Trump Moves Nuclear Subs Near Russia After Warning From Former Russian President

President Donald Trump ordered the positioning of nuclear submarines near Russia, following an online argument with former Russian President Dmitri Medvedev.

The Details: Medvedev, the current Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council, accused Trump of “playing the ultimatum game” when he shortened his deadline for Russia to end its war with Ukraine. In mid-July, Trump said he would impose 100% tariffs on Russia if a peace deal was not reached within 50 days. The Russian government called the threat “unacceptable” and continued attacks on Ukraine. On Monday, Trump shortened the deadline to 10-12 remaining days.

Key Quotes: Medvedev wrote on X Monday, “Each new ultimatum is a threat and a step towards war. Not between Russia and Ukraine, but with his own country.” After some back and forth, he reminded Trump “just how dangerous the mythical ‘Dead Hand’ can be.” Trump responded on Truth Social Friday: “I have ordered two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions, just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that.”

For Context: The ‘Dead Hand’ is allegedly the codename of Russia’s automatic retaliatory nuclear weapons system fashioned during the Cold War.

How The Media Covered It: News outlets across the political spectrum mentioned Medvedev’s warnings against Trump; however, outlets on the right tended to highlight Medvedev’s “Dead Hand” comment while outlets on the left focused more solely on Trump’s response. Daily Caller (Right bias) mentioned the comment early in its article and underlined various Russian threats to the US and Ukraine. BBC (Center) emphasized general Russia-US tensions and noted, “Russia and the US possess the most nuclear arms in the world.” CNBC (Lean Left) outlined the back and forth of Trump and Medvedev, directly quoting much of the digital conflict. 

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