Trump says he ordered 2 nuclear subs to 'appropriate regions' after Russia nuclear threats
President Donald Trump said he ordered the submarines moved "just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that."
WASHINGTON − President Donald Trump said on Aug. 1 he ordered two nuclear submarines to "appropriate regions" in response to Russia's nuclear threats.
"Based on the highly provocative statements" of Russian spokesperson Dmitry Medvedev, "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," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
"Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those instances," he said.
The submarine moves come after social media exchanges between Trump and Medvedev escalated hours earlier – Trump said Medvedev should "watch his words" in a midnight post, and Medvedev threateningly referenced the Soviet Union's "dead hand" doomsday nuclear system.
“We just have to be careful," Trump told reporters. "A threat was made by a former president of Russia, and we're going to protect our people.”
Medvedev's post was a play on words after Trump posted, "I don’t care what India does with Russia," adding, "they can take their dead economies down together, for all I care." Trump announced new 25% on Indian imports on July 30 and said he would slap on an extra penalty for the country's purchases of sanctioned Russian oil.
Medvedev shot back on Telegram that Trump should remember Russia's "dead hand" – a reference to a Soviet-era apocalyptic nuclear control system allegedly designed to automatically launch nuclear weapons if it detected a nuclear attack on Moscow.
The Pentagon said it deferred to Trump's statement.
Trump moved up deadline for Russia to accept ceasefire
Trump has turned increasingly critical of Russian President Vladmir Putin for continuing his country’s military assault on Ukraine while expressing openness to a ceasefire to Trump in their private discussions.
During a visit to Scotland on July 28, Trump said he had moved up a "deadline" for Russia to reach a deal to "about ten or twelve days."
“I think it’s disgusting. Russia? I think it’s disgusting what they’re doing,” Trump said on July 31 when asked about Russia’s recent attacks on Kyiv.
Medvedev, who served as Russia’s prime minister from 2012 to 2020, is aligned politically with Putin and has been an outspoken supporter of Russia’s war in Ukraine that has raged for three and a half years.
Trump previously announced on July 14 the United States would put secondary tariffs on countries that do business with Russia if a peace deal is not reached within 50 days, which falls on Sept. 2. His new 10-day deadline brings moves the timeline up to Aug. 8.
When Trump's second term began, the president placed equal blame on Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine and the war still raging three and a half years later.
But Trump has zeroed in on Putin in recent weeks as the Russian leader repeatedly rebuffs the American president's attempts to broker a ceasefire and pushes forward with drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian cities.