Ukraine issues clarifications as Russia accuses Zelenskyy of calling for nuclear attack
Ukraine on Thursday clarified Russia’s allegations against Zelenskyy and said he was referring to preventive sanctions to be applied before the invasion.
As several Russian officials termed the recent speech of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy “provocative” amid the ongoing war, Ukraine on Thursday clarified the allegations and said he was referring to preventive sanctions to be applied before the full-scale invasion, and “not provocating for a nuclear attack on Moscow”.
The clarifications came as several top Russian officials, including Kremlin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov and Foreign Minister spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, accused the Ukranian President of calling for a nuclear war. “NATO’s role was to make it impossible for Russia to use nuclear weapons.
I appealed to the international community, to do preemptive strikes, so they know what will happen to them if they use it, and not vice versa – to wait for nuclear strikes by Russia,” Zelenskyy said on October 6.
Clarifying the statement of Zelenskyy, Serhii Nykyforov, the President Zelenskyy’s spokesperson, said he was referring to preventive sanctions to be applied before Russia’s full-scale invasion and was not calling for any nuclear warfare. The spokesperson assured that the war-torn country would never call for the use of nuclear weapons.
The statement has also been supported by Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to the head of the President’s Office. According to Podolyak, the President was reminded about the Russian blackmail and not called for any nuclear attack. Also, he said that Zelenskyy, in his latest speech, had urged the world to intensify strikes against Russia, including sanctions and military aid.
Putin warned his nuclear threat is not a “bluff
Earlier last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin called for a possible nuclear attack as the Ukrainian army pulled off a surprise counteroffensive to recapture territory around its second-largest city, Kharkiv, in the east.
“I want to remind you that our country also has various means of destruction … and when the territorial integrity of our country is threatened, to protect Russia and our people, we will certainly use all the means at our disposal,” Putin said in the televised address,
adding with a lingering stare at the camera: “It’s not a bluff.” At that time, Zelenskyy said his country remains committed to recapturing all of its sovereign territories and described Putin’s remarks as “a demonstration of Russia’s battlefield setbacks”.
Image: AP
