Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned of a “real” risk of nuclear war if the Western countries sent troops to fight in Ukraine two weeks ahead of the presidential election.“There has been talk about the possibility of sending NATO military contingents to Ukraine. But we remember the fate of those who once sent their contingents to our country’s territory. But now the consequences for possible interventionists will be far more tragic,” Putin said addressing parliament and other senior elites.“They must realise that we also have weapons that can hit targets on their territory. All this really threatens a conflict with the use of nuclear weapons and the destruction of civilisation. Don’t they get that?”Putin has previously spoken of the dangers of a direct confrontation between NATO and Russia, but his nuclear weapon warning on Thursday was one of his most explicit.Putin’s warning comes in the wake of French President Emmanuel Macron’s proposal on Monday of European NATO members sending ground troops to Ukraine. The United States, Germany, the United Kingdom and some other members rejected the suggestion.But Putin suggested that Western leaders remember the fate of those like Germany’s Adolf Hitler and France’s Napoleon Bonaparte, who unsuccessfully tried to invade his country in the past.The Russian leader previously pulled Moscow out of the arms control treaty with the US last year and previously said he was “not bluffing” when he stated he was ready to use nuclear weapons.Putin also said Russia was “ready” for dialogue with the US on “strategic stability” issues despite the invasion of Ukraine triggering the worst relations between Moscow and the West since the 1962 Cuban missile crisis.

Troops ‘confidently’ advancing

Putin praised Russian troops fighting in Ukraine as “courageous” warriors who would not back down. Most opposition candidates are either in jail or forced out of the country, making it easier for Putin to secure another six-year term in the March 15–17 vote. His most formidable challenger, jailed leader Alexey Navalny, in prison in mid-February.“I look at these courageous people, sometimes very young guys, and without any exaggeration I can say my heart fills with pride. They will not back down, will not fail and will not betray,” Putin said.His comments also come with the Kremlin revelling in its in Ukraine, an economy that has defied the devastating effects of sanctions, and signs of Western support for Ukraine becoming strained.On the war in Ukraine, Putin said the Russian army had increased its combat capabilities and is “confidently” advancing across the front line.“Today, when our homeland is defending its sovereignty and security and protecting the lives of our fellow countrymen in Donbas and Novorossiya [regions of Ukraine that Russia claims to have annexed], the decisive role in this righteous struggle belongs to our citizens, our unity, devotion to our native country and responsibility for its fate,” he said.Earlier on Thursday, Russia said it fought off an attempted landing by Ukrainian special forces on the Tendra Spit sandbar in the Black Sea, killing “up to 25” Ukrainian personnel.