On the day of the Russian Navy, Vladimir Putin threatened the West again – Photo: Dmytro Lovetsky / AP
Russian President Vladimir Putin warned the United States on Sunday that if Washington deployed long-range missiles in Germany, Russia would respond by deploying similar missiles capable of hitting the West, Reuters reported.
The statement came after the US announced on July 10 plans to deploy long-range missiles in Germany from 2026. This deployment will include SM-6 missiles, Tomahawk cruise missiles and the development of hypersonic weapons.
Putin on the new missile crisis
In a speech to sailors from Russia, China, Algeria and India on the Day of the Russian Navy in St. Petersburg, Putin warned the US that such a decision could trigger a new missile crisis similar to the one that occurred during the Cold War.
“The flight time of such missiles to targets on our territory, which could potentially be equipped with nuclear warheads, will be about 10 minutes,” Putin said. “We will take mirror measures in response to the actions of the United States and its allies in Europe and other regions of the world,” he added.
Comparison with placement of Pershing II missiles
Russian and American diplomats note that their relations are now worse than during the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. Both sides are calling for de-escalation, but continue to take steps that cause tensions, Reuters notes.
Putin accused the US of stoking tensions by moving Typhon missile systems to Denmark and the Philippines, and compared the US plans to NATO’s decision to deploy Pershing II launchers in Western Europe in 1979.
“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 on Sunday.
The Pershing II missile, designed to carry a variable-yield nuclear warhead, was deployed in West Germany in 1983.
