President Vladimir Putin said if Ukraine entered into the North Atlantic
Treaty Organization (NATO) and attempted to retake Crimea, war with Russia
could break out.
Russia's number one warning was delivered during a press conference with
French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday.
Putin said if Russia went to war with NATO, it would also mean war with
France because Paris is also part of the alliance led by the United States
(US). The warning came as Putin answered a question from a French
journalist.
“You want France against Russia? That's what will happen if Ukraine joins
NATO and tries to implement its country's policy of reintegrating Crimea by
force," Putin said.
Kiev, Putin continued, has designated Russia as an enemy and asserted that
Crimea belongs to Ukraine. After the 2014 coup in Kiev, the Crimean
peninsula voted in a referendum to leave Ukraine and rejoin Russia.
However, Ukraine and most NATO countries refuse to recognize it. They assume
what happened was Russia annexing or annexing Crimea.
"You ask me if Russia wants to go to war with NATO – let me ask you, does
NATO want to go to war with Russia?" said Putin, as quoted by Russia Today
The Russian president said an attack by Ukraine in Crimea would trigger
Article 5 of NATO's founding treaty, pulling all of Europe into war with
Russia.
“Russia is one of the world's leading atomic powers. There will be no
winners," Putin told reporters. "Macron doesn't want that kind of result.
Neither do I."
The Russian president pointed out that Kyiv has used force to resolve the
crisis in the Donbass–two eastern regions; Donetsk and Lugansk, twice.
"Where's our guarantee that they won't try again?" asked Putin.
Macron visited Moscow on Monday to discuss the situation in Ukraine as well
as on European security and bilateral relations with Russia.
He is scheduled to visit Kyiv on Tuesday (8/2/2022) for talks with Ukrainian
President Volodymyr Zelensky.
