Russia has no plans against any NATO country and will not attack Poland, the Baltic states or the Czech Republic, Vladimir Putin said, Reuters reports. The Kremlin leader’s statement on Wednesday evening was followed on Thursday morning by one of the foreign ministries in Moscow, which accused NATO of preparing for a confrontation with Russia, citing as an example the modernization of the Romanian airbase with Mykhailo Kogelnicanu.

Addressing Russian air force pilots, Putin said the US-led military alliance had expanded east into Russia since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, but Moscow had no plans to attack the NATO nation.

“We have no aggressive intentions towards these states,” Putin said, according to a Kremlin transcript released Thursday.

“The idea that we are going to attack another country – Poland, the Baltic countries, the Czechs are also being scared – is complete nonsense. It’s just stupid,” he added.

• In the context, it should be mentioned that before the start of the invasion of Ukraine, high-ranking officials in Moscow resolutely rejected information that such a thing would happen, and Putin’s spokesman Dmytro Peskov directly stated several times that “Russia will not attack anyone.”

Putin: F-16s can carry nuclear weapons

Answering a question about the F-16 fighter jets that the West promised to send to Ukraine, Putin said that such devices will not change the situation in Ukraine: “If they provide F-16s, and they talk about it, and it seems that they are training pilots, it will not change on the battlefield,” Putin said.

“And we will destroy aircraft, just as we destroy tanks, armored vehicles and other equipment today, including salvo fire systems.”

Putin said the F-16 could also carry nuclear weapons. “Of course, if they are used from airfields of third countries, they become legitimate targets for us, wherever they are,” Putin said.

Putin’s statements came after Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba also announced on Thursday that the F-16 should arrive in Ukraine in the coming months. Belgium, Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands are among the countries that have pledged to donate F-16s. A coalition of countries promised to help train Ukrainian pilots for them.

Russia says NATO is preparing for war

NATO’s activities in Eastern Europe and the Black Sea region are aimed at preparing the allies for a possible clash with Russia, RIA Novosti said in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Moscow, citing as an example plans for the modernization of the Mykhailo Kogelnicanu base in Romania.

“The expansion of the Romanian air base is another proof that the North Atlantic bloc continues the unlimited militarization of Eastern Europe and the Black Sea region,” the ministry headed by Sergei Lavrov told the Russian Press Agency.

Mihail Kogelnicianu Air Base, one of the main military bases of the Romanian army and home to the largest US military presence in Romania, will be modernized in a massive program of almost 2.5 billion lei by 2030.