Russian President Vladimir Putin has said a full-scale conflict with NATO cannot be ruled out.

Mr Putin said this at a news conference in Moscow to mark his victory in presidential elections, which were 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, he said.

“I think it is unlikely that anyone is interested in this,” Mr Putin stated.

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

“We already know that,” the Russian president said, adding that the French and English languages had already been heard on the battlefield.

“This is nothing good, especially for them, because they are dying there in large numbers,” Mr 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 per cent of the votes after about a quarter of the ballots were counted.

In the previous presidential election in 2018, he won 76.7 per cent of the votes.

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

(dpa/NAN)