"Putin doesn't joke when he talks about the possible use of nuclear , chemical or biological weapons, because his army is in trouble ." These are the words of the American president, Joe Biden , who, speaking at an electoral event in New York, therefore launches a clear signal: the Russians are not bluffing .
Until now, the White House and the Pentagon had maintained a line of caution , not excluding Putin's use of tactical nuclear weapons but underlining that there were no concrete scenarios for alarm. Now the situation seems to have changed.
"For the first time since the Cuban missile crisis, we have to face the threat of a bomb , especially if things continue in the direction we are going," he added. And again: “We are trying to understand what Putin has in store, if he will find a way out. How will he react when he realizes he has lost not only face but also power? We're dealing with a guy I know pretty well. He doesn't joke when he talks about the potential use of tactical nuclear weapons or chemical or biological weapons, because his army is doing very badly. And not that I think there is the ability to use an atomic tactical weapon, without ending up in Armageddon ”.
A nuclear risk, also evoked by Ukrainian President Zelensky: " Putin and his followers are preparing the Russians for a nuclear strike, " he said. The Russian president, he added, "is not afraid of a nuclear strike, he fears his people and his society: because only his people can take away his power".
Zelensky is also worried about the capture by the Russians of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant: "All of us - he said at the EU summit in Prague - are on the verge of a nuclear disaster ".
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The day by the hour:
The director of the IAEA will go to Moscow "to talk about Zaporizhzhia"
The director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, will go to Russia next week to discuss the situation of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and the creation of a nuclear safety zone around it. It was announced by the same Aiea, reports Interfax. "Early next week, Grossi will travel to the Russian Federation for further consultations on the plan, with the aim of agreeing and implementing it as soon as possible," a statement read.
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Zelensky: "Putin is preparing the Russians for a nuclear strike"
Vladimir Putin and his "are beginning to prepare Russian society" for a potential attack with nuclear weapons: "they are not yet ready to use them, they do not know if they will use them or not, but I think it is dangerous to even talk about them". So Volodymyr Zelensky in an interview with the BBC. The Ukrainian president then denied having spoken yesterday of NATO's pre-emptive attacks on Russia, claiming that he had been misunderstood and that the translation was exploited by Moscow. "Putin - he said - is not afraid of a nuclear strike, he fears his people and his society: because only his people can take away his power".
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Zelensky: "We are on the verge of nuclear disaster"
"All of us are on the verge of a nuclear disaster due to the capture of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant by Russian troops." This was stated by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaking at the Prague summit. "Russia has brought war to our land, to the Ukrainian part of Europe. And only thanks to the fact that the Ukrainian people stopped the invasion of Russia, the latter still cannot carry the same war to other parts of Europe. Europe, especially in the Baltic countries, Poland and Moldova ", he underlined.
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Lavrov: "Kiev could use weapons of mass destruction"
Ukraine could use various types of weapons of mass destruction: the Russian Foreign Minister, Serghei Lavrov said, speaking by video link at a meeting of the Putinian United Russia party. Tass reports it. "When we talk about environmental security, of course, we cannot silence the intensification of discussions on the possible use of nuclear weapons, especially in this regard (we cannot) ignore the reckless actions of the Kiev regime, which aim to create risks of use of various types of weapons of mass destruction, "the minister said.
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Erdogan to Putin, ready to search for a peaceful solution
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan confirmed to Russian President Vladimir Putin that Turkey is ready to contribute to the search for a peaceful solution to the Ukrainian conflict: the Turkish presidency office has announced, according to Tass reports.
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Russian bombs on the Kharkiv region, 8 injured in 24 hours
Eight people were injured in the Kharkiv region of eastern Ukraine due to Russian bombing in the past 24 hours, the governor of the region, Oleh Synyehubov, reported on Telegram, according to the Guardian. Synyehubov added that a 47-year-old woman was injured when a mine exploded in the Izyum region.
