By Guy Faulconbridge and Jonathan Landy
LONDON/ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine (Portal) An ally of President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday issued a fresh nuclear alert for Ukraine and the West as referenda announced by Russia as a prelude to the annexation of four Ukrainian regions entered their fifth and final day .
Moscow’s latest controversy concerns an investigation by European countries into unexplained leaks in two Russian gas pipelines under the Baltic Sea, which will hamper efforts to recapture the main pipeline carrying Russian gas to Germany.
The Kremlin, which has blamed technical problems for earlier cuts in Russian gas supplies to Europe, said it could not rule out sabotage but declined to say by whom and called for an investigation.
Russia’s confrontation with the West has increased global inflation and exacerbated energy and food crises in many countries since the February 24 invasion of Ukraine, which was met with harsh Western sanctions and Russian retaliation.
Tuesday’s nuclear alert from Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, is one of several issued by Putin and his allies in recent weeks.
Analysts say they aim to deter Ukraine and the West, and indicate a readiness to use tactical nuclear weapons to defend the newly annexed territory, where Russian forces have faced heavy Ukrainian counteroffensives in recent weeks.
Medvedev’s warning differs from previous ones in that he predicted for the first time that the NATO military alliance would not risk nuclear war by going headtohead with the Ukraine war, even if Moscow were to attack Ukraine with nuclear weapons.
“I believe that even in this scenario, NATO would not directly intervene in the conflict,” Medvedev said in a Telegram post.
“Demagogues across the ocean and in Europe will not die in a nuclear apocalypse.”
REFERENCES
Voting on joining Russia in four Ukrainian regions partially controlled by Moscow Kherson, Luhansk, Donetsk and Zaporizhia has entered its fifth and final day. The West has said it will not recognize the outcome of what it sees as illegal fraudulent referendums.
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Russian government officials have repeatedly warned they could use nuclear weapons to defend the new territory if Kiev’s armed forces, which already control part of it, attempt to take what Moscow says it will soon consider its sovereign territory.
NATO and the United States have not publicly stated how they would respond to a Russian nuclear strike on Ukraine, but Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, told CBS on Sunday Washington had told Moscow what it described as “catastrophic.” Consequences”. ” ” to Russia.
Ukraine’s presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said in an interview with the Swiss newspaper Blick that Ukraine is preparing for the possibility of a Russian nuclear strike, but said the responsibility rests with the nucleararmed states to stop Russia.
“Where exactly should we send people in the event of a Russian nuclear strike against Ukraine?” he asked. “That’s why the use of nuclear weapons is a global security issue — it’s not just about Ukraine anymore.”
Podolyak said in the same interview that Ukrainians who helped Russia organize the annexation referendums face charges of treason and at least five years in prison.