Russian President Vladimir
Putin
has said that F-16 warplanes used by Ukraine against Russia would be hit by Moscow's forces even if they were at NATO airfields. This was reported by the Tass news agency. “If they are used by airports of third countries, they will be a legitimate target for us: no matter where they are,” Putin said at a meeting with Russian Air Force pilots in the western Tver region. The Russian president then warned that Russia will take into account the fact that F-16s can carry nuclear weapons. “We must take this into account when planning” combat operations, Putin said. The Tsar then assured that the possible supply of F-16s to Ukraine "will not change the situation on the battlefield", since Russia "will destroy them as it is already doing with Western tanks and other weapons".
Putin has called accusations that Russia is planning to invade Europe "total nonsense". “As for the accusation that we are planning to invade Europe after Ukraine, this is complete nonsense intended solely to intimidate the population into paying them more money,” Putin said. This narrative takes place "in a context of economic crisis and deteriorating living standards - continued the Russian president -. They need to justify themselves, so they are intimidating their population with a potential Russian threat while trying to expand their dictatorship to the whole world".
"Putin is a butcher" and the United States "will defend every inch of NATO territory", even if it does not send troops to Ukraine. Joe Biden and his administration flex their muscles, blocking the tsar's accusations not only against Kiev but also against the West, in particular the USA and Great Britain, of having played a role in the recent attack by a branch of ISIS in Moscow.
The president once again offended the Kremlin leader by reviving an epithet already used last March in a meeting with Ukrainian refugees in Warsaw. Speaking in North Carolina about his proposal to increase taxes on companies and rich people, the commander in chief explained that the 400 billion dollars that would be obtained could be used to "dramatically reduce the federal deficit" but also "to do many other things… including finally making sure we protect Ukraine from that butcher Putin,” he said, later boasting that he doesn’t have Donald Trump’s orange hair.
Last month, while speaking of the ever-looming risk of nuclear conflict, Biden branded him "a crazy son of...", prompting an indignant reaction from the Kremlin.
Moreover, in the past he has called him a "murderer", "murderous dictator", "war criminal", even going so far as to say that he "cannot remain in power".
The American president broke openly with the 'tsar' some time ago, but knows he must continue to deal with him after his controversial re-election. This is why his administration is trying to defuse Putin's attempt to use the Crocus City Hall massacre as a pretext for escalation with the West, despite the fact that the US had repeatedly publicly and privately warned the Russian government of the threat of an attack by part of Islamic extremists. The warning was not an outstretched hand, but the principle of 'duty to warn', i.e. the duty of US intelligence to share information on possible terrorist attacks with adversaries. A practice that has not paid off, given Moscow's constant provocations, even on the borders with NATO, as suggested by the Russian missile that entered Polish airspace.
An episode that pushed Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh to reiterate that "if a NATO ally were attacked, which we certainly wouldn't want to happen, we will defend every inch of the Alliance". A World War III scenario, even if Washington has reiterated that it will not send troops to Ukraine, quashing the hypothesis recently raised by Macron. But while flexing its muscles, the US also continues to throw water on the fire on Russian accusations against Kiev for the Crocus massacre: "There is no comment to make on Ukraine's involvement, for the simple reason that it did not happen. This is just propaganda, used to continue the aggression," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller cut short. The White House, however, fears that Putin is testing the waters - even on the borders with the Baltic countries - and betting that the Alliance ultimately would not have the courage to go to battle. In the meantime, he hopes that the US House will soon vote on new aid for Kiev, as Republican Speaker Mike Johnson promised to do upon his return from the Easter holidays. This would allow Biden to arrive at the elections at least in a stalemate with Russia on the Ukrainian front, while he seeks an increasingly difficult way out on the Middle Eastern one, after the rift with Benjamin Netanyahu over Gaza.
Two conflicts that could follow different courses if his opponent Donald Trump triumphs in seven months, flirting with Putin by threatening defaulting NATO countries and promising carte blanche to 'Bibi'. A victory, the NYT reveals, increasingly feared by Barack Obama, pushing him to a more active role behind the scenes of the Democratic campaign - with frequent phone calls and advice to Biden and his staff - and in fundraising, which on Thursday will see him together with his former deputy and Bill Clinton at the iconic Radio City Music Hall in New York: a rare event that testifies to the urgency of the moment.
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