Putin warns Russia could provide others with long-range weapons to strike Western targets

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned Germany on Wednesday that Ukraine's use of its weapons to strike targets in Russia would be a “dangerous step” and said Moscow could provide long-range weapons to others to strike Western targets.

Such action by the West would further undermine international security and could lead to “very serious problems”, he said.

“This would mark their direct involvement in the war against the Russian Federation, and we reserve the right to act in the same way,” Putin added.

He said Germany's action could ruin relations between Berlin and Moscow.

Germany recently joined the United States in allowing Ukraine to strike certain targets on Russian soil with the long-range weapons it supplies to kyiv. Deliveries of German tanks to Ukraine came as a shock to many Russians, Putin said.

“Now if they use missiles to hit facilities on Russian territory, it will completely ruin Russian-German relations,” he said.

On Wednesday, a Western official and a U.S. senator said Ukraine used U.S. weapons to strike in Russia under President Biden's newly approved leadership. It authorizes the use of American weapons for the sole purpose of defending Kharkiv, Ukraine's second largest city, located near the Russian border. The official was not authorized to comment publicly on the matter and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Answering questions from international journalists for the first time since his inauguration last month for a fifth term, Putin also said nothing would change in terms of Russian-US relations whether Biden or Donald Trump wins November's US presidential election .

“We will work with any president elected by the American people,” Putin said on the sidelines of the International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg.

“I absolutely and sincerely say that I would not say that we think that after the election anything is going to change on the Russian path in American politics,” he added. ” We do not think so. We don't think anything that bad will happen.

Putin also said Trump's felony conviction in his secret trial last week was the result of “using the justice system as part of the internal political struggle.”

The Russian leader faced questions on a wide range of topics from senior officials at international news agencies, including the Associated Press, although the war in Ukraine dominated the session.

Asked about the number of Russian military losses in more than two years of fighting, Putin said no country would reveal this information during hostilities, but claimed without providing evidence that Ukraine's losses were five times higher than those of Russia.

He also claimed that Ukraine had more than 1,300 Russian troops in captivity, while more than 6,400 Ukrainian troops were detained in Russia. The claims could not be independently verified.

Putin has used the annual forum as a showcase to tout Russia's development and seek investors. While meetings with journalists were part of previous sessions, he has not taken questions from Western journalists at the St. Petersburg event since his troops invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

Last year, journalists from countries that Russia considers hostile – including the United States, the United Kingdom and European Union countries – were not invited, and Western officials and investors were also avoided the session after broad sanctions were imposed on Moscow over Ukraine.

Jordan and Morris write for the Associated Press. AP writer Aamer Madhani in Washington contributed to this report.