President Donald Trump issued a rare threat of nuclear escalation on Friday, saying he had ordered two nuclear submarines to be strategically positioned near Russia in response to what he said were aggressive remarks by Dmitry Medvedev, the country’s former president and current deputy chairman of its Security Council.
“I have ordered two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions, just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that. Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those instances. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” Trump said in a Truth Social post.
Addressing the matter later with reporters, he said the move was an effort to be “prepared.”
“He was talking about nuclear,” Trump said. “When you talk about nuclear, we have to be prepared, and we’re totally prepared.”
It was not immediately clear if Trump was referring to subs with nuclear weapon capabilities, or merely nuclear powered subs. The Pentagon keeps movements of its nuclear capabilities closely held, making it nearly impossible to confirm Trump’s announcement.
But his statement nonetheless made for a striking rhetorical confrontation that evoked some of the nuclear saber rattling that colored the Cold War.
Trump later Friday said the repositioned nuclear submarines were moved “closer to Russia.”
“We always want to be ready, and so I have sent to the region two nuclear submarines. I just want to make sure that his words are only words and nothing more than that,” Trump said in an interview with Newsmax.
Medvedev, who has been sparring with Trump online for the past several days, on Thursday had made reference to Russia’s Soviet-era automatic, retaliatory nuclear strike capabilities, after Trump told Medvedev to “watch his words.”
Medvedev has no power to launch Russia’s nuclear weapons, and often acts as more of an attack dog than a real decision-maker inside the Kremlin. Still, Trump has engaged as he continues to rage about the war in Ukraine.
He said Thursday he intended to place new sanctions on Moscow, and called Russia’s attacks on Ukraine “disgusting.” In an earlier social media message, Trump said the Ukraine was “should have never happened.” Trump said Thursday his foreign envoy, Steve Witkoff, would travel to Russia in coming days, but additional details of his trip were not immediately available.
“This is Biden’s War, not “TRUMP’s.” I’m just here to see if I can stop it!” Trump wrote.
This developing story has been updated with additional details.
CNN’s Kit Maher contributed to this report.
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