Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov warned on Monday that the United States could face severe repercussions for authorizing Ukraine to utilize American weapons to target locations within Russian territory. Ryabkov’s statement came in response to reports from U.S. officials last Friday that President Joe Biden had given Ukraine the green light to strike Russian positions with U.S.-supplied weapons in specific circumstances.
Specifically, Ukraine was granted permission to target positions in Russia that were responsible for launching destructive artillery and missile attacks on the border city of Kharkiv. In addition to the U.S., Germany also permitted Ukraine to use its weapons to defend Kharkiv against Russian targets. The Netherlands, Finland, and Poland voiced their support for Ukraine’s right to self-defense against attacks originating from Russian territory, a sentiment echoed by NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg.
“I would like to warn American leaders against miscalculations that could have fatal consequences. For unknown reasons, they underestimate the seriousness of the rebuff they may receive,” Ryabkov said. He then continued, telling U.S. officials to “spend some of their time – which they apparently spend on some kind of video games, judging by the lightness of their approach – on studying what was said in detail by Putin.”
Ryabkov emphasized that Russian President Vladimir Putin has delivered a “highly important caution, and it should be regarded with the highest level of seriousness.” Putin stated on Tuesday that the “continuous escalation” by Western countries backing Ukraine, which includes permitting Ukraine to utilize their weapons against Russian targets, may “result in grave repercussions.”
“If these serious consequences occur in Europe, how will the United States behave, bearing in mind our parity in the field of strategic weapons? It’s hard to say. Do they want a global conflict?” Putin asked rhetorically.
Putin emphasized the importance of European countries with “small territory and dense populations” being cautious not to provoke Russia, to ensure that his references to nuclear war were not overlooked. Ryabkov mentioned on Monday that Russian early-warning radar systems were attacked by Ukrainian forces, warning that Moscow’s reaction could be “asymmetrical.”
“This is not the first time that the regime in Kyiv has tried to disrupt the normal functioning of important parts of our military organization, in particular those related to the strategic sphere. These intentions will be stopped by us. Responses may be asymmetrical,” he said.
On Monday, officials from the Russian Defense Ministry and military bloggers made claims that Ukraine had launched a U.S.-made M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) towards targets in Belgorod, a Russian city located approximately 25 miles north of the Ukrainian border. The governor of the Belgorod region reported that two city officials lost their lives in the attack, while three others, along with six civilians, sustained injuries.
Furthermore, Ukrainian media also reported on Monday that a HIMARS had been fired into Belgorod, but the intended target was a Russian S-300/400 air defense system. A group of Russian independent journalists known as ASTRA shared a post on Telegram, stating that a Russian Defense Ministry base in the Korocha district of Belgorod had been “attacked” and that “several pieces of military equipment were destroyed.”