Director of the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) and Chairman of the Russian Historical Society (RHS) Sergey Naryshkin
Lieutenant General Sergei Naryshkin, head of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service, has made a strong statement warning NATO countries of serious consequences if they continue to provide assistance to Ukraine in the form of long-range missiles that can hit Russian territory. Speaking in an interview with the National Defence magazine, Naryshkin said that Russia would not leave unanswered any country that facilitates such strikes, Reuters reports.
The warning came in response to reports that the Ukrainian military had used US ATACMS missiles to strike Russian territory. Although Kyiv has not officially confirmed this fact, the Russian Ministry of Defence claimed the attack, which, according to senior officials, marked a new stage in the escalation of the conflict.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also joined in condemning these actions, saying that it was evidence of the escalation of the West’s war against Russia. He noted that if long-range missiles are launched from the territory of Ukraine, it means that they are controlled by Western military experts, in particular the United States.
The escalation comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin approved changes to the country’s nuclear doctrine that lower the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons in the event of a major conventional attack. Putin and his team believe that these changes should send an important signal to the West that Moscow is serious.
Instead, the US National Security Council responded to these statements by arguing that there is no reason to adjust the US nuclear policy at this time. However, Russia has made it clear that it is ready to continue fighting for its strategic interests, not backing down even in the face of possible nuclear threats.
Such rhetoric only increases tensions in international relations, as not only Ukraine’s territorial integrity is at stake, but also global security, which is becoming increasingly vulnerable amid escalation in Ukraine and a shift in the balance of power in the world.
