Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Monday that the United States faces “fatal consequences” if it ignores Moscow’s warnings not to allow Ukraine to use weapons provided by Washington to attack targets inside Russia.
Ryabkov was commenting on the decision of US President Joe Biden, who last week approved the use of US-supplied weapons to strike targets inside Russia that were involved in attacks on Ukraine’s Kharkiv region, Reuters reports. “.
“I would like to warn American leaders against miscalculations that could have fatal consequences. For unknown reasons, they underestimate the seriousness of the opposition they may receive,” Ryabkov was quoted as saying, according to the Russian state news agency, RIA.
He was referring to comments last week by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who said NATO nations were playing with fire and risked a deeper global conflict – one of a series of warnings from Moscow about the risk of a serious escalation.
“I urge these figures [in the US]… to spare some of the time they seem to be spending on video games, judging by their ease of access, in studying in detail what was said from Putin” – added the Russian official.
He further said that Putin has given “a very significant warning and it should be taken with the highest seriousness”.
The Russian president said the West would be directly involved in any use of its weapons by Ukraine to strike deep inside Russia, because such attacks would require satellite, military and intelligence support.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said last week that NATO has the right to help Ukraine to maintain its right to self-defense and that this does not make the alliance a party to the conflict.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said at the weekend that Kiev is grateful to Washington for allowing the use of HIMARS missile systems in the Kharkiv region, but that this is not enough. Ukraine has long argued that restrictions on how to use weapons provided by the West are seriously limiting its ability to defend itself.
