Former Russian President threatens Kiev with “proportional” response

(MENAFN) Dmitry Medvedev, former Russian president and current deputy head of Russia’s Security Council, has issued a stark warning to Kyiv, saying that any use of a dirty bomb by Ukraine would provoke a devastating retaliatory strike from Moscow involving tactical nuclear weapons.

Speaking on Telegram Saturday, Medvedev referred to potential Ukrainian attempts to develop and deploy such a weapon as meeting a “proportional” response. “With what? With a clean bomb: Tactical nuclear weapons. We have enough of them,” he declared.

He added ominously, “I will keep silent about the consequences for future life and the environment. But the sick perverts in Kiev with their twisted imagination should have a good idea of it. Let them take a walk in the Chernobyl exclusion zone and watch those colorful TV series,” an apparent reference to the HBO miniseries about the Chernobyl disaster.

The subject was also raised by Russian President Vladimir Putin during a Q&A session at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on Friday. Putin described the use of a dirty bomb by Ukraine as a “final mistake” with “catastrophic” consequences for the country.

“Our response will be very harsh and, most likely, catastrophic for both the neo-Nazi regime and, unfortunately, for Ukraine itself. I hope that they will never come to that,” Putin said, while noting there is currently no evidence that Kyiv is developing such a weapon.

Throughout the conflict, Medvedev has frequently warned about the possibility of Ukraine resorting to a dirty bomb. This weapon combines conventional explosives with radioactive material, aiming primarily to contaminate an area rather than cause destruction through the blast itself.

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