Moscow, Oct 1 (EFE).- Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered measures to strengthen the security of the Kaliningrad region amid Moscow’s warnings that NATO could seek to isolate the Russian exclave, Kremlin adviser Nikolay Patrushev said Thursday.
“We discussed the security of the Kaliningrad region. The president gave all the necessary orders to the relevant authorities, and they are thoroughly dealing with this matter,” Patrushev, who also heads the Russian Navy, said during a meeting with Kaliningrad Governor Alexey Besprozvannikh, according to Russia’s state-run TASS news agency.
Patrushev said NATO countries “will not turn their threats into actions. They will remain words.”
“If they just try to do something, there will be a corresponding and immediate response. We have said this on several occasions,” he warned. “If they undertake any kind of aggressive action, they will regret it.”
A day earlier, NATO confirmed that Moscow had sent the alliance a message warning that Russia could use military force, including nuclear weapons, if it considered its territory under threat.
NATO responded by denouncing what it called Russia’s “use of military rhetoric.”
“NATO is a defensive alliance, and none of our activities or exercises pose a risk to any part of Russia,” alliance spokesperson Allison Hart said in a statement.
Responding to those remarks, Patrushev rejected NATO’s characterization of itself as a defensive alliance.
“In reality, it is not a defensive alliance at all, but an extremely aggressive bloc, which behaves aggressively and whose statements are aggressive,” he said.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, meanwhile, said Russia was “making its position clear in advance regarding the blatant militarization of Europe.”
“For us, Kaliningrad is an inherent part of Russia, and any attempt to put pressure on this region is unacceptable,” Peskov said.
“It is necessary to moderate the rhetoric regarding this. Europe needs to understand that this territory is truly an integral part of Russia, which will never allow anyone to encroach upon it,” he added, warning that “belligerent rhetoric” should not prevail, as he said it currently does.
On Wednesday, the Russian Embassy in Ireland warned that NATO was preparing an air and sea blockade of Kaliningrad, saying the Russian government would seek to prevent such a move “with all the weapons at its disposal.”
The embassy described the alleged preparations as “a matter of great concern for Russia,” adding that “the irresponsible and short-sighted European political elite is playing a dangerous game.”
“Russia will be prepared to use its entire arsenal, including nuclear weapons, to defend its territory if NATO countries attempt to isolate the Kaliningrad region from the rest of the country,” the embassy said.
It also did not rule out “pre-emptive strikes against decision-making centers in the Alliance countries at an early stage of the conflict.” EFE
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