Permitting Ukraine to join NATO will “guarantee” World War III, a senior Russian official said in a dire warning to the West.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky announced a surprise bid for fast-track membership of the NATO military alliance at the end of September. He applied after Russia annexed four regions following a referendum.
Today, Russian state-owned news agency Tass quoted Alexander Venediktov, the deputy secretary of Russia’s Security Council, as saying: “Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed escalation to World War Three.
“The suicidal nature of such a step is understood by NATO members themselves.”
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Mr. Venediktov is deputy to Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev who is known to be a powerful Putin ally. He said he believed Ukraine’s application was “a propaganda move.”
“Apparently, that’s what they are counting on – to create informational noise and draw attention to themselves once again.”
He added that the US is a “direct party to the conflict.”
Who gave Joe Biden and the Democrats permission to go to war with a nuclear nation? Putin is a dangerous man, and we should be turning down the temperature.
A NATO official said any use of nuclear weapons by Moscow would have “unprecedented consequences.”
What does that mean? These lunatics will start a world war that will destroy the lives of people worldwide.
Last week Ukraine President Zelensky called for preemptive strikes on Russia. The backlash was harsh and swift. His spokesperson was then forced to walk it back. The spokesperson said Zelensky meant “sanctions.”
RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER SAID US-MOSCOW RELATIONS CAN’T GET ANY WORSE
In an interview with Russia’s Rossiya 24 news channel aired on Thursday, Lavrov was asked whether he thought Biden’s reluctance to talk with Russian President Vladimir Putin would further complicate tensions in the international arena.
“It doesn’t complicate [it] at all because the state of affairs as it stands today has already been driven, first of all by the US, to such a condition that it can’t get any worse, in my opinion,” the Russian minister replied.
According to Lavrov, Russia has “never rejected a single earnest, sensible offer to hold contacts.” However, “no one is putting forth sensible initiatives,” he added.
Speaking to journalists on Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that president Biden “has no intention of meeting with President Putin.”
“Look, I have no intention of meeting with him,” Biden said when asked about his plans for the upcoming G20 summit in Bali.
The US president went on to add, however, that “if [Putin] came to me at the G20 and said, ‘I want to talk about the release of Griner,’ I’d meet with him. I mean, it would depend.”
Lavrov had made it clear earlier that Moscow would consider such talks should it receive a proposal from Washington.
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