Transfer of F-16s to Ukraine is a Nuclear Threat to Russia: Lavrov

Russia considers the transfer of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine a nuclear threat from the West. This was stated by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in an interview with Lenta.ru.

The minister emphasized that Moscow has informed the United States, Great Britain, and France that it "cannot ignore the potential for these aircraft to carry nuclear weapons."

“No guarantees will help here. During military operations, our military will not know whether each specific aircraft of this type is equipped for the delivery of nuclear weapons or not,” Lavrov said.

The minister clarified that “the fact of such systems appearing in the Ukrainian armed forces will be viewed by us as a nuclear threat from the West.”

Regarding the conditions for the use of nuclear weapons, Lavrov stated that they are written in Russia's military doctrine. The head of the administration noted that these conditions are well known, and he will not repeat them again.