President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia said the West faced the prospect of nuclear conflict if it intervened more directly in the war in Ukraine, using an annual speech to the nation on Thursday to escalate his threats against Europe and the United States.
Mr. Putin said Western countries that were helping Ukraine strike Russian territory “must, in the end, understand” that “all this truly threatens a conflict with the use of nuclear weapons, and therefore the destruction of civilization.”
“We also have weapons that can strike targets on their territory,” Mr. Putin said. “Do they not understand this?”
Putin has finished his annual State of the Nation address. Here are some key takeaways from his speech:
"They have announced the possibility of sending Western military contingents to Ukraine … The consequences for possible interventionists will be much more tragic.”
"They should eventually realise that we also have weapons that can hit targets on their territory. Everything that the West comes up with creates the real threat of a conflict with the use of nuclear weapons, and thus the destruction of civilisation.”
"Western countries do not just want to restrain the development of the Russian Federation: “Instead of Russia, they need a dependent, fading, dying space where they can do whatever they want.”
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