Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov warns that if NATO nuclear weapons are deployed in Estonia and aimed at Russia, Moscow will target Estonia in response, amid wider Polish nuclear ambitions.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has warned that if Estonia hosts nuclear weapons aimed at Russia, Moscow will respond in kind.
In an interview with journalist Pavel Zarubin, Peskov said that, should nuclear weapons appear on Estonian territory with Russia as their designated target, Russian nuclear forces would in turn be aimed at Estonia. He stressed that Tallinn, in his view, «must clearly understand» this consequence.
His remarks follow earlier statements by Estonian foreign minister Margus Tsakhkna, who said the country does not rule out hosting nuclear weapons if such a decision is taken within NATO’s defence plans. Tsakhkna underlined that Tallinn is prepared to consider only the deployment of nuclear arsenals belonging to NATO allies. He also argued that European states should not reject the idea of nuclear deterrence within NATO at a supranational level.
The debate is unfolding against a wider regional backdrop. On 15 February, Polish president Karol Nawrotsky said that Warsaw, in his opinion, should move toward acquiring its own nuclear weapons. He claimed Poland is «on the verge of an armed conflict», including, as he put it, because of Russia.