Putin says total war with NATO can't be ruled out

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that a full-scale conflict with NATO cannot be ruled out at a press conference in Moscow to mark his victory in presidential elections accompanied by allegations of manipulation.

In case of a full-scale conflict with NATO, the world would be just one step away from a third world war, Putin was quoted as saying by the state agency TASS on Sunday evening. "I think it is unlikely that anyone is interested in this."

According to Putin, numerous soldiers from NATO member states are already deployed in Ukraine.

"We already know that," he said adding that French and English language had already been heard on the battlefield.

"This is nothing good, especially for them, because they are dying there in large numbers," Putin said - without substantiating this claim.

Ukraine has been defending itself against Russia with Western help for more than two years.

Russia's Election Commission said Putin gained a record-breaking result of just under 88% of the votes, after nearly a quarter of the ballots were counted. In the previous presidential election in 2018, he had won with 76.7% of votes.

No genuine opposition candidates were allowed to stand in the three-day vote.