NATO installations threatening Russia to be targets for Russian missile strikes - Putin
MOSCOW. Nov 21 (Interfax) - Russia is worried about NATO expansion and will take counter-measures, in particular by making installations which threaten the country the targets for its missile strikes, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.
"When a country becomes a NATO member, it is already very difficult for it to resist pressure from such a large leading NATO country such as the U.S., and anything could easily appear there: a counter-missile defense system and new bases, and new attack systems, if need be," Putin said in U.S. director Oliver Stone's "Ukraine on fire" film aired on the REN TV channel.
"In view of this, we must take counter-measures, i.e. strike with our missile systems those installations that in our view are beginning to threaten us. The situation is straining," he said.
During the interview, Putin was asked what a NATO or U.S. seizure of the military base in Sevastopol might lead to. The consequences of this would be very grave, and this is not about the base proper, the president said.
"Why is our reaction to NATO expansion so acute? We are concerned by the decision-making practice," he said.
The president said he does not always understand the logic of the NATO countries.
"Sometimes the impression is that, in order to preserve obedience and impose discipline within its own Atlantic camp, it needs an external enemy. For all the fears, Iran does not really fit the bill," he said.