Russia’s Security Council deputy chairman Dmitry Medvedev referenced the looming expiration of the U.S.-Russian New START strategic arms treaty and reiterated that Moscow is prepared to use nuclear weapons in line with its doctrine. He also suggested Russia could consider extending the pact, without specifying what conditions the United States would need to meet.
On the morning of February 2, Medvedev’s press office released excerpts of an interview he gave to Reuters, state media outlet TASS and the war channel WarGonzo. A shortened recap appeared on TASS’s Telegram channel. Among other remarks, he said Russia would be ready to use nuclear weapons if it believed its existence was threatened.
Medvedev, who served as Russia’s president from 2008 to 2012, said the head of state must always be ready to “push the nuclear button,” noting that the president undergoes regular drills for such a scenario.
“If the fate of the country is at stake, there should be no doubt [about the use of nuclear weapons] for anyone. As commander-in-chief, of course, I took part at the time in all the necessary training, including on nuclear weapons,” he told Reuters and other media.
He also turned to Ukraine and its president. Medvedev said Moscow had previously recognized the elections of Petro Poroshenko and Volodymyr Zelensky, but does not consider the current president legitimate. He issued a pointed warning to Zelensky, hinting at possible death and electoral defeat.
“I can say only one thing. You know, as one famous Kyiv resident said, Annushka has already spilled the oil. He won’t keep his head. It depends on how the elections go,” Medvedev said.
TASS listed other comments from the interview: Medvedev hinted at the approach of a global war, called the dissolution of NATO a positive development, and said neither Russia nor China threatens Earlier, Russian propagandist Vladimir Solovyov revived nuclear threats and suggested detonating a nuclear bomb in space. Solovyov spoke after restrictions emerged on the Russian military’s use of Starlink. Two days earlier, State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin escalated his rhetoric, proposing a strike with a “weapon of retribution”. Moscow’s nuclear rhetoric has intensified as the New START Treaty approaches its deadline on February 4–5, with no extension by either the United States or Russia.
Medvedev has repeatedly issued threats against Ukraine, Western politicians and Western countries. In one social media post, he warned of the possibility of a “nuclear apocalypse” if the West does not stop supplying weapons to Kyiv.
