Title: Putin: Foreign-made tanks in Ukraine a “priority target”
Subtitle: Russian president warns Western weapons will not change outcome of war
Date: [Current Date]
Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared that foreign-made tanks are a “priority target” for Russian forces in Ukraine. Speaking to state television, Putin emphasized that the supply of Western weaponry to Kyiv will not alter the course of the ongoing conflict.
In his remarks, Putin reiterated his stance that Ukraine’s potential membership in NATO poses a significant threat to Russia’s security. He argued that the provision of Western arms has escalated global tensions, further prolonging the conflict.
Responding to France’s decision to supply Ukraine with long-range cruise missiles, Putin acknowledged their damaging potential but downplayed their impact on the war zone. He asserted that these missiles do not significantly alter the situation on the ground.
Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden stated on Thursday that Russia had already lost the war in Ukraine. Expressing hope that the counteroffensive by Ukrainian forces would push Moscow towards negotiations, Biden urged Russia to come to the negotiation table.
During his visit to Finland, a NATO member, Biden also pledged that Ukraine would eventually join the alliance, despite the absence of a membership timeline provided at the recent NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania. While NATO leaders did not offer a clear path for Ukraine’s accession, Biden expressed optimism about Ukraine’s future NATO membership.
Putin’s comments regarding targeting Western tanks and his warning about increasing military assistance to Kyiv were his first public response to the remarks made at the NATO summit. He continued to express Moscow’s strong opposition to Ukraine joining the defense bloc, claiming that such a move would threaten Russia’s strategic interests.
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a Washington, DC-based think tank, observed a generally muted response from Russia towards the developments at the NATO summit. The ISW noted that this demonstrates the setbacks Russia has faced in achieving its goals of preventing NATO expansion and rolling back the alliance from its borders.
Amidst Moscow’s growing anger at NATO’s support for Ukraine, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov labeled the F-16 fighter jets recently sent to Ukraine as a “nuclear” threat due to their capacity to carry atomic bombs. Russia’s Deputy Secretary of Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, warned that assistance from NATO members to Ukraine brought the threat of a third global conflict closer.
Ukrainian pilots are set to begin training on F-16 fighter jets in Romania next month, although the supply of US-made warplanes to Ukraine has yet to be agreed upon by Kyiv’s military allies.
In the face of these escalating tensions, the crisis in Ukraine continues, with both sides locked in a deadly conflict and the prospects for peace remaining uncertain.
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