Even public mention of possible nuclear attack by nuclear power leaders should lead to preventive sanctions - Zelensky

If the leader of a nuclear power publicly allows his country to use nuclear weapons, this should be a reason for harsh response and preventive sanctions as it violates international agreements.

This was emphasized by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky during his online conference with students of France’s leading universities, academia, and media.

The head of state recalled that he had repeatedly raised the issue of threats to the use of nuclear weapons by the Russian Federation, in particular at the Munich Security Conference in February this year, shortly before the start of Russia's war against Ukraine.

The president noted that Russia is not the only power in the world to voice such threats, and the worst thing is if it uses not only threats but also its nuclear capabilities, which would be a signal to everyone that this is allowed.

"Therefore, I believe that there should be preventive sanctions. If someone talks about it in the media, if they say it publicly and threaten to use nuclear weapons in the case… Then it doesn’t even matter what that person says. In which case? Such ultimatums don’t matter at all. This indicates that any agreement on the non-use of nuclear weapons has already been discredited," Volodymyr Zelensky stressed.

According to him, this happened after Russia violated the Budapest Memorandum and after they publicly threatened to use nuclear weapons.

The head of state is convinced that Russian President Vladimir Putin is primarily responsible for this.

"Because not everyone in Russia is in favor of using nuclear weapons against Ukraine or the world. I'm sure of it. There are many who support both Ukraine and the civilized way of resolving any military conflicts and peaceful settlement. But, unfortunately, due to the information policy, their share in Russia is getting smaller and smaller," the Ukrainian leader said.

The president of Ukraine also noted that he fully supports the approach to the need for nuclear disarmament.

"If we can’t control the violation of international law by a nuclear power, it means that we can’t control the future, even the possible use of a nuclear weapon. And if we can't do that, we need to raise the issue of abolishing the possibility of using certain weapons, the availability of these weapons in a particular state. This is the only way out," Volodymyr Zelensky stressed.