Russia's Putin warns about possibility of nuclear war

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - The current situation, characterized by increasing military tensions, can lead to a nuclear war that will destroy the planet, the Russian president said on Thursday.

The world underestimates the graveness of possible developments of current events, said Vladimir Putin during an annual news conference that gathered over 2,000 journalists at the Moscow International Trade Center congress hall.

The U.S. withdrawal from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty and its intention to end the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty -- which are pillars of the international arms control system -- decrease the nuclear arms application threshold, and in turn, it can lead to a global nuclear catastrophe, Putin said.

"I hope mankind will have enough common sense not to drive to the extremities," he added.

This is Putin's first massive news conference, where he has been evaluating the main events of 2018, since he was reelected as president for the fourth term.