Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev serves as the Deputy Head of the Security Council of Russia. (file)
Moscow, Russia:
Russia’s former President Dmitry Medvedev said on Sunday that the country is ramping up production of new generation weapons to defend itself against enemies in Europe, the United States and Australia.
“We are increasing the production of the most powerful means of destruction, including those based on new principles,” Medvedev said on the messaging app Telegram.
“Our enemy dug in not only in the Kiev province of our native Malorossia,” Medvedev said, using the term to describe areas of modern Ukraine that were part of the Russian Empire.
“It’s Europe, North America, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and many other places that pledged allegiance to the Nazis.”
Medvedev, who serves as deputy head of Russia’s Security Council, did not provide details of the weapons.
President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly said Russia is developing new types of weapons, including hypersonic weapons that can defeat all existing missile defense systems.
Since Putin sent troops into Ukraine on February 24, Medvedev, 57, has regularly taken to social media to write increasingly bombastic posts.
With pro-Russia forces on the backfoot in their offensive in western Ukraine, the military standoff has raised fears that Russia could use its nuclear arsenal to achieve a military breakthrough.
On Friday, Putin said Russia could amend its military doctrine by introducing the possibility of a preemptive strike to disarm the enemy, in an apparent reference to a nuclear strike.
The Kremlin chief claimed Russia’s cruise missiles and hypersonic systems were “more modern and even more efficient” than those of the United States.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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