FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
Putin said the military has already selected deployment sites in Belarus for the Oreshnik medium-range ballistic missile.
The conflict between the US and Russia is escalating. US President Donald Trump yesterday ordered the deployment of two nuclear submarines near the Russian border. Meanwhile, in response, Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared that Russia has begun production of its new hypersonic missiles and reiterated its plans to deploy them to its Belarusian ally by the end of the year.
Sitting next to Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Valaam Island, near St. Petersburg, Putin said the military has already selected deployment sites in Belarus for the Oreshnik medium-range ballistic missile.
"Preparatory work is underway and we will most likely complete it by the end of the year," Putin said, adding that the first batch of Oreshnik and related systems has been produced and made operational.
Russia first used the Oreshnik, which means "hazelnut" in Russian, against Ukraine in November, targeting a factory on the Dnieper that had been building missiles since Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union. It is worth noting that the Oreshnik missile, which can carry conventional or nuclear warheads, has a range that allows it to reach all of Europe.
On the other hand, Trump called Putin "a tough guy" during an interview with conservative media outlet Newsmax in recent hours, where he was asked if his opinion of the Russian leader had changed in recent months.
He further added that until recently they had very good relations and were on the right track to ending the war, but suddenly things changed.
"He's definitely a tough guy, so he hasn't changed in that sense. But I'm surprised. We've had numerous productive conversations where we could have left this aside and all of a sudden the bombs start flying, " Trump said.
The American leader was asked what his actions would be if a deal on Ukraine could not be reached within the 10 days allotted to them, which expire on August 8.
"We're going to put sanctions in place. He manages sanctions very well, he knows how to get around them," Trump responded, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Trump then again called what is happening in Ukraine "Biden's war" and added that he would not have allowed this conflict if he had remained in power immediately for a second term.
" There was no doubt about that. And I got along well with Putin ," the US president stressed.
Regarding Dmitry Medvedev's provocative statements, Trump said the former Russian president should not have mentioned nuclear weapons.
" Medvedev has said some very serious things, talking about nuclear weapons. And when he mentions the word 'nuclear,' you know, my eyes light up and I say, 'We better be careful,' because it's the ultimate threat. He's said things like that before. So we always want to be ready. And so I sent two nuclear submarines to the region. I just want to make sure that his words are just words and nothing more ," Trump told Newsmax.
We recall that angered by the Russian politician's words, Trump yesterday ordered two nuclear submarines to approach Russia./ Pamphlet
Lini një Përgjigje