Latest News by Industry
Lithuania said Moscow has already deployed nuclear weapons near its border, in Kaliningrad, ahead of invading Ukraine
Russia said if Finland and Sweden joined NATO, the US-led military alliance, then Moscow would have to deploy nuclear weapons to bolster its defense in the Baltic region of Europe.
“There can be no more talk of any nuclear-free status for the Baltic - the balance must be restored,” Dmitry Medvedev, the former Russian president and deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, said on Thursday.
The comments came a day after Finland, which shares a 1,300 km (810 miles) border with Russia, and Sweden said they are deciding to seek NATO membership in the coming weeks, citing the changing geopolitical climate of Europe after Russia attacked Ukraine.
If the two countries did join NATO, that would give Moscow “more officially registered opponents,” Medvedev, who was president from 2008 to 2012, said and mentioned that Russia would have to strengthen its land, naval, and air forces in the Baltic Sea.
Russia’s response should be taken with “no emotion, with a cold head,” he added.
“Until today, Russia has not taken such measures and was not going to,” Medvedev said. “If our hand is forced, well... take note it wasn’t us who proposed this,” he added.
Russia deployed nuclear weapons before invasion
The Baltic region includes the north-eastern European countries of Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, and Sweden.
While all of the countries are members of the EU, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia are the only countries in the region that are members of NATO.
Lithuania, which borders the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, said Russia’s threats were “nothing new.”
Moscow had deployed nuclear weapons to Kaliningrad long before the war in Ukraine, Lithuanian Defence Minister Arvydas Anusauskas said.
“The current Russian threats look quite strange when we know that, even without the present security situation, they keep the weapon 100 km from Lithuania’s border,” the minister said.
“Nuclear weapons have always been kept in Kaliningrad ... the international community, the countries in the region, are perfectly aware of this ... They use it as a threat,” Anusauskas added.
Picture Credit: Times of Israel
ALSO READ: