Moscow threatens nuclear weapons if Ukraine is allowed to strike deep inside Russia

2024-09-15 08:30:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Moscow threatens nuclear weapons if Ukraine is allowed to strike deep inside

Russian officials have said that if the West allows Kiev to use Western weapons to strike deep into Russian territory, it would result in a major escalation of the war in Ukraine, which could include the use of nuclear weapons.

Former president Dmitry Medvedev, who is now chairman of Russia's Security Council, warned on September 14 that Kiev would turn into "a gray melting pot" if restrictions against Ukraine's use of Western weapons were eased.

Kiev has repeatedly said it needs to launch long-range strikes inside Russian territory in order to defend itself against Russian occupation forces.

The idea has recently gained momentum, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has pushed it forward. Some European leaders are considering giving Ukraine the ability to strike from afar, while Britain is reportedly close to a decision to allow Ukraine to use its Storm Shadow missiles to carry out strikes on the territory. Russian.

On September 13, US President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer were expected to discuss the issue during their meeting in Washington.

However, the White House did not mention the issue after the meeting ended. Referring to this meeting, Medvedev wrote on September 14 that "the Anglo-Saxon imbeciles do not want to admit that Russia's "patience" is at an end, as experts have suggested that Russia may use nuclear weapons against Ukraine if Moscow loses its patience.

"What do Western leaders and their institutions think, playing war, what will be the reaction of our state to possible missile attacks 'deep inside the territory of Russia?'" wrote Medvedev, who has often threatened Kiev and the West , since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Medvedev said that a nuclear conflict "is a very bad thing with a very difficult outcome", claiming that this is why Russia has so far not decided to use "non-strategic or strategic" nuclear weapons. However, he said that if it comes to the use of nuclear weapons, "a giant gray spot" would be created in the place where Kiev is located.

Such rhetoric from Moscow has intensified as Zelensky continues to lobby that his country can use the weapons it has received from the West to strike deep inside Russian territory.

On September 12, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that any change in policy that would allow Western weapons to be used on Russian territory would mean that the NATO alliance is "at war" with Russia. In June, Putin also threatened to send long-range weapons - in what he called an "asymmetric" response - to different parts of the world so that states that supply him with weapons could be attacked. arms Ukraine.

Russia has also said it is changing its doctrine regarding the use of nuclear weapons. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on September 1 that the move "is connected with the escalating course of our Western enemies".

On September 14, Ryabkov claimed that the decision to allow Ukraine to launch long-range attacks on Russia had already been made by the West and that Moscow "is ready for anything" and that it "will respond with full force". Also on Saturday, State Duma Deputy Speaker Andrei Kolesnik suggested that Russia should detonate nuclear weapons on its territory to remind the West of the threat Russia's nuclear arsenal poses.

Zelensky's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, has hit back at the statements from officials in Moscow. He said that these reactions "are evidence that the Putin regime is afraid that its terror is nearing its end."

"Strong decisions are needed. Terror can be stopped by destroying the military buildings from which the attacks are carried out", he wrote in "Telegram".

He said that granting permission for long-range weapons "would only speed up the solution" and would not allow "Russian terror to spread to other countries of the world"./ Rel