killed for promoting the same conservative values that Russia shares.
Putin also praised Michael Gross, the American and son of the Deputy CIA Chief, who joined the Russian army in 2024 and was killed while working in Ukraine. He said he awarded the medal.
The Russian leader likened Gross to Kirk and said he defended similar “traditional” values. “He gave his life as a Russian soldier, defending his life while defending those values, and Kirk gave his life while fighting for the same values in the United States,” Putin said.
In response to questions about Gloss, the CIA said in a statement that the agency “considered Michael’s death and death as a matter of private family, not a national security issue. The entire CIA family is heartbroken for their losses.”
At one point during the live broadcast that was televised at the four-hour event, Putin was a former Soviet KGB officer and one-off head of Russia’s top domestic security agency, and introduced him as the “CIA Director” while explaining the meeting between President George W. Bush and his administrator.
“The Future Director” Putin was murmurped as the audience chuckled.
