Moscow Could Target Countries Supplying Weapons to Ukraine, Putin Says

President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia warned on Wednesday that Western nations supplying Ukraine with long-range missiles and allowing them to be used to attack inside Russia was a “dangerous step” that could prompt Moscow to reciprocate against Western targets.

“If someone thinks it possible to send such weapons to a war zone to strike our territory and create problems for us,” Mr. Putin said at a news conference, “then why do we not have the right to send our weapons of the same class to those regions of the world where strikes can be made on sensitive facilities of the countries that do this against Russia?”

Mr. Putin singled out Germany, saying that its supply of battle tanks to Ukraine had been an initial blow to Russian-German relations, but its permission to use missiles in Russia was even worse.

“Now, when they say that some missiles will appear that will strike targets on Russian territory, this, of course, is ultimately destroying Russo-German relations,” he said.

Mr. Putin was speaking to senior editors from at least 15 news agencies from around the world that were invited to meet with him on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. Mr. Putin had skipped the tradition since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, but this year the invitation was extended to Western outlets such as The Associated Press, Reuters and various European agencies including Agence France-Presse, DPA from Germany, ANSA from Italy and EFE from Spain.

Mr. Putin’s spokesman, Dmitri S. Peskov, told reporters that representatives from “unfriendly countries” were included because “it is very important for them to get to know Putin and understand Russia firsthand,” according to Russia’s official news agency, Tass.