President Donald Trump said Friday he mobilized two nuclear submarines “to be positioned in the appropriate regions” in response to threatening comments by Russia’s former president Dmitry Medvedev.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he was taking that action “just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that. Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those instances.”
Medvedev on Thursday referenced Russia’s nuclear capabilities amid an escalating battle on social media sparked by Trump’s latest efforts to increase economic pressure on the Kremlin in hopes of reviving diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine.
While the president didn't provide operational details, his mention of positioning nuclear submarines was remarkable, given the near certainty that there are already multiple submarines lurking in the waters around Russia.
The Pentagon typically doesn't announce the deployment schedules or comment on current submarine operations because of the secretive nature of their missions surveilling Russian and Chinese submarines across the globe.
The entire U.S. submarine fleet is nuclear-powered, but not all submarines are capable of launching nuclear missiles. Trump did not say whether he is positioning conventional or nuclear strike-capable submarines in response to the Russians’ rhetorical aggression.
Trump’s announcement is the latest broadside in an escalating war of words between Trump and Medvedev, who is now deputy chairman of the security council of the Russian Federation — and, like the president, often inclined toward brash and even bellicose statements on social media.
It started Monday when Medvedev groused about Trump’s decision to give Russian President Vladimir Putin 10 days to change course on his war in Ukraine or risk additional economic pressure from the U.S.
“Each new ultimatum is a threat and a step towards war,” Medvedev, writing in English, posted on X.
Trump responded in a midnight post Thursday, warning Medvedev, “the failed former President of Russia, who thinks he’s still President, to watch his words. He’s entering very dangerous territory!”
Just a couple of hours later, Medvedev shot back, suggesting that Trump should imagine the apocalyptic television series “The Walking Dead” and referred to the former Soviet Union’s system for launching a last-ditch, automatic nuclear strike.
“Russia is right about everything and will continue to go its own way,” said Medvedev in a post on the Telegram messaging app.
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