Putin warns the West he is 'prepared for war' and if 'things go too far, there will be no winners'

Vladimir Putin has warned he is prepared for a major war with Europe.In a chilling new threat to the West, the Russian tyrant said there would be 'no winners' if he entered a conflict with Nato.Despite insisting he did not want to enter a fight with Europe, he said if tensions continued to escalate, he was prepared.'Many people keep talking about preparing for war by 2030. Is that right or wrong,' Putin said at a press conference in Moscow following the Russia-Africa summit on Thursday.'First of all, we are ready, but we don't want any war with Europe. As for them, if anyone wants it, let them prepare.'But they have not achieved their goal of inflicting a strategic defeat on Russia. It's unlikely that this will be possible by 2030. 'And if things go too far, there will be no winners at all. Let no one forget that.'The Russian leader's sabre-rattling comes amid fears he is looking to target Nato by using drone strikes, hackers and saboteurs to hit critical national infrastructure. Vladimir Putin said he is ready for war with Europe European military leaders fear Russia is escalating its so-called 'hybrid attacks' against the bloc as a way of probing Nato's defence and pressuring countries supporting Ukraine.Western intelligence officials have also separately warned Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin has an 'appetite' to increase his European sabotage campaign, in a move sources fear could lead to a war by 2030.Earlier this month, the German military warned it faced 'significant' risk of Russian sabotage, as it raised its threat assessment to the second-highest level for the first time.In the UK, Russia is believed to have been behind the firebombing of two homes and a car belonging to former Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.Moscow has also been blamed for a series of drone incursions over British military sites in 2024, with intelligence analysts claiming aircraft were launched from sanctioned Russian oil tankers to spy on nuclear weapons sites and American airbases.Russian drones have also breached the airspace of European countries. Italian fighter jets last month were scrambled to shoot down one of the Kremlin's aircraft over Lithuania.Western intelligence sources have dismissed fears Russia is willing to use nuclear weapons against Europe despite threats from Kremlin mouthpieces in recent months.But they have warned that Putin's thirst to launch a sabotage campaign in Europe risks a 'miscalculation' that could accidentally trigger a confrontation with Nato.'The appetite of Russia to conduct... sub-threshold or hybrid operations against Nato countries, whether this is sabotage or cyber, is very clear. President Putin absolutely wants to avoid a direct confrontation with Nato. However, in all of this, there is the risk of miscalculation,' one official said.Speaking on Thursday, Putin said he supported any steps aimed at restoring relations with European countries.He added that Moscow did not want the Baltic Sea to face a situation similar to that in the Strait of Hormuz, which has been held ransom by Iran following joint US-Israeli strikes.Putin's comments came just days after the leaders of Norway and Finland held a 'frank and substantive' phone conversation with him on Tuesday, sparking criticism from fellow Nordic leaders.The 90-minute conversation marked the first call between pro-Ukrainian European leaders and the Russian president in more than a year.Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen criticised the call, saying it 'was not coordinated with the rest of us'.She stressed the importance of European unity, adding 'we should be very careful about giving Putin an opportunity that he did not have until a few hours ago'.Meanwhile, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, speaking from an event in Helsinki, said he had been given no advance notice and held low expectations from the call.He emphasised that his country's position remained that peace had to be reached on Ukraine’s terms.Defending the outreach to the Kremlin chief, Finland's president Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store said in a joint statement that 'ending the war requires direct discussions'.'We stressed the importance of de-escalation,' Store said. 'There are big differences in views,' he told Norwegian media in Helsinki, where he is taking part in a meeting of Nordic leaders.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who spoke with the two Nordic leaders after their call with Putin, said on social media that they had 'made it clear to the Russian leader that real de-escalatory steps are needed regarding our energy and infrastructure'. This is a breaking news story. More to follow.