Trump Says He Ordered Nuclear Submarines Repositioned After Threats From Medvedev (Gift Article)

In a social media post, the president described the move as a deterrent prompted by threats by a former Russian leader. It is unclear if any submarines did actually change position.

President Trump said on his social media feed on Friday that he had “ordered two nuclear submarines” to be repositioned in response to online threats from Russia’s former president, Dmitri Medvedev, a rare case of potential nuclear escalation between the superpowers.

Mr. Trump said he had ordered the submarines “to be positioned in the appropriate regions, just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that.” He added: “Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those instances.”

Mr. Medvedev, who often serves as something of an online attack dog for the Kremlin, had said in a social media post of his own on Thursday that Mr. Trump should picture the apocalyptic television series “The Walking Dead” and referred to the Soviet Union’s system for launching a last-ditch, automatic nuclear strike.

Because nuclear submarine movements are among the Pentagon’s most closely held tactical maneuvers, it will most likely prove impossible to know if Mr. Trump is truly repositioning the submarines, or just trying to make a point.

But in Mr. Trump’s sudden and escalating confrontation with Russia over Ukraine, it is the first time he has referenced the American nuclear arsenal, much less threatened to reposition it. Mr. Trump said on Thursday that he intends to impose new sanctions on Russia over its unwillingness to wind down its war in Ukraine, the latest step in his gradual shift toward a more antagonistic stance toward the Kremlin.

Mr. Trump said last month that he would give Russia 50 days to begin serious peace talks with Ukraine. The Russian response was to ramp up attacks, including one on Kyiv on Thursday night that killed more than 30 civilians.

Earlier this week, Mr. Trump said his deadline was being shortened to 10 to 12 days, and Thursday he said he had already decided to impose “secondary sanctions” on countries that buy Russian oil. That would include China, India and Turkey, all countries with which Mr. Trump has other ongoing negotiations.

Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin have talked repeatedly by phone or secure video since the president took office, but they have not met in person. It is a meeting Mr. Trump has said is vital, suggesting nothing on Ukraine would be resolved until the two men hashed it out between themselves. But his tone about Russia has hardened, and his position on sanctions has reversed, in recent weeks.

Still, such public flexing of nuclear muscles is rare even for Mr. Trump, who last made explicit nuclear threats to Kim Jong Un of North Korea early in his first term, in 2018. At that time he said his “nuclear button” was “much bigger and more powerful” than Mr. Kim’s. That exchange ultimately led to a diplomatic opening to Mr. Kim, three meetings between the two leaders — and a complete failure of the effort to get the North Korean leader to give up his nuclear arsenal, which is now larger than ever.

But Russia is a different case, and Mr. Trump has often talked about the fearsome power of nuclear weapons, something he contends he learned about from an uncle who was on the M.I.T. faculty. So while President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia has made threats about putting nuclear forces on alert during the opening days of the Ukraine war, and may have been preparing to use a tactical nuclear weapon in the fall of 2022 against a Ukrainian military base, the United States has never responded.

Mr. Medvedev is a good foil for Mr. Trump; he regularly issues threats against the United States, but is essentially powerless. Mr. Trump has referred to Mr. Medvedev’s martial-sounding statements several times in the past week. It is unclear, though, why Mr. Medvedev’s mix of hyperbole, threat and trolling got under Mr. Trump’s skin.

As Mr. Trump was leaving the White House on Friday, for a weekend in Bedminster, N.J., he was asked why he ordered a redeployment of submarines.

“We just have to be careful,” he said. “And a threat was made and we didn’t think it was appropriate, so I have to be very careful. So I do that on the basis of safety for our people. A threat was made by a former president of Russia, and we’re going to protect our people.”

It was not clear what kind of nuclear submarines to which Mr. Trump was referring, or how redeploying them would provide any significant additional protection. The United States has nuclear-powered attack submarines that search for targets, but it also has far larger, nuclear-powered and nuclear-armed submarines. Those don’t need to be repositioned; they can reach targets thousands of miles away. In fact, moving them can risk exposing their position.

Kingsley Wilson, the Pentagon press secretary, referred all questions about Mr. Trump’s statement to the White House. A senior Western military officer with experience in the world of submarine warfare said he was not sure what tactical actions may have taken place. But he said that because submarines operate so stealthily, Mr. Trump was free to declare he was taking action and the Russians would have to decide whether or not to believe him.

Eric Schmitt contributed reporting.

Related Content