Russia warns United States against allowing cross-border strikes by Ukraine

Tuesday, June 4, 2024

On Monday, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov warned that the United States of America could face "fatal consequences" from allowing Ukraine to use Western weapons for strikes inside Russia. This was in response to Antony Blinken, United States Secretary of State, announcing permission has been granted for Ukrainian strikes inside Russia near Kharkiv Oblast. This announcement was followed the next day by Germany granting permission for its weapons as well.

Sergei Ryabkov continued that he wanted to "warn American leaders against miscalculations that could have fatal consequences". He added "they underestimate the seriousness of the rebuff they may receive". He said Russian president Vladimir Putin had also repeatedly given a "very significant warning" about the US decision.

Ryabkov urged the United States to "spend some of their time, which they apparently spend on some kind of video games, judging by the lightness of their approach, on studying what was said in detail by Putin". President Putin had also earlier declared that if Ukraine used its weapons to attack deep inside Russia, the West would be clearly implicated.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy of Ukraine stated that his country was thankful for the permission by the United States, although it was not enough and the remaining restrictions were still causing difficulty for those defending Ukraine.


Sources