Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that he considers Western sanctions and any imposition of a no-fly zone to be akin to a declaration of war against Russia.
During a state television address, Mr Putin made wild claims against Western nations which have so far implemented economic sanctions.
The countries among those that have imposed sanctions include the UK, US and the European Union.
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He also defended his invasion of Ukraine, stating that he want to "demilitarise" the country and argues that it should have a neutral status.
Mr Putin also repeated the line that he wants to "de-nazify" Ukraine - his opposition to a 'Nazi presence' in Ukraine has been at the forefront of his justifications to invade.
It comes shortly after he declared the job of destroying Ukraine's "military infrastructure is almost complete," although no clarification has been provided on what this means for the invasion.
Putin said that Moscow would consider any third-party declaration of a no-fly zone over Ukraine as “participation in the armed conflict”.
Speaking at a meeting with female pilots on Saturday, Putin said Russia would view “any move in this direction” as an intervention that “will pose a threat to our service members”.
“That very second, we will view them as participants of the military conflict, and it would not matter what members they are,” he said.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has pushed Nato to impose a no-fly zone over his country, warning that “all the people who die from this day forward will also die because of you”, as Russian forces were battering strategic locations in Ukraine.
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Nato has said a no-fly zone, which would bar all unauthorised aircraft from flying over Ukraine, could provoke widespread war in Europe with nuclear-armed Russia.
The multiple economic sanctions against Russia has also severely impacted the nation's economy with the rouble, Russia's currency, falling by 30 per cent after sanctions were introduced.
In retaliation to the sanctions, Russia has blocked interest payments to foreign investors who hold government bonds and has banned Russian companies from paying overseas shareholders.
Russia's foreign ministry has also threatened to bring in sanctions of its own against Western nations which could potentially impact the regular flow of gas supplies all across Europe.
Sanctions against the West, could have drastic impacts on the standard of living, adding to the already surging cost of living in the UK which has seen petrol, gas and electricity prices sky rocket.
On Saturday, a ceasefire agreed to let citizens in two besieged areas of Ukraine was paused after the Russians continued to shell the civilians' escape route.
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