Putin discusses pointing nuclear warheads at Ukraine

Russia may target nuclear missiles at Ukraine if the former Soviet republic joins Nato, President Vladimir Putin warned today.

Speaking at a news conference with Ukrainian president Viktor Yushchenko, Mr Putin said that Ukraine's aspirations to join Nato would restrict its sovereignty.

"That of course is Ukraine's internal process ... and we don't have the right, and we won't, interfere in this process," Mr Putin said.

But he added "that raises the question for Russia of the need for retaliatory actions" should Ukraine accept the deployment of anti-missile defences on its territory.

"It's frightening not just to talk about this, but even to think about, that in response to such deployment, the possibility of such deployments, and one can't theoretically exclude these deployment, that Russia will have to point its warheads at Ukrainian territory," he said.

Mr Yushchenko responded by saying that Ukraine has the right to form its own foreign and defense policies, and noted that the Ukrainian constitution does not allow for the deployment of foreign bases on its territory.

"You understand well that everything that Ukraine does in this direction is not in any way directed at any third country, including Russia," he said.

Earlier the leaders agreed to settle a dispute over Ukraine's gas debt, avoiding a threatened cut-off in supplies that had worried consumers in the European Union.

"We have agreed that Ukraine will start paying off the debt starting Thursday,'' Mr Yushchenko said.

Russia's state-controlled natural gas monopoly, Gazprom, said Ukraine owes US$1.5 bn (€1bn) for gas.

Gazprom had threatened to cut off gas supplies to Ukraine from 6pm today if an agreement was not reached.

The threat worried EU nations, which experienced disruptions in gas supplies sent through Ukraine during a similar cut-off in January 2006.