The Russian government threatens the United Kingdom, France, and Germany two days after the CIA chief, John Ratcliffe, went to Moscow to — according to the American press — try to dismantle their plans to attack the eastern European Union. “They are playing with fire. The consequences can be completely unpredictable, even for themselves,” said the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maria Zakharova, in a new attempt to prevent Europe from supporting Ukraine.
Moscow withdrew its ambassador in London a month ago and this Thursday challenged the United Kingdom by saying it could be its next target. “We have repeatedly warned that any British military facility or equipment located in Ukraine or elsewhere could be subject to retaliation in response to Ukrainian attacks with British weaponry on Russian territory,” Zakharova said after accusing London of “providing data for the independent assembly of Scalp/Storm Shadow cruise missiles to Ukrainian companies.”
The Ukrainian armed forces have launched a harsh bombing campaign inside Russia this year against its refineries and the logistics centers of the largest online distribution companies. These attacks have caused severe economic losses and a serious fuel shortage, to the point that, even being an oil power, it has to import fuel. Its economy is on the brink of stagflation, and half of the budget is taken up by military spending and debt interest.
Throughout its invasion of Ukraine, Russia has received Iranian and Chinese military technology as well as thousands of North Korean troops and projectiles. However, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs accuses these three countries, which it calls the “Eurotroika,” of “fueling and exacerbating the Ukrainian crisis.” “Germany dreams of creating the most powerful army in Europe, while France and the United Kingdom announce measures to transfer military technology to [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelensky,” Zakharova added.
Russian intelligence services published a list in April of European companies, including the Spanish group Oesía, that produce components used by Ukrainian drones and missiles. Moscow then threatened to make them its next targets.
The Kremlin has announced different red lines that have cast doubts on sending weapons to Kiev during these four and a half years of war. This Tuesday, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs also tried to intimidate European countries for planning military exercises in October and November on community territory bordering Ukraine, but far from Russia.
“These maneuvers represent another step [by Europe] towards greater involvement in a conflict they say they want to resolve and for which they demand a seat at the negotiating table,” Zakharova criticized.
Drone incursions and Russian sabotage in Europe also do not help diplomacy. The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced it will summon the chargé d’affaires of Romania in Moscow for consultations. A month earlier, Bucharest declared a Russian diplomat persona non grata due to repeated drone appearances in its territory.
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Moscow and Washington have confirmed that Ratcliffe and the head of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service, Sergey Naryshkin, held a meeting last Tuesday. According to sources from the newspaper The Wall Street Journal, the purpose of this unexpected trip was to warn the Kremlin not to attack any NATO member. According to the American media, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his circle are considering “a limited incursion” into the Baltic countries due to the stalemate of their offensive on Ukraine to force Europe to negotiate its support.
The Bloomberg agency reports that within Putin’s circle, the possibility of using a tactical nuclear weapon on the front to break the stalemate is gaining support.
No official source has revealed the content of this visit. The Kremlin assures that Ratcliffe did not meet with Putin despite the Russian leader suspending his entire agenda that day. For his part, the head of the SVR stated this Thursday that “there was nothing unusual” in his meeting with the CIA chief.
“Meetings between directors of intelligence agencies from different countries are a common practice,” Naryshkin declared. However, the last time the CIA chief visited Moscow was at the end of 2021 with a clear message: Washington knew Russia was going to invade Ukraine and demanded it cancel the attack. But Putin ordered the offensive on February 24, 2022.
The head of Russian foreign espionage assured that they only discussed intelligence matters. “These matters are quite delicate and special,” he limited himself to adding.
U.S. President Donald Trump stated that Tuesday’s meeting could have had a background of progress in peace negotiations, although these talks have been frozen since his failed summit with Putin in Alaska a year ago. “Something could come out of this. We are working hard to end that war,” Trump said about the CIA chief’s visit.
