Putin: European Troop Deployment Would Mean 'War With Russia'

(MENAFN) Russian President Vladimir Putin escalated his rhetoric against European powers on Friday, accusing them of steering the continent toward direct confrontation with Moscow. Speaking to journalists, Putin argued that any move to station European soldiers on Ukrainian soil would cross a red line, according to a state-run news agency.

He framed current European deliberations over troop deployments as tantamount to an act of war, though he stopped short of a fully quoted ultimatum, instead characterizing such discussions as inherently escalatory toward Moscow.

The Russian leader went further, alleging a long-running Western campaign to weaken his country by proxy — first through Caucasus-based militants and separatists, he claimed, and now through what he described as Ukraine's government. He said the pressure campaign has continued unabated despite these earlier phases.

Putin simultaneously sought to cast Russia as the aggrieved party, insisting Moscow harbors no hostile intentions toward Europe and dismissing talk of a Russian threat as manufactured fear-mongering by European leadership designed to unsettle their own populations. He maintained there is no underlying basis for conflict between Russia and Europe. He also cautioned that European energy policy missteps — not Russian pricing — would be responsible for any future spike in consumer gas costs, insisting Russian energy exports remain priced at market rates.

MENAFN12092026000045017169ID1111655440