After Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested last week that the use of nuclear weapons to bring Ukraine to heel after his own forces have taken a beating this month and are being pushed out of previously occupied regions was on the table, Zelenskyy saw that warning as in invitation to widen the conflict in a way that would most assuredly take it nuclear.
"What should NATO do? Eliminate the possibility of Russia using nuclear weapons," Zelensky said in provocative Thursday remarks. "I once again appeal to the international community, as it was before February 24: preemptive strikes so that they [Russia] know what will happen to them if they use it, and not the other way around."
"Don’t wait for Russia’s nuclear strikes, and then say, ‘Oh, since you did this, take that from us!’ Reconsider the way you apply pressure. This is what NATO should do – reconsider the order in which it applies pressure [on Russia]," the Ukrainian leader noted further.
NEW - Ukraine's Zelensky calls on NATO to launch "preemptive strikes" against Russia to "eliminate the possibility" of a Russian nuclear strike.pic.twitter.com/gj6mSRZfFF
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Following those remarks, one of Zelenskyy's spokespersons attempted to clarify the remarks: "The president was speaking about the period before Feb 24. Preventative measures should have been used at that time to prevent Russia from unleashing a war. I will remind you that the only measures discussed at that time were preventative sanctions."
MORE - Zelensky’s press sec: "The president was speaking about the period before Feb 24. Preventative measures should have been used at that time to prevent Russia from unleashing a war. I will remind you that the only measures discussed at that time were preventative sanctions."
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Zelenskyy's remarks led to a response from Russia’s Foreign Ministry, which accused the Ukrainian leader of trying to provoke a nuclear war. Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova stated that “every person on the planet” should recognize that the “unbalanced” puppet leader of Ukraine, who has been pumped full of weapons, has turned into “a monster, whose hands can destroy the planet," according to state-controlled outlet RT.com.
President Joe Biden also remarked on Putin's threat of nuclear weapons.
"We’re trying to figure out what is Putin’s off-ramp? Where does he get off? Where does he find a way out?" Biden noted at a Thursday fundraiser in New York City for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which was held at the New York home of James Murdoch, the liberal son of News Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch. "Where does he find himself in a position that he does not, not only lose face but lose significant power in Russia?
"He is not joking when he talks about potential use of tactical nuclear weapons or biological and chemical weapons, because his military is, you might say, significantly underperforming," Biden added, according to Bloomberg. "I don’t think there’s any such thing as the ability to easily use tactical nuclear weapons and not end up with Armageddon."
Some analysts tried to pick apart Zelenskyy's words to see if there is a deeper meaning other than a straight-up invitation to trigger World War III.
"Several potential interpretations can be made of [the] remarks," said analysts from Forward Observer, a private intelligence firm, in a Friday subscriber's note. "The first is a call for pre-emptive nuclear strikes on Russia that could trigger a global nuclear war. An alternative version is a request for long-range precision strike capabilities to eliminate Russian tactical nuclear forces immediately before a launch.
"Regardless of interpretation, the remarks will serve as a nexus for propaganda from Russia and the West, and will undoubtedly increase regional tensions," the analysts wrote.
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