The United States should heed Moscow’s warnings about the risks of further escalation surrounding the conflict in Ukraine, its deputy secretary of state said on Friday of Russia Sergey Ryabkovaccording to the Russian state news agency RIA Novosti.

Commenting on the possibility of a meeting between the Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov and the US Secretary of State Anthony Blinkenon the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Ryabkov said there would be no meeting as the sides had “nothing to discuss”.

The representative of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Maria Zakharova said that giving Kiev a blank check to carry out long-range weapons strikes deep into Russian territory would change the nature of the conflict in Ukraine.

“We would like to remind the hawks on both sides of the Atlantic (…) They are playing with fire and have lost all sense of reality,” noted the representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry in a press briefing.

“There is a risk of completely changing the scale of the conflict that started because of the West, which could have dangerous consequences for the whole world,” Zakharova stressed.

However, the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky he will have separate meetings with the American president Joe Biden and the vice president Kamala Harris on September 26, the White House announced yesterday.

“The leaders will discuss the state of the war between Russia and Ukraine, including Ukraine’s strategic planning and U.S. support for Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression,” the White House said in a statement.

Italy sends anti-missile system to Ukraine

On Friday morning the Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani stated that his country will supply Ukraine with the new SAMP-T anti-missile system.

He, however, emphasized the need to avoid a war with Russia.

“We are sending a new Samp-T to protect hospitals, schools, universities, for this country that was attacked by Russia,” Tajani told Radio 24.

He added that “defending Ukraine does not mean bringing a world war… We are helping Ukraine and we must achieve a just peace.”

Threats from Moscow after the European Parliament’s resolution

Yesterday the European Parliament adopted a resolution calling for the lifting of restrictions preventing Ukraine from using Western weapons systems against legitimate military targets in Russia.

The resolution, which was adopted by 425 votes to 131 with 63 abstentions, says that unless the current restrictions are lifted, Ukraine cannot fully exercise its right to self-defense and remains exposed to attacks on its population and infrastructure her.

The European Parliament underlines that insufficient deliveries of ammunition and restrictions on their use risk undermining the efforts made so far and deeply regrets the reduction in the financial volume of bilateral military aid to Ukraine by the Member States.

MEPs reiterate their call for EU member states to fulfill their March 2023 pledge to deliver a million missiles to Ukraine and accelerate the delivery of weapons, air defense systems and ammunition, including TAURUS missiles. They also reiterate their position that all EU member states and NATO allies should collectively and individually commit to annual military support to Ukraine of at least 0.25% of their GDP.

For its part, Moscow said yesterday that Ukrainian strikes against Russia with Western missiles will lead to world war with the use of nuclear weapons and that Moscow’s response will be harsh with more powerful weapons.

“Russia will give a tough response using more powerful weapons,” said Volodin, a close aide to President Vladimir Putin who often conveys views in the Kremlin’s upper echelons.

Volodin’s statements constitute a response to decision of the European Parliament to allow Kiev to strike Russian targets with Western weapons.

He also said Europeans should understand that the RS-28 Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile, known to some as the Satan II, would take just 3 minutes and 20 seconds to hit Strasbourg.

Von der Leyen in Kyiv

Meanwhile, the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, is visiting Kiev today, where she will have contacts aimed at Ukraine’s energy security.

The head of the Commission will hold talks on European support for Ukraine, on preparations for the winter, on defense and on the progress of loans from the G7.

“My eighth visit to Kiev comes at a time when the heating season is about to start and Russia continues to target energy infrastructure,” von der Leyen wrote in X, stressing that she is in Ukraine to “talk about supporting Europe.” .