Putin says that Russia will not attack NATO, but that the F-16 planes given to Ukraine will be shot down: “Of course, if they are used from airfields in third countries, they become legitimate targets for us, wherever they are.”

Russia has no plans to attack any NATO country and will not attack Poland, the Baltic states or the Czech Republic, but if the West supplies F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, then they will be shot down by Russian forces, Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday evening, reports Reuters.

Addressing Russian air force pilots, Putin said the US-led military alliance has expanded eastward into Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, but that Moscow has no plans to attack a NATO state.

“We have no aggressive intentions towards these states,” Putin said, according to a Kremlin transcript released Thursday.

“The idea that we will attack another country – Poland, the Baltic states and the Czechs are also scared – is total nonsense. It’s just stupid” – said the Kremlin leader.

The Kremlin, which accuses the US of fighting Russia by supporting Ukraine with money, weapons and intelligence, says relations with Washington have probably never been worse.

Asked about the F-16 fighter jets that the West has promised to send to Ukraine, Putin said that such devices will not change the situation in Ukraine.

“If they supply F-16s, and they talk about it, and apparently they train pilots, this will not change the situation on the battlefield,” Putin said. “And we will destroy the planes as we destroy tanks, armored vehicles and other equipment today, including multiple missile launchers,” continued Vladimir Putin.

“Of course, if they are used from airfields in third countries, they become legitimate targets for us, wherever they are,” Putin pointed out. He mentioned that the F-16 could also carry nuclear weapons.

His comments followed statements made earlier on Wednesday by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, who said the planes would arrive in Ukraine in the coming months.

Belgium, Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands are among the countries that have pledged to donate F-16s. A coalition of countries, including Romania, has promised to help train Ukrainian pilots in their use.

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