UNITED States President Donald Trump has ordered two nuclear submarines to be deployed ‘in the appropriate regions’ following what he called ‘highly provocative’ remarks by former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
The move, announced on Trump’s Truth Social account on Friday, August 1, was a direct response to Medvedev’s latest comment amid escalating tensions over the ongoing war in Ukraine and the U.S’s pressure on Moscow to reach a ceasefire.
“Based on the highly provocative statements of the Former President of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev…I have ordered two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions,” he said.
Trump said he acted “just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that.”
While the U.S. president did not disclose where the submarines were sent, his message has stirred global concern, especially given the strategic significance of such assets.
He also did not clarify whether the submarines were nuclear-powered or nuclear-armed.
On Thursday, Medvedev said Trump should remember that Moscow still retains Soviet-era last-resort nuclear strike capabilities, after Trump told Medvedev to “watch his words”.
The US president had taken to his Truth Social platform, earlier Thursday, to attack Medvedev, after he dismissed Trump’s tariff threats against Russia and its oil buyers as ‘a game of ultimatums’ that edged the U.S. and Russia closer to war.
However, Medvedev noted that the US president’s statement showed that Russia should continue on its current policy course.
“If some words from the former president of Russia trigger such a nervous reaction from the high-and-mighty president of the United States, then Russia is doing everything right and will continue to proceed along its path,” Medvedev reportedly said in a post on Telegram on Thursday.
However, reacting further while speaking to reporters later on Friday, August 1, Trump said, “A threat was made, and we didn’t think it was appropriate. So I have to be very careful.
“I do that based on safety for our people. A threat was made by a former president of Russia. And we’re going to protect our people.”
The latest development followed an intensification of personal and diplomatic hostilities between Trump and Medvedev, both of whom have traded words across social media platforms in recent weeks.
On July 28, Trump gave Russia a 10-day ultimatum to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine or face tariffs alongside its oil buyers.
Trump had, on July 14, warned that he would impose ‘severe tariffs’ on Russia if a peace agreement wasn’t reached by early September.
However, by Monday, July 28, he shortened the timeline, saying he would now give President Putin 10 to 12 days.
The US sanctions on Russia include possible secondary tariffs targeting Russia’s trading partners.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M