Russia will retaliate against NATO countries that support long-range missile strikes against Russian territory from Ukraine, foreign intelligence chief Sergei Naryshkin said in an interview quoted by "Reuters" ;.
Naryshkin said that the changes announced by President Vladimir Putin to Russia's nuclear doctrine mean that it is virtually impossible for Russia to be defeated on the battlefield.
"Our enemies are forced to recognize that the Russian president's determination to firmly defend the country's fundamental interests by all available means is narrowing the room for maneuver for Washington and Brussels," he told National Defense magazine.
"Attempts by individual NATO allies to participate in securing possible long-range strikes with Western weapons deep into Russian territory will not go unpunished.
Ukraine marked 1,000 days since the start of the war by using US ATACMS missiles to strike Russian territory on Tuesday, taking advantage of permission from the outgoing administration of US President Joe Biden.
"The military-political elites of the West are increasingly aware of the seriousness of Russia's intentions and the need for greater restraint in its actions, so as not to engage in a direct military conflict with our country, which could lead to catastrophic consequences for them", said Naryshkin.
The US National Security Council has said it sees no reason to adjust the US nuclear posture. But Naryshkin said the changes in Russia, which Putin first announced in September, had been "taken cautiously" in the West.
"They understand that the adjustments announced by Vladimir Putin largely devalue US and NATO efforts to inflict a "strategic defeat" of our country, and the planned expansion of the list of grounds for the use of nuclear weapons practically excludes the possibility of victory over the Russian armed forces on the battlefield," he said, without providing evidence for his claims.