Putin vows to prevent Ukraine from acquiring nuclear weapons

Russian President Vladimir Putin has asserted that Russia will not permit Ukraine to obtain nuclear weapons.

Putin also addressed the recent strike by a Russian "Oreshnik" missile on the Ukrainian enterprise "Yuzhmash" in Dnipro, Caliber.Az reports per Russian media.

He described the missile’s warhead as capable of reaching temperatures up to 4,000 degrees Celsius, with a kinetic impact comparable in power to that of a meteor strike.

“As for the missile we used, it employed powerful warhead elements that heat up to 4,000 degrees. The kinetic impact is immense, akin to a meteorite falling,” he explained.

“We know from history where meteorites have fallen and what consequences they’ve had. Sometimes, it has been enough to create entire lakes.”

Moreover, Putin mentioned that Russia had been struck twice by ATACMS missiles since the deployment of the "Oreshnik." Though the damage was minimal, he confirmed that some impact had been sustained.

When asked about the possibility of targeting decision-making centres in Ukraine, including with "Oreshnik" missiles, Putin stated, “Anything is possible today. There was a joke during Soviet times about weather forecasts: ‘The forecast is that anything can happen today.’”

The comments were made during a press conference, as tensions between Russia and Ukraine continue to escalate.

By Aghakazim Guliyev