Vladimir Putin has threatened to “target” European capitals in response to the US plans to deploy hypersonic missiles to Germany through his mouthpiece and top spokesman, Dmitri Peskov.

This alarming development intensifies the ongoing tensions reminiscent of the Cold War, potentially inching the world closer to a global conflict as Russia pressures the West to abandon its support for Ukraine.

Putin’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov issued the warning, stating that Russia can counter the US missiles, but that the real victims would be the capitals of the host countries.

“We [Russia] have enough capacity to contain these missiles, but the potential victims are the capitals of these countries”, he said. “Europe is a target for our missiles, our country is a target for US missiles in Europe.”

This escalation follows Russia’s use of hypersonic missiles against Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital. The conflict has already seen devastating missile attacks, including a recent bombing of a children’s hospital in Kyiv, which has been condemned as a “genocidal” act.

The missiles in question, including the Tomahawk and the SM-6s, possess a significantly longer range than the current US arsenal in Europe. These missiles had been prohibited under a 1988 treaty between Russia and the US, a treaty that Putin violated in 2014, further straining international relations.

The deployment of these advanced missiles to Germany is slated for 2026. German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius emphasised the necessity of these deployments, stating that Europe faces an “increasingly serious gap in capability” compared to Russia and the US. He argued that the presence of long-range US missiles would buy Europe time to develop its own defence systems.

The situation has alarmed other European nations as well. Poland is considering preemptively intercepting Russian missiles that enter Ukrainian airspace to prevent them from crossing into Polish territory.

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski explained the dilemma, noting the risks to Polish citizens from missile debris if interception occurs within Polish airspace.

“If we shoot them down only when they enter our airspace the debris is a threat to our citizens and our property”, he explained. “And the Ukrainians are saying, ‘Please, we will not mind, do it over our airspace when they’re in imminent danger of crossing into Polish territory.

“To my mind, that’s self-defence but we are exploring the idea.”

Missiles have become a pivotal aspect of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, with civilian infrastructure frequently targeted by the Kremlin. In response, Britain has supplied Ukraine with Storm Shadow missiles, granting Kyiv the discretion on their use, which so far has not included strikes within Russian territory.