In an interview with the television program 60 Minutes on December 25, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that nuclear war would not bring good results and should not be launched under any circumstances.
However, Mr. Lavrov still noted that Russia will not hesitate to use all available means to protect national interests and that Moscow's patience has limits.
The Foreign Minister affirmed that Russia would never initiate the use of nuclear weapons, and expressed hope that nuclear powers would consider the consequences of such an action.
Mr. Lavrov said that this was repeatedly raised by Russian President Vladimir Putin during negotiations with US President Joe Biden, and then presented to the five permanent members (UK, France, US, Russia, China) of the United Nations Security Council in 2021.
According to Foreign Minister Lavrov, the prospects of a nuclear war are coming from Western countries. Mr. Lavrov also mentioned the US statement in November that Washington was ready to carry out nuclear strikes but only under the most suitable conditions.
In early 2024, Russia accused open hostilities and a series of moves that it said were deliberately undermining Western arms control agreements that could lead to a catastrophic war between nuclear powers.
Mr Lavrov said Moscow had no intention of further escalating the issue of nuclear weapons and their dire consequences. Instead, Russia would be happy to help Westerners not worry about building nuclear shelters.
However, Russia's announcement that its Oreshnik hypersonic ballistic missile has the same destructive power as nuclear weapons has caused the demand for nuclear shelters among Americans to increase fourfold, according to a survey from a shelter provider in Texas (USA) in mid-December.
Speaking at a meeting of Russian Defense Ministry officials last week, President Vladimir Putin said the West's strong military support for Kiev was pushing Moscow to the point where it could no longer afford to let its guard down.
Finally, Mr. Lavrov reiterated that, “We firmly maintain the position that there can be no winner in a nuclear war,” but stressed that other countries should not provoke Russia with extreme actions to protect their interests.
