MFA Germany slams criticism on Russia over nuclear rhetoric

The following statement was provided by a German MFA official to Guildhall, Ukrinform reports.

“We condemn Russia’s unjustified use of nuclear rhetoric and signalling. We urge Russia to behave responsibly and exercise restraint. The G7 supports and encourages wider efforts towards an active arms control dialogue involving China,” the statement says.

“We welcome efforts by the G7 Nuclear Weapons States to promote effective measures that are critical towards progress on disarmament under the NPT (Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons) and we underline that all Nuclear Weapons States have the responsibility to engage positively and in good faith in this regard,” concludes the official.

As reported earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during an informal meeting with the CIS diplomats once again suggested that Russia could use nuclear weapons, not ruling out such an option.

President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine warned that the world should prepare for a nuclear strike by the aggressor power.

https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-ato/3482824-unsc-earlier-saw-substitution-of-permanent-members-german-mp.html

On the air of the Russia 1 TV channel, Russian propagandist Olga Skabeeva and MP Alexei Zhuravlev discussed how many seconds it would take for the Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile to reach the capitals of Great Britain, Germany, and France – the nations supplying weapons to Ukraine.

Earlier, the head of the Center for Defense Reforms, coordinator of the interagency platform for countering hybrid threats, which operates within the framework of Ukraine-NATO cooperation, Oleksandr Danyliuk also stated that, in response to confirmation of intentions to use nuclear weapons against Ukraine, Russia should be excluded from the UN Security Council, and the UN General Assembly should immediately adopt a resolution that such a step on the part of the Russian Federation would be a declaration of war on humanity.

Former Commander of the Estonian Defense Forces, MEP, Lieutenant General Riho Terras believes the UN General Assembly should adopt a resolution that the use of nuclear weapons by Russia against Ukraine will be seen “as a declaration of war on all mankind.”

Ex-Minister of Defense of Lithuania, MEP Rasa Juknevičienė, shares the idea that Russia’s use of nuclear weapons would mean they’re at war with the whole world.

Also, the head of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Latvian Parliament, Atis Lejiņš, supported the initiative on the need for the said UN resolution to be adopted.

A Member of the House of Lords of the British Parliament, former British Foreign Secretary David Owen, believes the initiative to discuss at the UN General Assembly the recent Russian threats to use nuclear weapons is worth looking into.

German MP Gregor Gysi said: “If Russia uses a nuclear weapon against Ukraine, with or without a resolution of the UN General Assembly, all of humanity will be affected and it will lead to WWIII. So I'm assuming and hoping that it won't come to that.”

Another German lawmaker, Roderick Kiesewetter, believes that the use of tactical nuclear weapons “would cause a total isolation of Russia from UN for a long time.”

As for a UN resolution, Keisewetter said: “The problem with an initiative is that it counteracts the principle of nuclear deterrence. On the other hand, it would show the strength of international rules-based order and could keep Russia from even thinking about the use.”