Will act swiftly if Europe provokes Russia: Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday swiped back at US President Donald Trump for calling Russia a "paper tiger" and said Moscow would respond swiftly if it thought Europe was provoking it.

Trump, who had previously said Kyiv should give up land to make peace with Moscow, reversed his rhetoric sharply last week, saying he thought Ukraine could win back all territory from Russia, and labelling Moscow a "paper tiger". He repeated the line this week.

Putin, speaking at the Valdai Discussion Group in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, said Russian forces were advancing along the entire front in Ukraine, and that almost all of the US-led NATO alliance was now fighting against Russia.

"A paper tiger. What follows then? Go and deal with this paper tiger," Putin said. "Well if we are fighting with the entire NATO bloc, we are moving, advancing, and we feel confident, and we are a 'paper tiger', then what is NATO itself?"

"If anyone still has a desire to compete with us in the military sphere, as we say, feel free, let them try," Putin said. "Russia's countermeasures will not be long in coming."

"I just want to say: cool down, sleep calmly, and take care of your own problems. Just take a look at what's happening on the streets of European cities," Putin said.

Putin said Ukraine's armed forces had a grave lack of manpower and desertions, while Russia had enough soldiers. He suggested that Kyiv should negotiate an end to the war.

Russia, he said, controlled almost all of Luhansk province, about 81 per cent of the Donetsk region, and about 75 per cent of both Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions.

Moscow claimed in 2022 to have annexed the four regions, and says it will not end the war until Ukraine withdraws from them entirely. — Reuters