RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE

Russia had reason to use nukes, but showed restraint – Medvedev

Throughout the Ukraine conflict, Russia has had ample reason to use nuclear weapons, but has so far exercised restraint, the deputy chair of Russia’s Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, has said. He warned, however, that Moscow’s patience is not limitless, suggesting that Russia could respond harshly if Western nations allow Kiev to use the missiles they have provided to strike targets deep inside Russian territory.

Kiev has been demanding that these limitations be lifted since at least May. Several media outlets have recently alleged that Washington and London will soon do so, or secretly have already.

In a post on his Telegram channel on Saturday, Medvedev wrote that Western leaders have lulled themselves into a false sense of security, thinking that Moscow is bluffing when it warns of dire consequences for allowing long-range missile strikes. The official, who was also the Russian president from 2008 to 2012, said Russia is fully aware that conducting a nuclear strike would be a momentous decision.

“It is precisely because of this that a decision to use nuclear weapons… has not been made so far,” Medvedev stressed. He added that the “formal prerequisites for this, which are understandable to the entire global community and that are stipulated by our nuclear containment doctrine, are in place.” He cited the Ukrainian offensive in Kursk Region as one example.

“Russia is showing patience,” he said, while warning that “there is always a limit to patience.”

Medvedev went on to suggest that Russia could also respond to Western escalation with some sort of new weaponry – not necessarily nuclear, but still devastating.

Speaking on Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin argued that the Ukrainian military is not capable of operating Western long-range systems on its own, but needs intelligence from NATO satellites and Western military personnel. For this reason, if the West allows Kiev to hit targets deep inside Russia, “this will mean that NATO countries, the US, European countries are fighting against Russia,” Putin said.

WESTERN PERSPECTIVE

Ukraine's spy chief says North Korean military aid to Russia presents major battlefield problem

Ukraine's spy chief said on Saturday that Russia's increased production of guided bombs as well as artillery ammunition deliveries from North Korea present major problems for Ukrainian forces on the battlefield.

The head of Ukraine's military intelligence agency GUR, Kyrylo Budanov, said North Korean military aid to Russia presented the biggest concern compared to support provided by Moscow's other allies.

"They supply huge amounts of artillery ammunition, which is critical for Russia," he said, pointing to the ramp up in the battlefield hostilities following such deliveries.

Ukraine and the United States, among other countries and independent analysts, say North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is helping Russia in the war against Ukraine by supplying missiles and ammunition in return for economic and other military assistance from Moscow.

Russia's boost in the production of guided bombs also presented a "huge problem for the frontline", Budanov said at the Yalta European Strategy conference organised by the Victor Pinchuk Foundation in Kyiv.

Ukraine's forces are stretched thin more than 30 months into the full-scale invasion, working to stave off Russian advance toward key towns in the country's east. Ukrainian forces have also made an incursion into the western Russian region of Kursk.

A ramp up in the production of the Iskander-type missiles has resulted in Russia's "massive use" of weapons to attack Ukraine, Budanov said.

This year's strikes on Ukraine's critical infrastructure have caused significant damage to the country's power grid, leading to power cuts. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has renewed pleas for air defence support from Ukraine's allies.

Budanov said Russian internal planning showed that Moscow will face a recruitment crunch in the middle of next year.

"During this period (summer 2025) they will face a dilemma: either to declare mobilisation or to somehow reduce the intensity of hostilities, which may ultimately be critical for them," Budanov said.

RT/CNN