US-led West will bring humankind on the brink of nuclear Armageddon: Russia

Washington: Western countries led by the United States of America have decided to bring humankind to the brink of a nuclear conflict, Russia’s Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov said.

The Russian Ambassador’s statement came in a response to statements by US officials that depleted-uranium munitions are a standard type of weapon that’s been used for decades and doesn’t pose any heightened risk.

Accusing US officials of reaching a new low with their irresponsible statements, Antonov said “It is really hard to comment on such nonsense. There is a continuous flow of lethal weapons to Ukraine, which are used to annihilate civilians, residential areas, schools, hospitals, kindergartens,”.

“It seems that the enlightened West, led by Washington, has irrevocably decided to bring humanity to a dangerous line, beyond which a nuclear Armageddon is looming ever more distinctly,” it said.

Russia has threatened to escalate attacks in Ukraine after the British government announced it would provide a type of munition to Ukraine that Moscow falsely claims has nuclear components.

The British defence ministry on Monday confirmed it would provide Ukraine with armour-piercing rounds containing depleted uranium.

Such rounds were developed by the U.S. during the Cold War to destroy Soviet tanks, including the same T-72 tanks that Ukraine now faces in its push to break through a stalemate in the east.

Depleted uranium is a byproduct of the uranium enrichment process needed to create nuclear weapons. The rounds retain some radioactive properties, but they can’t generate a nuclear reaction like a nuclear weapon would, RAND nuclear expert and policy researcher Edward Geist said.

That didn’t stop the Russians from offering a full-throated warning that the rounds were opening the door to further escalation. In the past, they have suggested the war could escalate to nuclear weapons use.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday condemned British plans to send tank ammunition that contains depleted uranium to Ukraine, saying Moscow would be forced to respond accordingly.

With inputs from agencies.

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