Sochi: Russian President Vladimir Putin has responded sharply to US President Donald Trump’s description of Russia as a ‘paper tiger,’ suggesting NATO itself could fit the label and cautioning the United States against supplying Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine.
Speaking at the Valdai Discussion Group in Sochi, Putin said Russian forces have advanced along the entire front in Ukraine and that the majority of the US-led NATO alliance is engaged against Russia. Trump, who last week suggested Ukraine could reclaim all territory lost to Moscow and labelled Russia a ‘paper tiger,’ has shifted his stance from previously advocating territorial concessions.
Putin questioned the strength of NATO if Russia, while fighting the alliance, could still be considered a ‘paper tiger.’ Putin also mocked European claims of Russian drones invading NATO airspace, joking about avoiding Denmark and lacking drones capable of reaching Lisbon. European officials have reported airspace violations by Russian drones over Poland and fighter jets over Estonia.
The Russian leader took a more serious tone regarding potential US Tomahawk missile supplies to Ukraine, warning that such action would require direct American military involvement and could trigger a ‘qualitatively new stage of escalation,’ including relations between the United States and Russia.
The war in Ukraine, Europe’s deadliest since World War Two, has created the largest confrontation between Russia and the West since the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. Putin’s remarks come amid growing tensions over Western military support to Kyiv, which Moscow views as escalating the conflict.
Putin has used the address at the Valdai forum to both challenge Western rhetoric and signal that any increased military support for Ukraine will be met with strong and potentially dangerous responses, underscoring the continued volatility in Russia-West relations.
MOST READ | Nigeria boat accident raises concern over river travel safety
