Russia could strike Nato members with nuclear weapons, a senior security official has said.
Dmitry Medvedev, Russia’s former prime minister and current deputy of its security council, said Nato’s newest members, which includes Sweden and Finland, could be struck with revenge strikes using nuclear weapons in the event of a conflict.
“The non-aligned status gave them (Finland and Sweden) certain international perks, given their geopolitical position and many other factors,” Medvedev said.
“And now they are part of a bloc hostile to us which means they automatically became a target for our armed forces, including potential retaliatory strikes and even the nuclear component or preventive measures within the framework of a military doctrine.”
Medvedev has styled himself as one of Russia’s most outspoken anti-Western hawks, repeatedly warning that Russia could respond to Western-backed strikes in Ukraine with nuclear weapons.
His comments came after Vladimir Putin announced a surprise three-day ceasefire that will take place between May 8 and 10, when Russia celebrates the end of World War II.
The Kremlin said on Tuesday that Kyiv had not responded to the offer of a ceasefire and that it was unclear whether Ukraine would join the truce.
“It was President Putin who repeatedly said that Russia is ready, without any preconditions, to start the negotiations process,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. “We have not heard a response from the Kyiv regime so far.”
The Russian defence ministry said on Tuesday its troops had captured the village of Doroshivka in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region.
The Telegraph could not independently verify the battlefield report.
In recent months, Moscow’s forces have made a renewed push into the northeastern Ukrainian region, reoccupying the border town of Vovchansk last year, and slowly swallowing villages.
A Russian general who was killed in a car bomb attack in Moscow last week prepared battlefield reports on the situation Ukraine for Vladimir Putin.
Yaroslav Moskalik was a deputy chief of the main operations directorate of Russia’s army and was heavily involved in the planning of military operations.
An obituary for Moskalik revealed he took parts in Minsk talks which were designed to end the war between Ukraine and Russian-backed separatists in Crimea.
He also worked Russia’s military intervention in 2015.
The Kremlin has softened its stance on Volodymyr Zelensky’s legitimacy, saying starting peace negotiations takes precedent.
“Indeed, there are legal issues related to legitimacy, but in this case, starting the peaceful settlement process takes precedence, and the primary thing is to begin this negotiation process,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told journalists.
Moscow has repeatedly questioned the Ukrainian president’s legitimacy given that his term was set to end in May last year. However, the Ukrainian constitution bans election during wartime.
Is the latest Russian ceasefire announcement another meaningless gesture, an attempt to appease the US president who seems to have ended his bromance with the dictator in the Kremlin – or a genuine attempt to end the bloodshed in Ukraine? We can all hope it is the latter, but we should be very suspicious.
One factor is likely to be that Russia says it has now retaken all of Kursk oblast. Zelensky has thus lost one of his key bargaining chips, which might increase Putin’s willingness to bargain. Then, Russia has just seen another top general assassinated, virtually on the steps of the Kremlin. One can see why Putin and his close circle may be somewhat spooked by the ease with which the Ukrainian secret service or its proxies are now operating in the Russian capital.
JD Vance has said Ukraine will not win the war against Russia.
The US vice-president also said that a peace deal was “necessary but not guaranteed”.
“If this doesn’t stop, the Ukrainians aren’t winning the war,” he told the Charlie Kirk podcast.
“I think there’s this weird idea among the mainstream media that if this thing goes on for just another few years, the Russians will collapse, the Ukrainians will take their territory back, and everything will go back to the way that it was before the war. That is not the reality that we live in.”
Donald Trump has said he is saving Ukraine from being “crushed” by Russia.
“I think I’m saving that nation,” Mr Trump told the Atlantic in an interview to mark 100 days in office.
“I think that nation will be crushed very shortly. It’s a big war machine. … I think I’m doing a great service to Ukraine. I believe that.”
Speaking to the Atlantic before his meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky at Pope Francis’s funeral, Mr Trump said he was on Ukraine’s side but had struggled with the Ukrainian president.
He also refused to commit to sending additional aid to Ukraine, saying support did not have to come in the form of weapons.
“There are many forms of weapons. Doesn’t have to be weapons with bullets. It can be weapons with sanctions. It can be weapons with banking. It can be many other weapons.”
The Russian defence ministry has said its troops have captured the village of Doroshivka in Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region.
It is the second village to be captured by Moscow’s troops in the region in as many days after Russian troops took control of the village of Kamianka on Monday.
Russia launched a surprise offensive in the region last May after they were driven out by Ukraine at the start of the war.
Kharkiv has since resisted a full-scale offensive, though Russia claims to have captured a number of villages since the start of the year.
Ukraine has not responded to Vladimir Putin’s proposal for a three-day truce, the Kremlin has claimed.
“It was President Putin who repeatedly said that Russia is ready, without any preconditions, to start the negotiations process,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. “We have not heard a response from the Kyiv regime so far.”
Putin announced the surprise ceasefire on Monday, which will last for three days between May 8 and 10, when Russia plans lavish celebrations to mark the 80th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.
Ukraine, in response, questioned why Moscow would not agree to its call for a ceasefire lasting at least 30 days and starting immediately.
“We value people’s lives and not parades,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of the war in Ukraine.
We’ll bring you the latest news and analysis throughout the day.
Copy link
twitter
facebook
whatsapp
email
Ukraine war latest: Russia threatens Nato with nuclear strikes – The Telegraph
