Ex-Russian president warns enemies of 'new reality' as Kremlin ditches nuclear treaty

Ex-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said his country’s withdrawal from the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty presented a "new reality" for Moscow's enemies.

Former Russian leader Dmitry Medvedev has warned that the country's rivals now faced a “new reality” as the Kremlin formally announced it was no longer bound by a treaty limiting the use of short- and medium-range nuclear missiles.

Medvedev, who today serves as the deputy chairman of the country’s Security Council and is known for issuing frequent apocalyptic threats on social media, was continuing a war of words that prompted President Donald Trump to redeploy two nuclear submarines last week.

His latest warning came after the Russian Foreign Ministry announced it would no longer abide by the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, or INF, an agreement banning Washington and Moscow from deploying ground-based missiles with ranges between 500-5,500 kilometers (311-3,418 miles). It also comes days before the expiration of Trump’s deadline for Russia to agree to a ceasefire or face additional tariffs.

A Russian Yars intercontinental ballistic missile is test-fired from a launch pad in northwestern Russia in 2024Russian Defense Ministry Press Service / APThe INF was already obsolete, with the United States accusing Russia of violating the pact for decades and itself withdrawing from the agreement in 2019, and Russia has made little secret of its use of these missiles during its war with Ukraine.

On Monday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said it was formally abandoning any “efforts to maintain restraint in this area” because the U.S. was moving to deploy similarly ranged weapons systems to Europe and Asia.