Vladimir Putin today warned the West that a direct conflict between Russia and NATO would push the planet to the brink of World War Three. The Russian President, who just secured another six-year term in office after romping to an overwhelming victory in highly criticized elections this weekend, made the unsettling comments in response to a statement by his French counterpart last week. Macron told French outlet Le Parisien on Friday that Western ground operations in Ukraine might be necessary 'at some point' - just days after he declared his nation 'ready' to use nuclear weapons in an uncharacteristically brash retort to Russian nuclear saber-rattling.

Asked about Macron's remarks and the risks of a conflict between Russia and NATO, Putin quipped: 'everything is possible in the modern world.' 'It is clear to everyone, that this will be one step away from a full-scale World War Three... I think hardly anyone is interested in this,' Putin told reporters after winning the biggest-ever landslide in post-Soviet Russian history. Putin added that NATO military personnel were present already in Ukraine, saying that Russia had picked up both English and French being spoken on the battlefield. 'There is nothing good in this, first of all for them, because they are dying there and in large numbers,' he said.

The Russian President went on to say he wished Macron would stop seeking to aggravate the war in Ukraine but to play a role in finding peace. 'It seems that France could play a role. All is not lost yet. 'I've been saying it over and over again and I'll say it again. We are for peace talks, but not just because the enemy is running out of bullets,' Putin said. 'If they really, seriously, want to build peaceful, good-neighborly relations between the two states in the long term, and not simply take a break for rearmament for 1.5-2 years.'

Putin also dismissed US and Western criticism of the Russian presidential election, which the White House said was not free and fair, retorting that US elections were also undemocratic and criticizing the use of state power against Donald Trump. 'The whole world is laughing at what is happening there,' Putin said of the United States. 'It is just a catastrophe - it is not democracy - what on earth is it?' Basking in the glory of yet another election win, the Russian President hailed his citizens' indication of 'trust' and 'hope' in him - despite the fact they had no real choice. 'Of course, we have lots of tasks ahead. But I want to make it clear for everyone: When we were consolidated, no one has ever managed to frighten us, to suppress our will and our self-conscience.

They failed in the past and they will fail in the future,' Putin said at a meeting with volunteers after polls closed. According to Russia's Central Election Commission, Putin had some 87% of the vote with over 99% of precincts counted early this morning. But British Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron was quick to admonish Putin and the widely criticized elections this morning. “These Russian elections starkly underline the depth of repression under President Putin’s regime... Putin removes his political opponents, controls the media, and then crowns himself the winner - this is not democracy,' his statement read.

Macron for half a decade sought to cultivate a partnership with Russia but has now become an implacable foe of the Kremlin, warning that Putin poses a threat not just to Ukraine but the security of all Europeans. Weeks after taking office in 2017, Macron signaled his intentions towards Russia by rolling out the red carpet for Putin at a summit in the former royal residence of the Versailles Palace. In 2019, the Russian leader was invited to the French president's Mediterranean summer residence where Macron addressed Putin as 'dear Vladimir' and famously declared Russia was part of a Europe that extended from 'Lisbon to Vladivostok'.

Even after Putin ordered Russian tanks into Ukraine in the February 2022 invasion, Macron sought to keep up a channel of dialogue with the Russian leader, speaking to him on multiple occasions until September of that year and insisting on the need 'not to humiliate Russia'. But Macron openly acknowledges his position has now undergone a major turnaround, citing a 'hardening' in Russia's stance at home and abroad, which has seen the prison death of opposition figure Alexei Navalny that supporters have blamed on the Kremlin, as well as a flurry of cyberattacks and disinformation campaigns against countries including France.

Macron's refusal to rule out putting troops on the ground in Ukraine prompted a stern response from Berlin and other European partners. However, despite later asserting that Western allies would not take the initiative, the French president has not recanted from his position. 'Maybe at some point - I don't want it, I won't take the initiative - we will have to have operations on the ground, whatever they may be, to counter the Russian forces,' Macron told newspaper Le Parisien in an interview conducted on Friday. 'France's strength is that we can do it'.

Macron met his German and Polish counterparts in Berlin on Friday, in a show of solidarity behind Kyiv. After the meeting, Macron said the three countries of the so-called Weimar Triangle were 'united' in their aim to 'never let Russia win and to support the Ukrainian people until the end'. Scholz last month disputed Macron's claim that NATO members are considering the deployment of ground troops to Ukraine in an attempt to ease anxiety throughout Europe. On Thursday, Macron said that a Russian victory in Ukraine 'would reduce Europe's credibility to zero' and refused to rule out deploying troops. The French leader spoke on French TV about how to further support Ukraine, after drawing pushback from European leaders last month when he said sending Western ground troops shouldn't be ruled out.

He also said that the continent's security was 'at stake' in the conflict which he said is 'existential for our Europe and for France'. Macron later added in a video on social media that Moldova, Romania and Poland could be under immediate threat if Ukraine lost the war. Speaking on Tuesday at the National Assembly, French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said Macron's message has been clear and added: 'We will not abandon Ukraine and we are not ruling out any option on principle.' France is not 'waging war against Russia' and 'rejects any escalation,' Attal said, and he added: 'We don't set ourselves limits against Russia, which doesn't set any (limits) for itself.' Read the full story:https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13208841/Putin-warns-West-conflict-Russia-NATO-World-War-3.html?ito=msngallery

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