Moscow, July 29: Russian President Vladimir Putin has issued a stern warning to the United States regarding its plans to deploy long-range missiles in Germany starting in 2026. Speaking during a naval ceremony in St. Petersburg, Putin claimed that the move risks igniting a missile crisis akin to the Cold War era. He emphasized that the US’s deployment of SM-6 and Tomahawk cruise missiles, as well as developmental hypersonic weapons, could prompt Russia to station similar missiles within striking distance of Western targets.
Putin compared the current situation to the 1979 NATO decision to deploy Pershing II missiles in Europe, which the Soviet Union had viewed as a strategic threat. He warned that the US’s actions could lead to a rapid escalation of tensions and that Russia might respond by resuming production of intermediate and shorter-range nuclear-capable missiles. The Russian leader criticized the US for exacerbating global tensions and stated that Moscow would take “mirror measures” to counteract the perceived threat.
