Latest news with #militarisation
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Russia says Merz's 'militarisation' of Germany is a cause for concern
MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia accused German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Thursday of pursuing a path of "militarisation" and said this was a cause for concern. Merz, a conservative who took office in May, has taken a more robust stance in support of Ukraine than his Social Democrat predecessor Olaf Scholz, while promising to increase pressure on Russia over the conflict in Ukraine. He visited Kyiv within days of becoming chancellor, and endorsed Ukraine's right to launch long-range missile strikes into Russian territory. Under Merz, Germany plans to boost defence spending rapidly to 3.5% of gross domestic product by 2029, having hit the previous NATO target of 2% only in 2024. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told her weekly news briefing that Germany had pursued an openly hostile policy towards Russia in recent years, and that Merz was stepping up anti-Russian rhetoric "literally every day". "This rhetoric is becoming more and more aggressively militant. And we believe that the course he has chosen to escalate relations with Russia in parallel with the forced militarisation of Germany is a cause for great concern, first of all for the citizens of (Germany) themselves," Zakharova said. Berlin did not immediately comment on Zakharova's remarks. Solve the daily Crossword
Reuters
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Russia says it is monitoring reported positioning of US nuclear weapons in UK
MOSCOW, July 22 (Reuters) - Russia said on Tuesday that it detected a rise in international tensions and was monitoring developments after Britain's Times and Telegraph newspapers reported that the United States had stationed nuclear weapons in Britain for the first time since 2008. Asked about the reports, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "We see a line towards escalation of tensions, towards militarisation, including nuclear militarisation." He added: "Our relevant departments are monitoring developments in this area and formulating tasks to ensure our security against the backdrop of what is happening."
CTV News
22-07-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
Russia says it is monitoring reported positioning of U.S. nuclear weapons in U.K.
A guard patrols in front of the walls of the Kremlin at dusk in Red Square, during the 2018 soccer World Cup in Moscow, Russia, Saturday, June 30, 2018. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Russia said on Tuesday that it detected a rise in international tensions and was monitoring developments after Britain's Times and Telegraph newspapers reported that the United States had stationed nuclear weapons in Britain for the first time since 2008. Asked about the reports, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: 'We see a line towards escalation of tensions, towards militarisation, including nuclear militarisation.' He added: 'Our relevant departments are monitoring developments in this area and formulating tasks to ensure our security against the backdrop of what is happening.' (Reporting by Dmitry Antonov; Editing by Mark Trevelyan and Kevin Liffey)
Yahoo
17-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Russia's Medvedev says preemptive strikes against the West could be needed, TASS reports
MOSCOW (Reuters) -Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Thursday that the West was practically waging a full-scale war against Russia and that Moscow should respond in full and, if necessary, launch preemptive strikes, the TASS state news agency reported. Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, cast himself as a liberal moderniser when he was president from 2008-2012, but has since emerged as an anti-Western Kremlin hawk. Diplomats say his remarks give an indication of thinking among some within the political elite. "What is happening today is a proxy war, but in essence it is a full-scale war (launches of Western missiles, satellite intelligence, etc), sanctions packages, loud statements about the militarisation of Europe. "It's another attempt to destroy the 'historical anomaly' hated by the West - Russia, our country," TASS cited Medvedev - who accused the West of trying to undermine Moscow for centuries - as saying. "We need to act accordingly. To respond in full. And if necessary, launch preemptive strikes," Medvedev was quoted as saying, adding that many in the West had treachery in their blood and an outdated view of their own superiority. The U.S.-led NATO military alliance casts Russia as a major threat and politicians across Western Europe have said that Russia, which in 2022 sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine, could one day attack a member of NATO. Medvedev dismissed claims that Russia could one day attack NATO or Europe as complete rubbish, noting that President Vladimir Putin had repeatedly rejected such assertions too. "The statements of Western politicians on this topic are complete nonsense. I would add that this nonsense is being deliberately thrown into the information space in order to destabilise an already difficult situation. This is another flank of the West's open war against us," he said. Russia and the United States are by far the world's biggest nuclear powers, with about 87% of all nuclear weapons, followed by China, France, Britain, India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea, according to the Federation of American Scientists. Solve the daily Crossword
Reuters
17-07-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Russia's Medvedev says preemptive strikes against the West could be needed, TASS reports
MOSCOW, July 17 (Reuters) - Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Thursday that the West was practically waging a full-scale war against Russia and that Moscow should respond in full and, if necessary, launch preemptive strikes, the TASS state news agency reported. Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, cast himself as a liberal moderniser when he was president from 2008-2012, but has since emerged as an anti-Western Kremlin hawk. Diplomats say his remarks give an indication of thinking among some within the political elite. "What is happening today is a proxy war, but in essence it is a full-scale war (launches of Western missiles, satellite intelligence, etc), sanctions packages, loud statements about the militarisation of Europe. "It's another attempt to destroy the 'historical anomaly' hated by the West - Russia, our country," TASS cited Medvedev - who accused the West of trying to undermine Moscow for centuries - as saying. "We need to act accordingly. To respond in full. And if necessary, launch preemptive strikes," Medvedev was quoted as saying, adding that many in the West had treachery in their blood and an outdated view of their own superiority. The U.S.-led NATO military alliance casts Russia as a major threat and politicians across Western Europe have said that Russia, which in 2022 sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine, could one day attack a member of NATO. Medvedev dismissed claims that Russia could one day attack NATO or Europe as complete rubbish, noting that President Vladimir Putin had repeatedly rejected such assertions too. "The statements of Western politicians on this topic are complete nonsense. I would add that this nonsense is being deliberately thrown into the information space in order to destabilise an already difficult situation. This is another flank of the West's open war against us," he said. Russia and the United States are by far the world's biggest nuclear powers, with about 87% of all nuclear weapons, followed by China, France, Britain, India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea, according to the Federation of American Scientists.
