Moscow, Oct 8 (IANS) Russian President Vladimir Putin has clearly indicated that the transfer of Tomahawk missiles to Kyiv will inflict irreparable damage on relations between Moscow and Washington, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday.

“I repeat, if the US administration ultimately makes the relevant decision, it will not only risk escalating the spiral of confrontation, but also inflict irreparable damage on Russian-US relations, which have just begun to show elements of resuming bilateral dialogue,” she said, adding that the Russian leadership has addressed this matter on numerous occasions.

Zakharova noted that Russia is closely monitoring the situation surrounding Tomahawk missiles, urging the United States to exercise restraint.

“We call for the exercise of maximum restraint when dealing with this highly sensitive topic, one that could significantly complicate efforts to find a way out of the situation in Ukraine, and we hope that our signals will be heard in Washington,” Zakharova said.

On September 28, US Vice President J D Vance had said that the White House is considering a plan for European NATO allies to purchase US-made Tomahawk cruise missiles and transfer them to Ukraine, but the final call rests with President Donald Trump.

“I know that we’re having conversations this very minute about that issue,” Vance said on Fox News, Xinhua news agency reported.

“We’re looking at it,” he said. “We’re certainly looking at a number of requests from the Europeans.”

When asked whether he was personally comfortable with Ukraine receiving Tomahawk missiles and “the threat that that would pose,” Vance started sidestepping the question, saying that Trump will make the “final determination…on what’s in the best interest of the United States of America.”

According to US media outlets, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky proposed the deal during his meeting with Trump on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York earlier in September. And he said Trump told him, “We’ll work on it.”

Vance stressed that the Trump administration adopted a broader policy shift that presses Europe to take on more of the burden. “We’re no longer just giving tons of money and weapons. What we’re doing is asking the Europeans to buy that weaponry.”

Meanwhile, he called on Russia to “come to the table and actually talk seriously about peace.”

Tomahawk is a US-made, long-range, subsonic land-attack cruise missile with an operational range of 460-2,500 km, depending on the variant. This range could enable strikes on areas near Moscow if the missiles were deployed from parts of Europe.

–IANS

/as