Tensions between Russia and the West have reached a critical point as a senior Russian lawmaker issued a chilling warning. Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of Russia’s lower house of parliament, stated on Thursday that Ukrainian strikes on Russian territory using Western-supplied missiles would trigger a “global war with the use of nuclear weapons.”
Volodin’s statement follows a European Parliament vote supporting Ukraine’s right to target Russian military positions with Western weapons. The resolution, adopted with a significant majority, argued that the current situation “hinders Ukraine’s ability to fully exercise its right to self-defence under international public law and leaves Ukraine exposed to attacks on its population and infrastructure.”
The speaker of the Duma, a close ally of President Vladimir Putin, responded to the resolution with a forceful threat. He asserted that Moscow would retaliate with more powerful weapons if the West authorized such attacks, specifically mentioning the RS-28 Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile, nicknamed “Satan II,” which could reach Strasbourg, a French city close to the German border, in just over three minutes.
This escalating rhetoric echoes the tense atmosphere of the Cold War, specifically the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, when the United States and the Soviet Union came perilously close to nuclear conflict. While Volodin’s threat was not directly connected to this historical event, it underscores the heightened stakes in the current conflict.
Ukraine has been urging its allies to permit the use of donated arms to strike “legitimate” military targets deep inside Russian territory, such as the air bases used by Russian aircraft in their relentless bombing of Ukraine. Newly appointed Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybia welcomed the European Parliament resolution, calling it a demonstration of “decisiveness and leadership.”
The latest developments signal a dangerous escalation in the conflict, raising concerns about a potential nuclear conflict. As the situation continues to unfold, the international community faces the daunting task of de-escalating tensions and finding a peaceful solution to the war in Ukraine.
