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Russia may point missiles at Europe

Vladimir Radyuhin

MOSCOW: American plans to deploy missile defences in Europe would force Russia to point its missiles at European targets and could trigger a nuclear war, Russia's President Vladimir Putin has said.

Speaking to reporters from the G8 countries ahead of the group's summit later this week, the Russian leader said Russia would take "retaliatory steps" if the U.S. pushes ahead with the deployment of anti-missile systems in Poland and the Czech Republic. Asked if Europe was not returning to the time when Soviet nuclear missiles were pointed at European cities and targets, Mr. Putin said: "Yes, of course, we are returning to that time. It is self-evident that if a part of the strategic nuclear potential of the United States appears in Europe and, in the opinion of our military specialists, will threaten us, then we will have to take appropriate steps in response".

A transcript of the interview was released by the Kremlin on Monday.

"What kind of steps? We will have to have new targets in Europe," he said, adding that Europe could be targeted with "ballistic or cruise missiles or maybe a completely new system."

The deployment of the U.S. missile shield heightens the risk of a nuclear conflict, Mr. Putin said.

"This system of missile defence on one side and the absence of this system on the other... increases the possibility of unleashing a nuclear conflict," he said.

"The strategic balance in the world is being upset and in order to restore this balance without creating an anti-missile defence on our territory we will be creating a system of countering that anti-missile system, which is what we are doing now."

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