The West, spearheaded by NATO, is preparing for war against Russia, the Kremlin strongman Vladimir Putin said today, addressing hundreds of graduates of military academies gathered in Moscow.

So far, members of the Alliance have limited themselves to supporting Ukraine, he said. Now, the Russian president added, they are openly discussing in the West that they are “preparing for war against us and increasing their military spending.” In this context, he claimed they are relying on false assertions about an alleged military threat from Russia.

Nearly 40% of the Russian budget is directed toward defence and security spending, as well as funding military operations in Ukraine.

Putin says NATO is preparing for war against his country

“We are ready to respond operationally and appropriately to any kind of threat,” the 73-year-old President of the Russian Federation stressed.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine, which began in February 2022, pushed European Union and NATO members to support Kyiv with extensive military and economic aid.

As the end of the war does not appear in sight, concern is increasing among several Western countries about the possibility of a conflict with Russia, leading them to raise defence spending.