Russia Warns European Arms Factories Supplying Ukraine Could Be Military Targets

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said that European factories producing weapons for Ukraine could be considered legitimate targets by Moscow, regardless of their location outside Ukrainian territory, according to the Russian state news agency TASS.

Zakharova said no one should assume that military plants located outside Ukraine that manufacture arms for what she called "the Kiev regime" would remain safe. She did not name specific countries, companies, or facilities, nor did she set out any timeline for possible Russian action against them.

Context

The comments come against the backdrop of Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine, which began with Moscow's full-scale invasion in February 2022. Since then, the United States and a number of European governments have supplied Kyiv with weapons, ammunition and military equipment, and several European defense manufacturers have expanded production capacity to keep pace with Ukraine's battlefield needs.

Russian officials have periodically warned that supply routes and production sites supporting Ukraine's military could be treated as part of the conflict rather than as protected civilian or third-country infrastructure. Such statements have previously drawn concern from NATO members, given that many arms-producing facilities are located within the alliance's territory, where an attack could raise questions about collective defense obligations under NATO's founding treaty.

TASS did not report any immediate response from NATO, the European Union, or individual European governments to Zakharova's remarks. It also was not immediately clear whether the statement reflected a shift in Russian policy or was a reiteration of previously stated positions.

The remarks add to a long list of statements from Russian officials addressing Western military support for Ukraine, a central issue in the more than three-year conflict that has strained relations between Moscow and Western capitals.