President Vladimir Putin condemned new Western sanctions and warned that any strike on Russian territory with long-range Western weapons would meet a “very serious, if not overwhelming” response, the Kremlin said. The statement was made on Thursday, October 23, after a meeting of the board of the Russian Geographical Society in the Kremlin, Moscow.
Putin said the latest moves by the United States and the European Union were politically driven and would strain ties but not cripple Russia’s economy, the Kremlin said. He described the moves as “unfriendly” and argued they would not “significantly affect our economic well-being,” quoted by the Kremlin.
Addressing energy markets, Putin said that Russia remains a significant global supplier and that cutting Russian oil and petroleum product exports would drive prices up around the world, the Kremlin reported. It would take time and significant investment to substitute Russian volumes promptly, and hydrocarbons will still be in demand as consumption grows, the Kremlin said.
Regarding potential talks with President Donald Trump, Putin said the American side raised the idea of a meeting in a recent phone call and that any summit would need to be properly prepared by the appointed officials, the Kremlin said. He said the initial steps would be left to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, quoted by the Kremlin, while adding that the American side has since postponed the meeting.
Questioned about mixed signals from Washington regarding approving long-distance weapons for Ukraine, Putin called the moves “an attempt at escalation.” “If such weapons are used to strike Russian territory, the response will be very serious, if not overwhelming,” he was quoted as saying by the Kremlin.
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