Dmitry Medvedev Photo: Alexei Maishev / TASS
Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, said on Tuesday that if the West provides Ukraine with nuclear weapons, Moscow may consider this step as an attack on Russia, which would be the basis for a nuclear response. This was reported by Reuters.
Last week, the New York Times reported that some unnamed Western officials suggested that US President Joe Biden might consider supplying nuclear weapons to Ukraine. However, as the newspaper notes, there are serious concerns about the consequences of such a step. In particular, it is about the return to Ukraine of “nuclear arsenals that it lost after the collapse of the Soviet Union”.
“American politicians and journalists are seriously discussing the consequences of the transfer of nuclear weapons to Kyiv,” Medvedev wrote on his Telegram channel, noting that this issue is already being actively discussed in the United States.
Medvedev added that even the threat of such a delivery could be seen as preparations for a nuclear war with Russia. “The actual transportation of such weapons can be equated to an act of aggression against our country,” he said, referring to Russia’s recently updated nuclear doctrine.
Last Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree approving an updated nuclear doctrine, which states that any conventional attack on Russia by a country that receives support from a nuclear power will be regarded as a joint attack on Russia. This decision was made after US President Joe Biden allowed Ukraine to use ATACMS missiles to strike targets in Russia.
