Moscow [Russia], June 24: The West, fronted by NATO, is actively preparing for war against Russia, President Vladimir Putin told hundreds of his country's newest army officers on Tuesday.
The members of the Western alliance have so far limited themselves to supporting Ukraine, Putin told graduates of Russian military academies gathered in the Kremlin in Moscow.
Now, he said, there is open talk in the West "that they are preparing for a war against us and increasing their military and offensive budgets."
To justify this militarization, NATO and EU states are using false claims about a military threat from Russia, Putin said in an official transcript of his speech.
Nearly 40% of Russia's budget expenditures currently go toward the military, armaments and security.
However, according to Putin, Moscow advocates a multipolar system of international relations that guarantees the military security of every state.
"At the same time, we are prepared to respond operationally and appropriately to all external and internal threats," the 73-year-old leader warned.
Putin ordered a full-scale military invasion of neighbouring Ukraine in February 2022, prompting the EU and NATO states to respond with extensive military, financial and political support for Kiev.
With no end of the war in sight, the same countries have become increasingly concerned about their own security vulnerabilities and are now increasing their military capabilities in case of conflict.
At a separate meeting with government officials, Putin accused Ukraine of targeting civilian sites inside Russia because of what he described as a deteriorating situation on the battlefield.
Ukraine is attacking civilian infrastructure as it loses territory and faces setbacks at the front, Putin claimed, according to a Kremlin statement.
He instructed authorities to take measures to minimize the impact of Ukrainian attacks.
Ukraine has increasingly targeted Russia's oil industry and military-related infrastructure in an effort to disrupt fuel supplies to Russian forces and reduce energy revenues that help finance Moscow's war effort.
The situation has become particularly tense in Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014 and used by Moscow as a key military hub. Ukrainian Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov has said recently Ukraine aims to isolate Crimea through drone attacks.
Private motorists in Crimea can no longer purchase petrol, while authorities have introduced schedules for rolling power outages.
In the western Russian city of Voronezh, home to more than 1 million people, a Ukrainian cruise missile attack damaged an arms factory on Monday.
Source: Qatar Tribune
