Commenting on Western concerns about Russia’s alleged intention to invade Ukraine, Putin said Moscow was “also concerned” about NATO maneuvers near its borders.
Speaking at an online investment forum, the Russian president said that “NATO’s eastward expansion threatens Moscow’s basic security interests,” according to the Associated Press.
He also expressed concern that NATO “may eventually use Ukrainian territory to deploy missiles capable of reaching Russian command centers, in just five minutes.”
He added, “The emergence of such threats is a red line for us… I hope that common sense and responsibility towards their countries and the global community will eventually prevail.”
In the same context, Putin said that Moscow “had to confront the growing threats”, by developing new hypersonic weapons.
And he added: “What should we do? We will need to develop something similar to target those who threaten us. We can do that now.”
He pointed out that a new hypersonic missile is scheduled to enter service with the Russian Navy early next year, noting that “it will also take only five minutes to reach those who give orders.”
The hypersonic missile “Zircon”, which is capable of flying at a speed of more than 9 times the speed of sound, to a range of 1,000 km, has undergone a series of tests, the last of which was on Monday.
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