Dmitry Medvedev, the head of Russia’s security council, called the UK Russia’s “eternal enemies” and threatened the UK delegation and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak with Russian cluster bombs during their visit to Ukraine’s capital today.

“How would the Western public react to the fact that the British delegation came under fire from cluster munitions in the center of Kyiv, as happened to the civilians of our Belgorod?” Medvedev said in a Telegram announcement.

Medvedev referenced Ukraine’s attack on Russia’s Belgorod city in late December, with Russia accusing Ukraine of using cluster munitions. 

During today’s visit, Sunak announced £2.5 billion ($3 billion) of military aid to Ukraine, adding that the UK “[stands] with Ukraine, in their darkest hours and in the better times to come.”

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In his Telegram announcement, Medvedev added that the deployment of British troops in Ukraine “will mean a declaration of war” on Russia.

However, there have been no talks of Western troops deployment in Ukraine, though foreign troop deployment was among the discussions of post-war security guarantees for Ukraine back in the summer of 2023.

Medvedev previously served as president and prime minister alongside current Russian President Vladimir Putin, though many believed Putin to be the one actually ruling behind the scenes, and Medvedev’s presidency was simply a facade for Putin due to term limits. Putin later changed the constitution in 2021 to allow himself to run for two more six-year terms.

Medvedev was also known for his theatrical remarks, threatening to nuke Ukraine and the West multiple times in the past under different premises.

In March 2023, he threatened to nuke Germany after its justice minister said it would arrest Putin in compliance with the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) arrest warrant over child abduction should Putin step foot in the country.

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In July, he threatened to bomb nuclear facilities in Ukraine and Europe in July 2023 following unconfirmed reports of a Ukrainian attack on Russia’s Smolensk nuclear plant. The same month, he said Russia would use nuclear weapons against Ukraine if its counteroffensive was a success.

Yesterday, he said the Kremlin would respond with nuclear weapons if Ukraine attacked missile launch sites inside Russia using weapons that were proved to be of Western origins.

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