Russia-NATO Conflict "Step Away" From World War III: Putin After Winning Polls

Any direct conflict between Russia and the NATO would leave the world "one step away" from a full-scale World War III, warned Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday after winning the Presidential Elections, reported TASS.

Putin, however, said that it is "unlikely" that anyone is interested in this conflict between Russia and the US-led NATO alliance.

According to TASS, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine has caused the most significant tension in Moscow's relationship with the Western countries since the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. Putin has often emphasized the risks of nuclear war but stated that he has never found it necessary to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine.

Speaking to journalists, Putin stated that Russia and NATO can engage in a direct confrontation in the future, even though there is no desire for this outcome.

"I think that everything is possible in the modern world. But... it will be one step away from a full-scale third world war. I think it's unlikely Is anyone interested in this?" TASS quotes Putin as saying.

Before the elections that took place in Russia from March 15 to 17, Ukraine had intensified its assaults on Russia.

Putin stated that there are approximately 5 thousand individuals from Kyiv being deployed to the border zone.

The Russian Volunteer Corps (recognised as a terrorist organization in the Russian Federation) and similar groups include 2.5 thousand, who are now, "like meat... thrown into assaults," in the latest attacks these "so so-called volunteers" lost approximately 800 people, according to TASS.

After winning the Russian Presidential elections by a large margin, Putin announced that he had reached an agreement for a prisoner exchange that would have included Alexei Navalny, the opposition leader who tragically passed away in a prison in the Arctic in February.

Describing Navalny's death as a 'tragic occurrence', Putin mentioned that there have been other instances of individuals dying while in prison.

During his speech at his campaign headquarters on Sunday, Putin stated, "As for Mr. Navalny..yes, he passed away. It is always a sad event. And there were other cases when people in prisons passed away. Didn't this happen in the United States? It did, and not once."

Putin added that he was informed about a suggestion to swap Navalny for detainees held in Western countries a few days before the death of the Opposition leader in jail. Alexei Navalny, the imprisoned Russian opposition leader, passed away on February 16th.

According to a report from Russia-based TASS, Putin emerged as the winner of the presidential elections with 87.17 per cent of the votes. This data is based on the processing of 70 per cent of the electoral protocols by the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation.

Nikolai Kharitonov, the candidate from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, came in second place with 4.1 per cent of the votes, while Vladislav Davankov, the candidate from the New People Party, secured the third spot with 4.8 per cent of the votes.

Leonid Slutsky, the candidate from Russia's Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR), only received 3.15 per cent of the votes counted. Based on initial data as of 6 pm (Moscow time) on Sunday, the voter turnout in the presidential elections, which spanned three days from March 15-17 for the first time, was recorded at 74.22 per cent.

Also Read: PM Modi's Outreach to Putin Averted "Potential Nuclear Strike" on Ukraine: Report