One of Russia’s top officials laid down the nuclear gauntlet in the continuing proxy war with the West in Ukraine.
Deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council and former President Dmitry Medvedev issued the proclamation on social media. This came after a drone strike attributed to Ukrainian forces hit Moscow early Sunday.
On X, formerly known as Twitter, Medvedev posted that “by repelling the collective enemy’s counteroffensive, our Armed Forces are defending Russian citizens and our land.”
Russia Threatens 'Global Nuclear Fire' After Ukrainian Drone Strikes Moscow – 'No Other Way Out'https://t.co/7jq3TaDtDQ
— Jack Farmer (@JFarmer8762) July 30, 2023
He stated that if Ukraine were successful in gaining control of Russian soil, by Putin’s decree of 2.6.2020 the nation must “use the nuclear weapon.” Medvedev then declared that Russia’s “warriors…are keeping global nuclear fire from flaring up.”
Reuters reported that Kyiv is attempting to reclaim land that Moscow unilaterally annexed and declared to be part of the Kremlin’s territory. That is Crimea.
Part of Russia’s nuclear doctrine is that the country may use these weapons in response to aggression that is non-nuclear if it threatens the state’s existence. Medvedev is one of the Kremlin’s most powerful voices in defending the country against international criticism.
His statement is hardly his first in waving the nuclear sword against enemies of the state. In the brief coup attempt by Wagner Chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, Medvedev asserted the rebellion could bring about nuclear war.
He previously claimed that the war with Ukraine could be ended in a matter of a few days. It would simply be Russia doing what “the Americans did in 1945 when they deployed nuclear weapons and bombed two Japanese cities, Hiroshima and Nagasaki.”
In yet another example of Medvedev’s hawkishness, in January he suggested deploying a Kremlin warship to the American coast in response to U.S. support of civil unrest in Moscow.
Meanwhile, the war has dragged on for nearly a year and a half with no end in sight. Ukraine is currently engaged in attempting to take back territory now under Russian control.
On Saturday, Putin said there were no major changes in the conflict to report except that Ukraine had lost significant amounts of armaments since early June.
On the other side, Kyiv announced that its forces are making incremental progress in regaining lost territory, though they are not moving as rapidly as hoped.
