ปูติน : "การคว่ำบาตรเท่ากับการประกาศสงคราม" Putin: "Sanctions equivalent to declaration of war"

Russia's invasion of Ukraine

Putin: "Sanctions equivalent to declaration of war"

Of:

Sebastian Comar Alm

Hans Österman

PUBLISHED: TODAY 00.08

UPDATED: LESS THAN 2 HOURS AGO

NEWS

Surrounded by Russian flight attendants, Vladimir Putin on Saturday made new threats to the outside world.

"The sanctions are equivalent to a declaration of war," he said.

He also questioned Ukraine's future existence as an independent state.

Russian President Vladimir Putin appeared on Russian state television on Saturday with some Russian flight attendants.

He reacted to Western sanctions against Russia after the invasion.

"These sanctions are equivalent to a declaration of war, but thankfully it has not led to that," Putin told Reuters.

On Friday, NATO and the United States rejected Ukraine's demands for a no-fly zone over Ukraine.

- The only way to really get to a flight-free zone is to send NATO planes there and shoot down Russian planes. It could lead to a full-scale war in Europe. President Biden has been clear that we will not end up in war with Russia, said US Secretary of State Antony Blinken

Warned for flight-free zone

Putin claimed, according to the CNN translation, that the demands for a no-fly zone are due to the fact that Russia has knocked out almost the entire Ukrainian air defense.

Without naming NATO by name, he warned of the consequences of a no-fly zone. He said it would be equated with "participation in the armed conflict".

- If the requirement is implemented, it will have colossal and catastrophic consequences not only for Europe but for the whole world.

Vladimir Putin gave a speech on Russian state television on Saturday in which he sent a warning to the outside world.

Vladimir Putin gave a speech on Russian state television on Saturday in which he sent a warning to the outside world.

Photo: Thibault Camus / AP

Putin also said that there was no question of a state of emergency in Russia, repeated previous statements that Ukraine should be demilitarized and "de-Nazified" and tried to shoot down information from the West that the invasion was slow.

- Our army will complete all missions. I do not hesitate at all. Everything is going according to plan, he said according to the BBC's translation.

Questioned the existence of Ukraine

Putin also threatened Zelensky that Ukraine could cease to exist as an independent state, an escalation of previous statements:

- The current leadership must understand that if they continue to do what they do, the future of Ukrainian state formation is in question. And if that happens, it's entirely up to them.

Without naming NATO by name, Putin warned of the consequences of a no-fly zone. In Paris, people demonstrated against the Russian invasion.

Without naming NATO by name, Putin warned of the consequences of a no-fly zone. In Paris, people demonstrated against the Russian invasion.

Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin's longtime spokesman, later called the Western sanctions "economic foul play" and said Moscow would respond. No further explanation of how was ever given.

- The world is too big for Europe and the USA to isolate a country, especially a country as big as Russia. There are many more countries in the world, Peskov said according to Sky News.