Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned the United States on Tuesday that if the war in Ukraine escalates into a wider military conflict, the possibility of World War III would not be limited to European battlefields.
Answering questions from reporters two and a half years after Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion, Lavrov was asked to comment on a recent report in the Guardian that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wants to use long-range Storm Shadow missiles to “threaten Moscow and St. Petersburg” to force Russia to the negotiating table.
The British newspaper explains: “The Storm Shadow missile was developed primarily through Anglo-French cooperation and is manufactured by MBDA, a European joint venture with an Italian partner. But some of its components are supplied by the US, so the White House would also have to agree to its use in Russia – something it has so far refused to do, fearing an escalation of conflict.”
“This is blackmail and an attempt to make it look like the West is trying to avoid excessive escalation. In reality, the West is malicious. Avoiding escalation is not what the West wants. In simple terms, they are just picking a fight,” Lavrov said.
The longtime Russian minister also referred to White House national security and communications adviser John Kirby's comments on Friday and his various comments, saying: “We have been watching the risk of escalating tensions since the beginning of this conflict, and that will not change. We remain concerned that aggression in Ukraine could lead to escalating tensions on the European continent.”
“For Americans, talk of World War III is something that will only affect Europe and if it happens, we can only pray to God. This idea is very suggestive as it reflects the thinking of US planners and geopolitical experts who believe that it is enough to just sit back and do nothing. In this situation, I think it is important to understand that the United States has its own doctrine, including one that provides for the use of nuclear weapons. Efforts are underway to update it,” Lavrov said.
“Moreover, these Americans are well aware of the provisions of this treaty. This fact emerges from their Freudian slip of the tongue that it would be bad if World War III were to break out because they don't want Europe to suffer,” he continued. “This is the essence of the American mindset. They think like masters sitting somewhere overseas, believing themselves to be completely safe and secure, and that not only Ukrainians, but also Europeans are willing to do their dirty work and die for them.”
“We have long heard speculation that Ukraine might be allowed to use not only Storm Shadow missiles, but also long-range missiles made in the United States,” the minister noted. “All we can do now is to reaffirm that playing with fire is dangerous for the men and women in charge of nuclear weapons in Western countries, but they are playing with fire as if they have no sense of being adults.”
Nine countries possess nuclear weapons, but the United States and Russia together hold about 90% of the world's nuclear arsenal. Since the Kremlin began its invasion in February 2022, Putin, other Russian officials and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg have stoked fears that nuclear weapons will be used as the U.S. and Europe supply weapons to Ukrainian forces.
Mikhail Sheremet, a member of the Russian parliament who represents Crimea, a peninsula that Russia invaded and annexed from Ukraine a decade ago, told TASS on Tuesday that the United States should consider the consequences of giving long-range cruise missiles to the Ukrainian military.
“The ball is now in the US's hands, but it is clearly becoming more difficult to play the game because the US needs to take into account realities, carefully weigh everything and then hand the ball over to Ukraine, which is trying to drag the US and Europe into World War III,” Sheremet told RIA Novosti.
“The United States will undoubtedly try to carry out its far-reaching attack plan of providing cruise missiles to the Kiev regime, and they will probably try to do it through Europe, which they control,” he added. “But either way, the cost of this decision will be too high for them, and they will lose their statehood.”
Earlier this month, Ukraine attacked Russia's Kursk region, “securing swaths of territory in the biggest foreign attack on Russia since World War III,” Reuters reported on Tuesday. The news agency detailed:
Russia says Western weapons, including British tanks and US rocket systems, were used in the attack on Kursk in Ukraine. Kiev has confirmed that it used US Hymers missiles to destroy a bridge in Kursk.
Washington has said it was not informed of Ukrainian plans ahead of the surprise invasion of Kursk, and the United States has also said it had no involvement in the operation.
Several Russian government officials have made it clear they do not believe the U.S. allegations.
Still, recent interviews by Anatole Lieven of the Quincy Institute for Responsible National Strategy with “members of the Russian establishment, including former diplomats, think tank members, academics, businessmen, and parts of the general public,” suggest that the majority of them want “an early ceasefire roughly along current battle lines.”
“Most of my conversations took place before Ukraine invaded Russia's Kursk Oblast. But as far as I understand, this Ukrainian success has not changed Russia's fundamental calculations or views,” Lieven wrote in Foreign Policy magazine on Tuesday.
“Of course, ultimately Russia's negotiating position will be determined by President Putin. I haven't spoken to him,” he acknowledged. “No one I spoke to in Moscow claimed to know for sure what Putin is thinking. But they all agreed that Putin made terrible mistakes at the start of the war, but he is a pragmatist who accepts military advice and is able to recognize military realities.”
