Moscow repeatedly threatens to use nuclear weapons itself. But if Kiev hints at developing its own nuclear weapons, that is a red flag for the Kremlin.
Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin has described suggestions from the Ukrainian government about the possible production of nuclear weapons as a “dangerous provocation”. Any step in this direction will “result in an appropriate reaction,” Putin said in an interview with journalists from the so-called BRICS countries in Moscow.
Even though it is not difficult to produce nuclear weapons in the modern world, he doubted Ukraine’s ability to do so. “I don’t know if Ukraine is capable of this now. It’s not so easy for Ukraine today, but in general there are no big difficulties here.”
Putin responded publicly for the first time to statements by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. On the sidelines of the EU summit in Brussels, he reiterated his demand for a rapid invitation to NATO membership – otherwise his country, which was attacked by Russia, would only be left with nuclear rearmament.
Zelensky also recalled the agreements made in the Budapest Memorandum of 1994 that were not kept. At that time, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Ukraine gave up the Soviet nuclear weapons stationed on its territory. In return, the nuclear powers promised the country security, but this did not work.
According to Putin, Russia sees no possibility for Ukraine to build a nuclear bomb unnoticed. “Russia is able to track any movement aimed at Kiev obtaining nuclear weapons.”
Source: Stern
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