Russian official warns Western nations that arming Ukraine with weapons risks their own destruction

Russian parliament officials warned that nations arming Ukraine with more powerful weapons risk their own destruction, which would lead to “a global catastrophe.”

The message followed supporters of Ukraine who pledged billions in military aid to the country on Friday, including armored vehicles, air defense systems and other equipment.

This did not include the main battle tanks that Kyiv had previously requested.

State Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin said: “The supply of offensive weapons to the Kyiv regime would lead to a global catastrophe.”

“If Washington and NATO supply weapons that would be used to attack peaceful cities and make attempts to seize our territory as they threaten to do, it would trigger a retaliation with more powerful weapons.”

Commitments made on Friday were overshadowed by the failure of defense leaders to agree at an international meeting in Ramstein, Germany, on Ukraine’s urgent request for German-made Leopard 2 main battle tanks.

Germany is one of the main arms donors to Ukraine and has ordered a review of its Leopard 2 stocks in preparation for a possible green light.

Despite this, the government in Berlin has shown caution at every step in increasing its commitments to Ukraine, a hesitancy seen as ingrained in its history and political culture.

Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday he was not ruling out sending Leclerc battle tanks to Ukraine and had asked his defense minister to “work” on the idea.

Macron spoke during a press conference in Paris with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz as their countries marked the 60th anniversary of their post-World War Two friendship treaty.

In a joint statement, France and Germany pledged their “unwavering support” to Ukraine.

France would make its decision on the tank based on three criteria, Macron said: that sharing the equipment would not lead to an escalation of the conflict, that it would provide efficient and viable aid when training time was taken into account, and that it would not weaken France’s own armed forces.

Scholz did not respond when asked about the Leopard 2 tanks on Sunday, but stressed that his country had already made considerable military contributions to Ukraine. “The United States is doing a lot, Germany too,” he said.

“We have constantly expanded our deliveries with highly effective weapons that are already available today. And we have always coordinated all of these decisions closely with our important allies and friends.’

Germany’s attempts have drawn strong criticism, particularly from Poland and the Baltic states, countries on NATO’s eastern flank controlled by Moscow in the past and which feel especially threatened by Russia’s renewed territorial ambitions.

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said that if Germany did not agree to transfer Leopard tanks to Ukraine, his country was prepared to form a coalition of countries that would send theirs anyway.

“Almost a year had passed since the outbreak of the war,” Morawiecki said in an interview with the Polish state news agency PAP published on Sunday.

‘Evidence of the Russian army’s war crimes can be seen on TV and on YouTube. What else does Germany need to open its eyes and start acting in accordance with the potential of the German state?

“Above all, Berlin should not weaken or sabotage the activities of other countries.”

In Washington, two top lawmakers urged the United States on Sunday to send some of its Abrams tanks to Ukraine, seeking to overcome Germany’s reluctance to share its own, more suitable Leopard 2 tanks.

“If we were to announce that we were giving out one Abrams tank, just one, that would unleash” the flow of tanks out of Germany, Michael McCaul, the Republican chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told ABC’s This Week On Sunday.

“What I heard is that Germany is waiting for us to take the initiative.” Dmitry Medvedev, deputy head of Russia’s Security Council, said the meeting in Ramstein “left no doubt that our enemies will try to exhaust us or better destroy us”, adding that they “have enough weapons” to achieve the purpose.

Medvedev, the former Russian president, warned on his messaging app channel that Russia could seek to form a military alliance with enemies of the United States.

He did not name the nations he had in mind, but Russia has defense cooperation with Iran and Venezuela, an existing military alliance with Belarus and strong ties with North Korea.

Since invading Ukraine, Russia has also increased both the scope and number of its joint military exercises with China.

“In the event of a protracted conflict, a new military alliance will emerge that will include nations fed up with the Americans and a pack of their neutered dogs,” Medvedev said.

Ukraine is asking for more weapons as it anticipates that Russian forces will launch a new offensive in the spring.

Oleksii Danilov, secretary of the Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, warned that Russia could try to intensify its attacks in the south and east and cut off Western arms supply channels, while the conquest of Kyiv “remains the main dream.” of President Vladimir Putin. ‘fantasies,’ he said.

He described the Kremlin’s goal in the conflict as “total and utter genocide, a war of total destruction.”

“Moscow wants to completely destroy Ukraine as a historical phenomenon: its language, history, culture, bearers of the Ukrainian identity,” Danilov wrote in a column published by Ukrainska Pravda.

Among those calling for more weapons for Ukraine was former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who made a surprise trip to Ukraine on Sunday.

This is the time to redouble our efforts and give Ukrainians all the tools they need to get the job done. The sooner Putin fails, the better for Ukraine and for the entire world,” Johnson said in a statement.

Johnson was photographed in the town of Borodyanka, in the kyiv region.

He said that he had traveled to Ukraine at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelensky.