A deployment of European troops in Ukraine would mean “a war against Russia,” Vladimir Putin claims

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned on Friday that any deployment of European troops in Ukraine would amount to “a war against Russia,” while claiming that Moscow neither threatens nor intends to threaten European countries. The statement was made in New Delhi, where the Kremlin leader is attending a BRICS summit.

Putin was reacting to discussions about the possibility of sending European troops to Ukrainian territory. “This means a war against Russia,” he said, according to Russian news agencies cited by Le Figaro.

At the same time, the Russian president stated that Russia has no reason to enter into a conflict with Europe and accused European leaders of frightening their populations with an imaginary threat from Moscow. Putin claimed that this threat “does not exist and has never existed.”