Russia’s response to a Tomahawk strike would be ‘serious, if not overwhelming’: Putin

Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Russia’s response to any potential Tomahawk strike on its territory would be “serious, if not overwhelming”.

Though, the US has not agreed to allow Ukraine the use of the missiles, the fact that Kyiv is trying to get permission to use them is “an attempt at escalation,” Putin told the media on Thursday.

“But if such weapons are used to strike Russian territory, the response will be very serious, if not overwhelming. Let them think about that,” he added.

Putin also vowed to continue “dialogue” despite US counterpart Donald Trump shelving a proposed summit.

The Russian President also spoke on his cancelled meeting with US President Donald Trump, which was initially planned to be taking place in Budapest, Hungary, in the coming weeks.

Emphasising on the importance of continued diplomacy to end the war in Ukraine, Putin on Thursday said: “Well, what can one always say? Dialogue is always better than confrontation, than disputes, or even more so than war.”

“That is why we have always supported the continuation of dialogue, and we continue to support it now,” he added.

“It would be a mistake for both me and the US President to approach this lightly and come away from this meeting without the expected result,” Putin said, emphasising that the meeting was originally proposed by the US side.

The Russian leader said Washington had proposed the summit but was now “postponed”.

Putin also dismissed Washington’s latest sanctions on Russia’s oil sector, calling them a futile attempt to strong-arm Moscow into compliance.

“No self-respecting country ever does anything under pressure,” Putin said, after the US imposed sweeping restrictions on Rosneft and Lukoil — Russia’s largest oil producers.

The sanctions were announced after the Kremlin rejected calls for an immediate ceasefire in its ongoing war with Ukraine.

Earlier, US Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg said in an interview that Washington was “looking at” providing Tomahawk cruise missiles to Ukraine in response to a request from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The Tomahawk is a subsonic, long-range cruise missile designed for precision strikes against land targets, with an operational range of roughly 1,600–2,500 km.

The Tomahawk can be configured as a strategic weapon with a nuclear warhead, though it is commonly deployed in a conventional form for tactical strikes.

Tomahawks are typically launched from ships or aircraft, which program the missile before launch with target coordinates, routing, flight profile, and digital terrain maps. Strategic launch platforms also upload arming codes. The missile navigates using a combination of inertial and satellite navigation.

Putin said he had cautioned US President Trump that the sanctions could disrupt global energy markets and lead to rising oil prices worldwide.

“We said very clearly that this would affect global oil prices, including the US,” he added.

Meanwhile, Putin said on Thursday that the latest US sanctions targeting two major oil firms were “serious”, but not strong enough to significantly affect the economy.

The US on Wednesday hit Russia’s two biggest oil producers — Rosneft and Lukoil — with sanctions, the first against Russia since US President Donald Trump returned to office.

“They (sanctions) are serious for us, of course, that is clear. And they will have certain consequences, but they will not significantly impact our economic well-being,” Putin told reporters.

He added that the sanctions were an “unfriendly act” that “does not strengthen Russia-US relations, which have only just begun to recover”.

Trump attempted to foster ties with Russia at the start of his term but has become increasingly frustrated with Putin’s refusal to agree to a ceasefire, complaining that his peace talks with him were not going “anywhere”.

The Us President held off introducing new restrictions against Russia for months, but his patience snapped after plans for a fresh summit with Putin in Budapest collapsed.

Still, even after new sanctions and the summit’s postponement, Putin appeared to remain open to dialogue.

The US Treasury Department said the measures were intended to “limit Russia’s ability to finance its aggression”.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the move, calling it a step that would “weaken the Kremlin’s capacity to wage war”.

Russian Foreign Ministry on Thursday called the US sanctions against two Russian oil companies “counterproductive” and stressed that Moscow would not face any issue due to the sanctions as it has “strong immunity” to Western sanctions.

Commenting on US Treasury Department’s sanctions against Lukoil and Rosneft, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said, “We consider this step to be exclusively counterproductive,” Russia’s leading Tass news agency reported.

Zakharova’s statement comes after US President Donald Trump has imposed new sanctions on Russia, targeting its two largest oil companies, in his latest bid to end the conflict in Ukraine.

While meeting NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at the White House on Wednesday, Trump said he hoped that the “war will be settled”.

Trump also noted his previous conversations with Russian President Putin had not led to any breakthroughs.

“Every time I speak with Vladimir, I have good conversations, and then they don’t go anywhere. They just don’t go anywhere. He’s fighting a war. He’s in a war. It’s two very competent sides, and that’s the way war is. You never know with war, but I would say that it’s time to make a deal,” he emphasised.

Trump, on Tuesday, cancelled his proposed meeting with Putin in Budapest in Hungary, saying he doesn’t “want to have a wasted meeting”.

“We cancelled the meeting with President Putin. It just didn’t feel right to me. It didn’t feel like we were going to get to the place we have to get. So, I cancelled it, but we’ll do it in the future,” he noted.

IANS