A top official in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s regime said on Sunday that the continued supply of arms to Ukraine by its allies in the West would prompt retaliation with “more powerful weapons”.
Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of Russia’s lower house, the State Duma, threatened Europe and the US with a “global catastrophe” over their continued military support to the government in Kyiv, which is trying to regain territory lost in the Russian offensive .
Volodin directly called for the use of nuclear weapons in his statement on the messaging app wire,
“Arguments that nuclear powers have not previously used weapons of mass destruction in local conflicts are untenable. This is because these states have not faced a situation in which the security of their citizens and the territorial integrity of their countries are at risk. Ho,” the Russian official wrote in his social media post.
The threat comes amid debate over whether Germany will send two Leopard battle tanks to Ukraine to fight a Russian invasion. Kyiv has requested German-made tanks, which it says it needs to renew its counter-offensive against Moscow’s forces. but berlin has so far resisted call from ukraine its partners Fearing an escalation of the conflict, the US sent tanks without making the first move.
Berlin also has not approved the delivery of tanks from its allies, as Germany maintains final say on any re-export of the vehicles from countries that have bought them.
Newly appointed German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius is planning a trip to Ukraine, which could come next month, German newspaper BildThe Axel Springer Group, an affiliate publication of Politico, reported Sunday, citing an interview. When asked about the Leopard tanks, Pistorius said: “We are in very close dialogue on this issue with our international partners, above all with the US”.
in his telegram postRussia’s Volodin said: “With their decisions, Washington and Brussels are leading the world to a terrible war … Foreign politicians who make such decisions need to understand that this could end in a global tragedy.” that will destroy their countries.”
This is not the first time that top Russian leaders have threatened a nuclear strike. Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has called for the use of nuclear weapons more than once since the conflict began 11 months ago.