Russia's Lavrov warns US against 'decapitation blow' targeting Putin: report

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Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is warning the U.S. against carrying out a "decapitation blow" targeting President Vladimir Putin, calling it a "threat to physically eliminate the head of the Russian state." 

Lavrov made the comments Tuesday in an interview with Russian state news agency TASS, reportedly in reference to an unverified report in September citing an anonymous Pentagon official saying the U.S. was considering such action if Russia ever launched a nuclear strike. 

"Washington went the furthest. … Some ‘unnamed officials’ from the Pentagon actually threatened to inflict a ‘decapitation blow’ on the Kremlin, but, in fact, it is a threat to physically eliminate the head of the Russian state," Lavrov said. 

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"If such ideas are actually hatched by someone, this someone should think very carefully about the possible consequences of such plans," he added. 

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Lavrov, speaking about the war in Ukraine, also told TASS, "It is no longer a secret to anyone that the strategic goal of the United States and its NATO allies is 'victory over Russia on the battlefield' as a mechanism for significantly weakening or even destroying our country."

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A view of a Russian tank captured by Ukrainian forces being carried in Kharkiv, Ukraine, on Sept. 8, 2022. (Metin Aktas/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

"For the sake of achieving this goal, our opponents are ready for a lot. The main beneficiary of the 'hot conflict' is the United States, which seeks to extract the maximum benefit from it, both in economic and military-strategic terms," he added. 

"At the same time, Washington is also solving an important geopolitical task — to break the traditional ties between Russia and Europe and to further subjugate the European satellites."