The Russian government has hinted of nuclear retaliation in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine but a video released by the military has sparked fears once again. In the video, which was released by the Ministry of Defence just days ahead of Russia’s “Day of Strategic Missile Forces”, the military could be seen loading a “Yars” intercontinental ballistic missile into a silo launcher in Kaluga.
In the official statement, the military confirmed that an “intercontinental ballistic missile of the Yars complex was loaded into a silo launcher at the Kozelsky missile formation in the Kaluga region.”
🇷🇺⚛️☢️Loading an intercontinental ballistic missile(ICBM) of the “Yars” complex into a silo launcher at the Kozelsky missile formation in the Kaluga region. pic.twitter.com/TUayCouZlW
— AZ 🛰🌏🌍🌎 (@AZgeopolitics) December 14, 2022
“The importance of this operation lies in the fact that the missile will be on combat duty as planned. The Motherland will receive another sample of nuclear missile weapons, which will allow us to solve any tasks at the strategic level,” Alexei Sokolov, commander of the Kozelsky missile formation, said.
In the past week, United States President Joe Biden had announced that advanced long-range air defence systems will be provided to Ukraine as part of the support aid. While the Russian authorities did not make any direct references to the development, various media outlets believe that this can be the show of power by the Vladimir Putin government in the aftermath of the US promise.
Meanwhile, Russian-installed officials said on Wednesday that the Ukrainian forces shelled the eastern part of Donetsk. “At exactly 7o’clock this morning, they subjected the centre of Donetsk to the most massive attack since 2014,” Alexei Kulemzin, the Russian-backed mayor of the city, said.
