Kremlin urges caution in nuclear rhetoric following Donald Trump’s submarine announcement
The Kremlin has urged caution in nuclear rhetoric, responding for the first time to US President Donald Trump’s announcement that the US is repositioning nuclear submarines.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov played down the significance of Mr Trump’s comments, saying on Monday that US submarines are already on combat duty and that Moscow does not want to comment further.
Mr Trump said last Friday that he had ordered two submarines to be moved to “the appropriate regions” in response to remarks from former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev about the risk of war between the nuclear-armed powers.
“In this case, it is obvious that American submarines are already on combat duty. This is an ongoing process, that’s the first thing,” Mr Peskov told reporters.
“But in general, of course, we would not want to get involved in such a controversy and would not want to comment on it in any way,” he said. “Of course, we believe that everyone should be very, very careful with nuclear rhetoric.”
Mr Peskov said Moscow did not view Mr Trump’s statement as an escalation in nuclear tension.
“We do not believe that we are talking about any escalation now. It is clear that very complex, very sensitive issues are being discussed, which, of course, are perceived very emotionally by many people,” he said.
He declined to answer directly whether Mr Medvedev, who currently serves as deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia, was advised to tone down his online altercation with Mr Trump.
The spat between former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev and Donald Trump intensified over nuclear rhetoric. Pic: Reuters
“Listen, in every country, members of the leadership… have different points of view on events that are taking place, different attitudes. There are people who are very, very tough-minded in the United States of America and in European countries, so this is always the case,” Mr Peskov said.
“But the main thing, of course, is the position of President (Vladimir) Putin. You know that in our country, foreign policy is formulated by the head of state, that is, President Putin.”
The spat between Mr Trump and Mr Medvedev flared up after the US president said he is reducing his 50-day deadline for Russia to end its war in Ukraine to less than two weeks.
Mr Medvedev posted on social media that Mr Trump was “playing the ultimatum game with Russia… Each new ultimatum is a threat and a step towards war”.
The US president responded: “Tell Medvedev, the failed former Russian president who thinks he is still in power, to be careful what he says. He is entering very dangerous territory.”
A Russian air strike has set cars on fire and damaged buildings in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region. Pic: Sofiia Gatilova/Reuters
Medvedev’s following post mentioned “Dead Hand,” the automatic nuclear retaliation system created during the Soviet era.
Ukraine and Russia continue attacks amid stalled talks
Meanwhile, Russia and Ukraine continue exchanging strikes as peace talks to end the conflict remain stalled.
Ukraine’s security service said on Monday that its drones have attacked a Russian military airfield in Crimea, damaging several planes.
US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff meets Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin.
The Ukrainian military also claimed it had attacked a Russian fuel depot at Sochi airport the previous day. Russian officials reported on Sunday that an overnight Ukrainian drone attack on an oil depot near the Black Sea resort of Sochi caused a large fire, which prompted authorities to halt flights from the airport.
Ukraine said on Monday its forces neutralised 161 out of 162 Russian drones launched overnight.
As the US deadline for the Russian president to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine approaches, Mr Trump’s Special Envoy Steve Wikoff will be travelling to Moscow on Wednesday for talks.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday that Ukraine and Russia have agreed to exchange 1,200 prisoners following their latest round of negotiations in Istanbul in July.
Mr Zelensky also said that his office is in communication with US partners and that “pressure on Russia can truly work – in a way that makes them feel the consequences of prolonging the war”.
World
US blocks Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and 80 other officials from United Nations’ annual meeting in New York
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and 80 other officials have been blocked from attending September’s annual meeting of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
US secretary of state Marco Rubio has revoked the US visas of delegates from the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), and denied others from applying for one.
It is the latest step by Donald Trump’s administration to target Palestinians with visa restrictions, and follows the suspension of a programme to allow injured children from Gaza to receive treatment in the US.
Mahmoud Abbas addressed the general assembly in 2024, but is barred from next month’s meeting. Pic: Reuters
“It is in our national security interests to hold the PLO and PA accountable for not complying with their commitments, and for undermining the prospects for peace,” a statement from the US State Department said.
It added that, to be considered partners for peace, both groups “must consistently repudiate terrorism, and end incitement to terrorism in education, as required by US law and as promised by the PLO”.
Offensive will cause ‘intolerable deaths’
Several US allies, including France, Malta, and Australia have announced plans to recognise Palestine as a state at September’s United Nations General Assembly. Canada and the UK will too, unless Israel meets certain conditions.
