A Russian lawmaker threatened there will be “nothing left” of the US following reports that the U.S. is allowing Ukraine to extend the targeting of missiles supplied by Washington into Russia.
“There will essentially be nothing left of America, which is trying to drag us into escalation. There will be no Biden or Trump. America is being inflicted with 95 percent total damage,” said Andrei Gurulev, a State Duma deputy, speaking on Sunday Evening with Vladimir Solovyov, broadcast by state-owned station Russia-1.
“Today, we are quite ready to destroy the entire nuclear potential of England and France with a single strike. This will be one of the options for deterring the United States from striking Russia,” the former tank commander added.
The comments, on the show which is regarded as propaganda by Ukrainians and many in the West, came after A New York Times report was shared on Russian TV about how Ukraine has been given permission by the Biden administration to fire American-made ATACMS rockets deep into Russian territory.
Long-range use was previously denied to Ukraine by Biden, due to fears that it would escalate the war. However, the President has made several pushes to aid Ukraine in his last months in office, including providing them with the long-range missiles in the first place.
Newsweek has emailed the Biden Administration and the Russian Foreign Ministry for comment.
Before Trump takes office, Russia is reportedly making a hard push to control the territory they have gained in Ukraine, amid rumors that a ceasefire negotiated by Trump would result in them keeping control over any land gained during the war.
On November 16, Russia launched an enormous aerial attack into Kyiv, with 120 missiles and 90 drones. This attack killed two people and injured six others, including two children.
Last week Russia also brought 50,000 new troops to the Kursk region, including 10,000 North Korean troops.
However, as Newsweek reported, Russia appears to be facing many losses in the Kursk region. Moscow’s army lost nearly 200 vehicles between November 13 and 14, and its troops faced what commentators referred to as a “meat grinder” of Ukrainian defenses.
But Ukrainians have expressed concern over President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet picks for his Presidential office.
He has selected several people to join his leadership team who oppose sending funding to Ukraine, including Matt Gaetz who has previously spoken out against aiding Ukraine, and Tulsi Gabbard who has spoken out against American involvement in the region.
Newsweek has emailed the Trump transition team for comment outside of working hours.
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