Stalingrad events see Putin warn of response to western ‘aggression’

Vladimir Putin has said Russia is being threatened by German tanks "again" as it was during the second world war, warning that Moscow is ready to respond to aggression from the west.

Speaking at events marking the 80th anniversary of the Red Army's victory over Nazi Germany in Stalingrad, known today as Volgograd, Putin drew parallels between the Soviet Union's fight in the second world war and Moscow's intervention in Ukraine.

"It's unbelievable but true. We are again being threatened by German Leopard tanks," he said in the southern city. "Again and again we are forced to repel the aggression of the collective west."

"We aren't sending tanks to their borders but we have something to respond with, and it won't be just about using armoured vehicles. Everyone should understand this," Putin added. "A modern war with Russia will be completely different."

Since sending troops to pro-western Ukraine last February, Putin has repeatedly threatened to use nuclear weapons against the west if the conflict escalates.

"Readiness to go until the end, to do the impossible for the sake of the motherland, for the sake of truth was and is in the blood, in the character of our multinational people," he said.

The 1942-43 Battle of Stalingrad raged for nearly six months and when it was over, the city was in ruins and more than a million soldiers and civilians had lost their lives.