March 18, 2024 (EIRNS)—In remarks to reporters last night, following confirmation of his election victory, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that a direct conflict between Russia and the U.S.-led NATO military alliance would mean the planet was one step away from World War Three, a scenario hardly anybody wants. Putin was responding to a question from Reuters, regarding French President Emmanuel Macron’s Feb. 26 comments about not ruling out the deployment of NATO ground troops in Ukraine in the future. In response, Putin said: “Everything is possible in the modern world.”
“It is clear to everyone, that this will be one step away from a full-scale World War Three. I think hardly anyone is interested in this,” Putin said further. He added, though, that NATO military personnel were present already in Ukraine, saying that Russia had picked up both English and French being spoken on the battlefield. “There is nothing good in this, first of all for them, because they are dying there and in large numbers,” he said.
Putin said he wished Macron would stop seeking to aggravate the war in Ukraine, but rather play a role in finding peace: “It seems that France could play a role. All is not lost yet.”
