New York Daily News

Vlad: Nyah, nyah, we can nuke you

- BY TERENCE CULLEN With News Wires

RUSSIA SENT a bold warning to the West on Thursday, suggesting it could spray nuclear weapons anywhere on Earth — and used Florida as a simulated target in a propaganda video.

The startling statement came from Russian President Vladimir Putin during a twohour speech punctuated by videos of the Kremlin’s new arsenal.

One computerge­nerated snippet showed a rocket snaking undetected around radar cones. It finally makes its way to Florida — where President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort is located — before unleashing a batch of warheads.

Putin also claims that Russia developed an underwater drone that can carry a nuclear warhead to take down an aircraft carrier or naval base.

Parts of the secretive device — long rumored to be in the works — were tested last fall, Putin (photo) indicated.

“No one has listened to us,” he said in a message to the West. “You listen to us now.”

Whether or not Russia has these systems fully operationa­l, the Kremlin isn’t shying away from posturing about the weapons as Putin faces reelection later this month.

“They are clearly developing new types of strategic systems, and they’re making a point of also signaling this to us,” Tom Karako, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic & Internatio­nal Studies, told the Daily News.

The Pentagon dismissed the threats.

“We’re not surprised by the statement,” Defense spokeswoma­n Dana White told reporters. “And the American people should rest assured that we are fully prepared.”

The White House said President Trump was fully aware of the threat posed by Russia.

“Russia has been developing destabiliz­ing weapon systems for over a decade in direct violations of its treaty obligation­s,” White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said.

 ??  ??

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United States