The Kremlin said on Monday everyone should be careful about nuclear rhetoric in its first response to a statement by US President Donald Trump that he had ordered a repositioning of US nuclear submarines.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov played down the significance of Trump's announcement last Friday that he had ordered two subs 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 adversaries.
“In this case, it is obvious that American submarines are already on combat duty. This is an ongoing process, that’s the first thing,” Peskov told reporters. “But we would not want to get involved in such a controversy and would not want to comment on it. We believe everyone should be careful with nuclear rhetoric.”
Peskov said Russia did not see Trump's statement as marking an escalation in nuclear tension.
“We do not believe we are talking about any escalation now. It is clear that complex, sensitive issues are being discussed, which are perceived emotionally by many people.”
Peskov declined to answer directly when asked whether the Kremlin had tried to warn Medvedev to tone down his online altercation with Trump.
“In every country, members of the leadership have different points of view on events taking place, different attitudes. There are people who are tough-minded in the US and in European countries, so this is always the case.
“But the main thing is the position of President [Vladimir] Putin. You know in our country foreign policy is formulated by the head of state, that is, President Putin.”
Reuters
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