عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
World

Russia's Defense Minister Orders More Weapons for Operation in Ukraine

A Russian serviceman walks in front of the armored vehicles captured by Russian troops during a special military operation in Ukraine during an exhibition on the Poklonnaya Hill in Moscow, 28 April 2024. EPA/SERGEI ILNITSKY
A Russian serviceman walks in front of the armored vehicles captured by Russian troops during a special military operation in Ukraine during an exhibition on the Poklonnaya Hill in Moscow, 28 April 2024. EPA/SERGEI ILNITSKY
TT
TT

Russia's Defense Minister Orders More Weapons for Operation in Ukraine

A Russian serviceman walks in front of the armored vehicles captured by Russian troops during a special military operation in Ukraine during an exhibition on the Poklonnaya Hill in Moscow, 28 April 2024. EPA/SERGEI ILNITSKY
A Russian serviceman walks in front of the armored vehicles captured by Russian troops during a special military operation in Ukraine during an exhibition on the Poklonnaya Hill in Moscow, 28 April 2024. EPA/SERGEI ILNITSKY

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu ordered more and speedier weapon delivery for Moscow's military operation in Ukraine, the Russian defense ministry said on Wednesday.
"To maintain the required pace of the offensive ... it is necessary to increase the volume and quality of weapons and military equipment supplied to the troops, primarily weapons," the defense ministry cited Shoigu as saying in a statement posted on the Telegram messaging app.

A Russian missile attack killed three people and injured three others in the Ukrainian port of Odesa early on Wednesday, regional Governor Oleh Kiper said.
Kiper, writing on the Telegram messaging app, said the attack damaged civilian infrastructure.
He said the strike was carried out by a ballistic missile, but provided no further details.
Kiper and Odesa Mayor Hennadii Trukhanov had reported a series of loud explosions.
Reuters could not independently confirm the accounts. Russia says it does not deliberately target civilians.
On Monday, a Russian missile struck an educational institution in the city, killing five people.
Odesa has been a frequent target of Russian forces in the more than two-year-old war, with many attacks aimed at the city's port facilities.

Most Viewed

 
 
World

Russia Condemns ‘Irresponsible’ Talk of Nuclear Weapons for Ukraine

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a press conference of Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia October 24, 2024. (Reuters)
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a press conference of Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia October 24, 2024. (Reuters)
TT
TT

Russia Condemns ‘Irresponsible’ Talk of Nuclear Weapons for Ukraine

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a press conference of Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia October 24, 2024. (Reuters)
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a press conference of Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia October 24, 2024. (Reuters)

Discussion in the West about arming Ukraine with nuclear weapons is "absolutely irresponsible", Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday, in response to a report in the New York Times citing unidentified officials who suggested such a possibility.

The New York Times reported last week that some unidentified Western officials had suggested US President Joe Biden could give Ukraine nuclear weapons before he leaves office.

"Several officials even suggested that Mr. Biden could return nuclear weapons to Ukraine that were taken from it after the fall of the Soviet Union. That would be an instant and enormous deterrent. But such a step would be complicated and have serious implications," the newspaper wrote.

Asked about the report, Peskov told reporters: "These are absolutely irresponsible arguments of people who have a poor understanding of reality and who do not feel a shred of responsibility when making such statements. We also note that all of these statements are anonymous."

Earlier, senior Russian security official Dmitry Medvedev said that if the West supplied nuclear weapons to Ukraine then Moscow could consider such a transfer to be tantamount to an attack on Russia, providing grounds for a nuclear response.

Ukraine inherited nuclear weapons from the Soviet Union after its 1991 collapse, but gave them up under a 1994 agreement, the Budapest Memorandum, in return for security assurances from Russia, the United States and Britain.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said last month that as Ukraine had handed over the nuclear weapons, joining NATO was the only way it could deter Russia.

The 33-month Russia-Ukraine war saw escalations on both sides last week, after Ukraine fired US and British missiles into Russia for the first time, with permission from the West, and Moscow responded by launching a new hypersonic intermediate-range missile into Ukraine.

Asked about the risk of a nuclear escalation, Peskov said the West should "listen carefully" to Putin and read Russia's newly updated nuclear doctrine, which lowered the threshold for using nuclear weapons.

Separately, Russian foreign intelligence chief Sergei Naryshkin said Moscow opposes simply freezing the conflict in Ukraine because it needs a "solid and long-term peace" that resolves the core reasons for the crisis.