Russia promises to respond to increased involvement of Western powers in Ukraine.
Putin stated that he would launch further attacks if Ukraine attacks Russian territory.
247 - Russia will respond to the growing involvement of Western powers in the conflict in Ukraine, although direct war with NATO is not in Moscow's interest, Russia's deputy foreign minister said on Tuesday (11), after Washington promised more military aid to Kiev, Reuters reports.
Ukraine said on Monday it needs to strengthen its air defenses after Russia's biggest air strikes on cities since the start of the war, in retaliation for what Moscow called a Ukrainian attack on a strategic bridge in Crimea.
US President Joe Biden has pledged to provide advanced air defense systems. Previously, on September 27, the Pentagon said it would begin delivering the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System within the next two months.
Biden and the leaders of the Group of Seven will hold a virtual meeting on Tuesday to discuss their commitment to supporting Ukraine, the White House said.
"We warned them and hoped they would realize the danger of an uncontrolled escalation in Washington and other Western capitals," Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted as saying by the RIA news agency on Tuesday.
Russian missiles struck targets across Ukraine on Monday morning, killing 19 people and wounding 105, emergency services officials said, as they veered into intersections, parks, and tourist sites. Around 301 settlements in the Kyiv, Lviv, Sumy, Ternopil, and Khmelnytskyi regions remained without electricity on Tuesday morning.
Ukrainian authorities reported more attacks on Tuesday, including one in the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia that killed at least one person.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said he ordered "massive" long-range strikes after accusing Ukraine of attacking the bridge linking Russia to annexed Crimea on Saturday.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke with Biden on Monday and wrote on Telegram that air defense was the "number 1 priority in our defense cooperation."
"We will do everything to strengthen our armed forces," he said in a speech on Monday. "We will make the battlefield more painful for the enemy."
The Russian ambassador to the United States, Anatoly Antonov, said that more Western aid to Ukraine increases the risk of a wider war.
"Such assistance, in addition to providing intelligence, instructors and combat guidelines to Kiev, leads to further escalation and increases the risks of a confrontation between Russia and NATO," Antonov told the media.
Russia's airstrikes came three days after an explosion damaged the bridge it built after seizing Crimea in 2014. Russia blamed Ukraine and called the deadly explosion "terrorism."
"Leaving these acts unanswered is simply impossible," Putin said, alleging other unspecified attacks on Russian energy infrastructure. He threatened further attacks if Ukraine strikes Russian territory.
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