Russia will point nuclear weapons at Estonia if NATO nuclear weapons are deployed here - Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced on February 22.
We are not threatening Estonia or any other European country. But if nuclear weapons are deployed on Estonian territory and target Russia, then our nuclear weapons will target Estonian territory," Mr. Peskov said, while noting that Estonia "needs to understand that clearly".
Mr. Peskov's statement was made in response to the idea raised by Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna not long ago.
Mr. Tsahkna said that Estonia does not object to NATO's ability to receive nuclear weapons, and affirmed that it will be ready if the alliance decides to deploy it.
Recently, European members of the US-led military alliance have discussed expanding nuclear deterrence capabilities as part of a large-scale military build-up plan.
Western officials believe this is a move to prevent potential threats from Russia - accusations that Moscow has always denied and considered "unreasonable".
Estonia is not the first European NATO member to express a desire to possess nuclear weapons in one way or another.
In early February, Polish President Karol Nawrocki suggested that Poland should develop its own nuclear weapons program.
In mid-February, speaking at the Munich Security Conference, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he had discussed with French President Emmanuel Macron about the possibility of building a nuclear deterrent mechanism at the European Union (EU) level.
According to observers, if nuclear weapons are deployed in NATO countries in Europe, Russia will likely consider this a direct threat and respond in a similar way to the message sent to Estonia.
