Putin warns of nuclear response to any direct attack on Kaliningrad

Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that Moscow could use nuclear weapons if Kaliningrad or another Russian territory came under direct attack. Speaking at the Valdai Forum in Moscow on Thursday, Putin said Russia did not intend to attack a European country and wanted peaceful coexistence. He nevertheless said all weapons available to Russia would immediately become an issue if the country faced a direct attack.

Kaliningrad is Russia’s westernmost territory and lies between NATO members Poland and Lithuania. It is heavily militarised, and its position has made it a focus of concern during the confrontation between Moscow and the Western alliance. Putin said Russia understood that NATO was twice its size and noted the nuclear capabilities of France and Britain.

He maintained that Russia possessed weapons giving it a competitive advantage. His comments came after NATO said it had received a diplomatic note from Moscow warning that Russia was prepared to use nuclear weapons if the alliance tried to cut off Kaliningrad. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said the alliance’s posture was defensive and described nuclear threats as unhelpful.

Relations between Russia and Western countries have remained severely strained since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. European governments have accused Russia of intensifying a hybrid campaign involving alleged sabotage and arson. Moscow denies those allegations and rejects claims that it is preparing to attack a NATO country.

Putin warned that escalation could reach a point beyond which events could not be reversed. He urged governments to avoid circumstances in which weapons capable of catastrophic destruction might be used. On Ukraine, Putin ruled out stopping Russian strikes against Ukrainian targets in the Black Sea region.

He said Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil refineries had cost Russia about 1 per cent of its gross domestic product and that Moscow was responding. Putin also warned about Western support for Ukrainian long-range strikes inside Russia, although he said Moscow was not planning to attack European arms factories supplying Ukraine immediately. He added that he was willing to hold a trilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump if the participants first agreed on a suitable agenda.