Russia is ready to defend itself against emerging threats with any weapon, including nuclear. This was announced on February 22 by Dmitry Medvedev, Deputy Head of the Security Council of Russia.
The path that the United States has chosen for itself is erroneous, as it was generated by the “sense of superiority and impunity” of the United States, the politician noted.
“If the United States wants to defeat Russia, then we have the right to defend ourselves with any weapon, including nuclear. And as rightly said [президент РФ] Vladimir Putin: “It is impossible to defeat Russia on the battlefield,” the politician noted in his Telegram channel.
Commenting on the decision of Russian President Vladimir Putin to suspend Russia’s participation in the Strategic Offensive Arms Treaty (START), Medvedev added that Russia was pushed to it by “the war declared by the United States and other NATO countries” against the Russian Federation, including the supply of weapons to Kiev.
According to the politician, the “American establishment” has so far reasoned in approximately the same vein: “we will spoil you everywhere and in everything.”
“… We will work to defeat Russia, we will limit and destroy you, but strategic security is a separate issue. It is not connected with the general context of relations between the US and Russia. She is almost a sacred cow,” Medvedev wrote.
Also, Medvedev, commenting on the speech of US President Joe Biden in Warsaw, said that Russia would be torn apart if it stopped the special operation to protect Donbass without achieving victory. As for the conflict in Ukraine, it will end when the US stops supplying arms to Kyiv.
On February 21, during a message to the Federal Assembly, the Russian leader announced the suspension of participation in the START. He stressed that this is precisely the suspension, and not the withdrawal from the treaty. At the same time, the head of state said that before returning to the discussion of START, the country must understand how to take into account the nuclear arsenals of France and Great Britain. Then he introduced the relevant law to the State Duma.
In turn, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the alliance regrets the decision taken by the Russian side on START. He also urged Moscow to review it and honor its commitments.
On February 22, the law on the suspension of Russia’s participation in the Treaty on the Reduction of Strategic Offensive Arms was already supported by the defense committee of the Federation Council of the Russian Federation, and also supported by the State Duma committee on international affairs.
The agreement between the Russian Federation and the United States on measures to reduce and limit strategic offensive arms was signed on April 8, 2010 in Prague. The document replaced the 1991 START Treaty. Upon entry into force, it also replaced the 2002 Strategic Offensive Reductions Treaty.
This START agreement was worked out on a parity basis in accordance with the principle of equal and indivisible security and provided for real, verifiable and irreversible reductions in strategic offensive arms.
