UNITED NATIONS (New York). Sept 13 (Interfax) - Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya on Friday warned the UN Security Council of the repercussions of possibly lifting restrictions for Kiev on using Western long-range weapons for strikes on Russian territory.
"If the decision to lift the restrictions has actually been taken or is going to be taken, it will mean that from now, NATO countries begin a direct war against Russia. In this case, of course, we will be forced to make appropriate decisions with all the effects that result from them for the Western aggressors," Nebenzya said at a session.
"NATO will become a direct party to military action against a nuclear power. I think it is not necessary to explain what consequences this may have," he said.
The use of long-range Western weapons is possible only if there is access to intelligence from U.S. and EU satellites, he said. "Ukraine itself is far from having such a capability. Only NATO soldiers can preprogram flight missions for missile systems. Essentially, this is not about permitting Kiev to carry out strikes with long-range weapons throughout Russian territory, but about the West deciding for itself on what targets to strike," he said.
In Russia's view, "the decision to lift restrictions on using long-range weapons to strike Russia was made in the West a long time ago," he went on to say. "And now, we are simply watching the final stage of its legitimization in the eyes of public opinion, in the information field," Nebenzya said.