By Afolabi Samuel Odunayo
Russian President Vladimir Putin has cautioned the United State against proceeding with what he called Washington’s plans to supply long-range missiles to Germany by 2026.
Putin said if such a plan happens, Russia will respond by stationing similar missiles within striking distance of Western targets.
This warning follows an announcement earlier this month by the US and Germany regarding the deployment of long-range fire capabilities in Germany.
The deployment is intended to bolster NATO and European defense, demonstrating Washington’s commitment to the alliance.
The US is preparing to station more modern weapons, including the Tomahawk and SM-6 cruise missiles and maybe even longer-range hypersonic weapons than those now in use in Europe, for a longer period of time.
Putin forewarned that the US approach could lead to a missile crisis like the Cold War era. Putin dropped the bombshell while making a speech on Russian Navy Day in St. Petersburg on Sunday to sailors from Russia, China, Algeria, and India.
“The flight time to targets on our territory of such missiles, which in the future may be equipped with nuclear warheads, will be about 10 minutes,” Putin stated.
He added: “ We will take mirror measures to deploy, taking into account the actions of the United States, its satellites in Europe and in other regions of the world.”
Accusing the US of raising tensions, the Russian president pointed out that Washington had previously moved Typhon missile systems to Denmark and the Philippines.
The decision made by NATO in 1979 to station Pershing II missiles in Western Europe, which had frightened the Soviet leadership, was compared by him to the current US plans.
“This situation is reminiscent of the events of the cold war related to the deployment of American medium-range Pershing missiles in Europe,” Putin said.
