WORLD NEWS FOR MONTENEGRO DIASPORA
Choose language:
AUTHOR:M.J. GDNUS
Russian President Vladimir Putin has issued a serious warning to Ukraine, saying that any attempt to use nuclear weapons against Russia would provoke a reflex response from Moscow and have catastrophic consequences for Kiev.
Speaking at the International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg, Putin said that the possible use of a so-called dirty bomb, a weapon that combines a conventional explosion with radioactive material, would be a colossal mistake by the Ukrainian leadership.
"That would probably be their last mistake. Our response would be extremely harsh, perhaps catastrophic – not only for the neo-Nazi regime in Kiev, but also for Ukraine itself," Putin said.
Although he admitted that Russia currently has no evidence that Ukraine is planning a nuclear attack, he warned that such an idea could arise "in a sick head".
In the same address, the Russian leader announced the creation of a security zone along the border with Ukraine, in response to what he said were increasingly frequent attacks on Russian territory and a recent incursion into the Kursk region. The zone, he said, could be between eight and 12 kilometers deep.
Putin added that Russia did not plan to take the city of Sumy, a regional center in northeastern Ukraine, but did not rule it out.
Commenting on the broader goals of the Russian offensive, Putin reiterated his position that Russians and Ukrainians belong to the same people: "All of Ukraine is ours. Wherever a Russian soldier steps, it is ours."
