In what appears to be a major escalation between the U.S. and Russia, President Donald Trump said on Friday that he had ordered two nuclear submarines to move near Russia.
To justify his decision, Trump cited what he called the “provocative and foolish statements” made by the Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia and former president Dmitry Medvedev.
“Based on the highly provocative statements of the former president of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev, who is now the deputy chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, I have ordered two nuclear submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions, just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that. Words are very important and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those instances. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” Trump said in a social media post.
Trump and Medvedev had a spat on social media following a statement by the U.S. president that he was disappointed by Putin and had shortened his ultimatum from fifty to ten days for a ceasefire to be agreed upon in the war in Ukraine.
In response, Medvedev warned Trump that Russia was neither Iran nor Israel to be threatened, mentioning his country’s military power, including its nuclear capabilities. Medvedev reminded President Trump of Russia’s doomsday weapon called “Dead Hand,” a Cold War–era automatic or semi-automatic nuclear weapons control system, in the online exchange.
