Putin warns Russia-NATO conflict just one step from World War Three

It is no secret that fighters from NATO states are present on the ground in Ukraine, Putin said, noting that those service members are facing extremely grim prospects.

Speaking to his supporters and reporters after his landslide presidential election victory, Putin stressed that Moscow was well aware of the US-led military bloc’s push to deploy troops in Ukraine.

“We hear both French and English speech there. There is nothing good in this, first of all for them, because they die there and in large numbers,” he added.

He also weighed in on a potential full-scale conflict between NATO and Russia, warning that it could not be ruled out.

“Anything is possible in the modern world… But everyone knows that this would be one step shy of a full-scale World War II. I don’t think that anyone is interested in that.”

French President Emmanuel Macron suggested last month that the West “cannot exclude” the possibility of sending soldiers to aid Ukraine. Later, he also described Russia as an “adversary”, insisting, however, that Paris is not “waging war on” Moscow.

Commenting on Macron’s remarks, Putin noted that while NATO troops in Ukraine are expected to act as an auxiliary force, helping Kiev train its military, “this is not much different from what mercenaries are doing there now”. Russia, he added, wants France not to escalate the conflict but to help find a peaceful solution to hostilities.

In order to protect its people from Ukrainian strikes, Russia could “at some point” set up a buffer zone in Kiev-controlled territories, Putin told supporters and journalists.

Ukraine routinely launches artillery and drone strikes on Russian border regions, with many attacks targeting residential blocks, resulting in numerous civilian deaths.