Cameron compares appeasement of Putin to Germany in 1938

BRUSSELS, Sept. 3 (UPI) -- British Prime Minister David Cameron warned against appeasement toward Russia at a European Union summit in Brussels Wednesday.

Speaking in a closed-door session on the 75th anniversary of Britain's involvement in World War II, Cameron compared Russian President Vladimir Putin's seizure of Crimea and military assistance to pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine to British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain's appeasement approach toward Adolf Hitler in 1938. Europe's latitude, by declining to contain German aggression in acquiring territory, led to the German invasion of Poland a year later and the start of the war.

The Italian newspaper La Repubblica quoted Cameron saying, "We run the risk of repeating the mistakes made in Munich in '38. We cannot know what will happen next. This time we cannot meet Putin's demands. He has already taken Crimea and we cannot allow him to take the whole country."

Several days ago the newspaper quoted Putin telling European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso he could "take Kiev in two weeks" if he chose to.

The British prime minister's office in London did not confirm Cameron's comment, but did not refute its accuracy.