Russian President Vladimir Putin said Saturday that the U.S. "almost uncontained" use of force has led other countries developing weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons.

"We are witnessing an almost uncontained hyper use of force in international relations ... the United States has overstepped its national borders in every way," said Putin at a high-profile security conference in southern German city of Munich.

"The legitimate use of force can only be done by the United Nations, which cannot be replaced by EU or NATO," he said.

Some 250 top officials from over 40 countries, including U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, attended the 43th Munich security conference which will run from late Friday to Sunday.

The meeting was also attended by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, and EU chief diplomat Javier Solana.

The Munich security conference, entitled "global crisis, global responsibilities", will also highlight NATO's role, the Middle East peace process, transatlantic relations, the West's relations with Russia and the fight against international terrorism, according to the organizers.

Source: Xinhua