Israel declared Gaza’s largest city a dangerous combat zone on Friday.
The army launched a planned offensive that has drawn international condemnation.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Thick smoke rises from Gaza City after Israeli strikes
Foreign ministers from Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Norway, Slovenia and Spain released a joint statement saying the military operations in Gaza City will cause “intolerable deaths of innocent Palestinian civilians”.
Gaza latest: Israel’s Gaza City offensive condemned
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are sheltering in Gaza City while enduring famine.
An Israeli armoured vehicle in northern Gaza on Friday. Pic: AP
Palestinians ride a truck carrying humanitarian aid in Gaza City. Pic: AP
The Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations (UN), Riyad Mansour, said Mr Abbas had planned to lead the delegation to the UN meetings and was expected to address the general assembly at the general debate, which begins on 23 September.
He was also expected to attend a high-level meeting co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia on 22 September about a two-state solution, a broad idea involving Israel coexisting with an independent Palestinian state.
The State of Palestine is an observer member of the UN, meaning it can speak at meetings but not vote on resolutions.
The State of Palestine cannot vote on UN resolutions. Pic: AP
US decision ‘contravenes international law’
The Palestinian Authority “expressed its deep regret and astonishment” at the visa decision, calling it “a violation of US commitments” as the host of the UN, and claiming it “contravenes international law”.
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the world body would be seeking clarification in the “hope that this will be resolved”.
Hundreds of diplomats left when Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu began speaking at the general assembly in 2024. Pic: Reuters
The State Department said that the Palestinian Authority’s mission to the UN, comprising officials who are permanently based there, would not be included in the restrictions.
Under a 1947 UN agreement, the US is generally required to allow access for foreign diplomats to the UN in New York.
But Washington has said it can deny visas for security, extremism and foreign policy reasons.
Read more from Sky News:
Analysis: Israel is killing a lot of journalists
Hospitals ‘overwhelmed’ by malnutrition cases
Tony Blair meets Trump over Gaza
Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim every Wednesday
The death toll in Gaza has now risen to 63,025, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants.
It also reported five more malnutrition-related deaths in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number during the war to 322, with 121 of them children.
World
Brazil implores businesses to attend major climate summit, despite ‘second thoughts’ amid Trump backlash
The Brazilian hosts of the biggest climate meeting of the year have implored businesses to attend in November, amid concerns some are backing away from the climate agenda into the shadow of Donald Trump.
In an interview with Sky News, Ana Toni, chief executive of the COP30 climate summit in November, admitted some companies were having “second thoughts” about the global switch to green economies because policymakers were creating uncertainty.
The US President Donald Trump has been attacking wind farms and waging tariff wars that could slow the transition to green energy.
Banks including HSBC and Barclays have ditched a net zero alliance set up just four years ago by Mark Carney, now the Canadian Prime Minister.
Ana Toni, Brazil’s climate secretary, is chief executive of the COP30 climate talks. Pic: Reuters
But even before Trump took office, tech companies were quietly dropping climate targets to prioritise energy-hungry AI, and other businesses were “greenhushing” their climate initiatives for fear of backlash.
In this environment, there are fears fewer business leaders will attend the annual talks, which are also being hosted in a city on the edge of the Amazon that hasn’t enough hotel rooms.
On Friday, the COP30 team wrote to business leaders urging them to “step forward, not back” and travel to Belem, despite “logistical challenges” and the “background of systemic uncertainty”.
Ana Toni told Sky News: “We are very concerned that the enabling conditions must be there so that the private sector can also deliver where they do best, which is bringing in technology, bringing innovation and accelerating the process of decarbonisation.”
In August the share price of Danish wind farm developer plummeted after the US halted its Rhode Island wind farm, while the British Tories and Reform parties are also attacking net zero.
Ana Toni met with King Charles and leaders of other COP summits at Clarence House last year. Pic: Reuters
But Ms Toni there is “nothing to panic [about], because we can see that the transition is inevitable,” citing major progress in China, India and Europe and Brazil.
Referring to the US’s withdrawal from the COP process, she said: “198 countries minus one is not zero. And we will put all our efforts of working with the 197 countries that want to go forward and want to protect their population.”
“Climate action is not only [still] cool, it is necessary,” Ms Toni said.
“We all need to face reality. We are going through a huge climate crisis… If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem. Companies understand that.”
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Sports2 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment11 months agoHere are the best electric bikes you can buy at every price level in October 2024