Speaking at an international economic forum in St. Petersburg, the Russian president suggested that the Kremlin could supply similar weapons to countries hostile to Western nations.
Putin criticized Germany's decision to allow the use of its supplied weapons in attacks on Russian territory, calling it a "dangerous step" and hinting at direct involvement in the war against Russia. "We reserve the right to act in the same way," Putin stated.
The Russian leader's comments follow reports that Ukraine has used U.S. weapons to strike Russian territory, with authorization from the United States under recently approved guidelines by President Joe Biden. These guidelines permit the use of U.S. weapons for the limited purpose of defending Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, besieged by Russian forces.
Putin also stated that Ukraine's battlefield losses are significantly higher than Russia's, claiming, that the "attempted mobilization in Ukraine is related to their battlefield losses, which are very high [...] According to our calculations, Ukraine is losing about 50,000 people a month."
According to US government data, since the beginning of the invasion, Russian forces suffered as many as 120,000 deaths and 170,000 to 180,000 injured, while Ukraine lost up to 70,000 soldiers and 100,000 to 120,000 wounded.
In a separate comment, Putin addressed the recent legal troubles of former U.S. President Donald Trump.
Referring to Trump's conviction on 34 felony counts related to falsifying business accounts, Putin said that "Americans are burning from the inside, their country, their political system. It's obvious to the whole world that dealing with Trump, especially in court, over allegations of events from years ago, without direct evidence, is simply using the justice system for internal political struggle."
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Source: PAP