In September, Medvedev said strategic nuclear weapons could be used to defend territories incorporated into Russia from Ukraine.
And in January, as NATO member states debated new weapons shipments to Ukraine, Medvedev said defeat for Russia in the war could lead to nuclear conflict.
“The loss of a nuclear power in a conventional war can provoke the outbreak of a nuclear war,” Medvedev wrote on Telegram in January.
Nuclear rhetoricThe United States has previously warned Russia against using nuclear weapons in Ukraine, both through private direct communications, as well as public channels, including at last year’s UN General Assembly.
Russia has about 4,477 deployed and reserve nuclear warheads, including around 1,900 tactical nuclear weapons, according to the Federation of American Scientists.
Persons:
Dmitry Medvedev, Vladimir Putin, ”, Medvedev, ” Medvedev, ” Medvedev’s, Putin, Matthew Miller, Alexander Lukashenko, Lukashenko
Organizations:
CNN, NATO, Russia’s Security, Helsinki, Russia, “, Russia’s Defense, UN, Assembly, St ., Economic Forum, US Defense Intelligence Agency, US State Department, Federation of American Scientists
Locations:
Russia, Russian, Ukraine, Sweden, Finland, Turkey, Western, Moscow, United States, Belarus, St, St . Petersburg