U.S. President Donald Trump stated that his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, should end the war in Ukraine instead of testing nuclear-capable missiles. Trump added that the United States has a nuclear submarine positioned near Russia’s coasts.
This statement comes a day after Putin announced that Russia successfully tested the Burevestnik, a nuclear-powered cruise missile, which Moscow claims can penetrate any defensive shield. Putin indicated that the state plans to deploy the weapon.
Russia reported that the 9M730 Burevestnik (aka Storm Petrel) traveled 14,000 kilometers during the test. Asked about the missile onboard Air Force One, Trump said the U.S. doesn’t need to fly that far because it already has a nuclear submarine stationed near Russia.
“They know we have a nuclear submarine, the best in the world, near their shores. So we don’t need to fly 8,000 miles [14,000 km],” Trump told reporters, according to an audio recording released by the White House.
He added:
“And, frankly, I don’t think it’s the right thing for Putin to talk about this. He should end the war — a war that was supposed to last only a week… and is now in its fourth year — instead of testing missiles.”
Since its unveiling in 2018, the 9M730 Burevestnik has been portrayed by Putin as a response to U.S. missile defense initiatives, following Washington’s withdrawal from the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty in 2001.
Responding to Trump’s comments, the Kremlin said Russia acts in its national interest but sees no reason why the missile test would worsen relations with the White House. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated:
“Despite our willingness for dialogue with the United States, Russia — above all its president — is guided by national interests.”
Trump has repeatedly highlighted the deployment of U.S. submarines near Russian waters, especially after former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev’s warnings about the risk of a conflict between the two nuclear powers. Public discussion of nuclear-armed submarine locations, however, remains rare.
Commenting on Russia’s missile test, Trump noted:
“We test missiles all the time. They are not playing games with us, and neither are we playing games with them.”
