A ranting Russian politician appeared on state TV to threaten Britain with nuclear war showing a staged video of Moscow’s missiles hitting the UK in just 202 seconds. The 60 Minutes programme imagined the impact of Sarmat nuclear missiles, also known as 'Satan II', being launched at Germany, France and the UK.
On the show, chairman of the Nationalist Rodina party, Aleksey Zhuravlyov, declared: "One Sarmat missile and the British Isles will be no more." The leading ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin added: "That's how you talk to them."
The television segment is the latest worsening rhetoric about Russian retaliation against the west for helping support Ukraine militarily in its defence against Putin’s bloody invasion. The war has killed tens of thousands and left millions of people's homes destroyed, reports Hull Live.
Read more: Ukrainian MP reveals psychological toll of Russian invasion
As Zhuravlyov ranted, one of the hosts said: “The UK also has nuclear weapons, no one will survive this war. No one on the planet.” But Zhuravlyov persisted: “This missile can’t be shot down. Their abilities are limited."
He continued: “They need to be shown this picture. That’s the way. Let them think about it. Count to 200 seconds. That's how you talk to them.” Challenged by one of the hosts, Zhuravlyov insisted he was 'serious'.
Zhuravlyov is chairman of the right-wing Rodina political party which supports Vladimir Putin in the Russian parliament, the State Duma.
Viewers were shown a map simulating Sarmat missiles being launched from Russian territory on the Baltic coast and impacting Berlin in 106 seconds, Paris in 200 seconds and London in 202 seconds. Zhuravlyov adds: "Get a stopwatch, count 200 seconds. That's how you talk to them."
Get the best stories about the things you love most curated by us and delivered to your inbox every day. Choose what you love here
The TV debate appeared to be in response to growing tension in Moscow over the UK and other western nations ramping up military support for Ukraine in its war with Russia. Western weapons, including UK anti-tank missiles, have left a devastating trail of destruction through Russian ranks in Ukraine.
Putin has already ordered test-firing of its Sarmat hypersonic missiles which he claims are able to penetrate western defences. The 60 Minutes Show on Thursday (April 28) came as Britain's Defence Minister Ben Wallace warned that crews of Britain’s nuclear weapon-armed submarines were “deep underwater, hiding, waiting, in case Britain needs to be protected”.
Armed Forces Minister James Heappey also said strikes by Ukraine on Russian soil would be 'completely legitimate' if they disrupted supply lines. Ukraine has attacked oil storage areas near its borders which are in Russia.
Heappey said: “It is completely legitimate for Ukraine to be targeting in Russia's depth in order to disrupt the logistics that if they weren't disrupted would directly contribute to death and carnage on Ukrainian soil. There are lots of countries around the world that operate kit that they have imported from other countries; when those bits of kit are used we tend not to blame the country that manufactured it, you blame the country that fired it.”
In a tweet sharing the video, Julia Davies, creator of Russian Media Monitor, said: “Russian TV keeps threatening nuclear strikes against Western nations, desperately trying to deter them from continuing to help Ukraine. On a side note, this is the first state TV host who doesn't seem to be eager to die for the Motherland, arguing with a trigger-happy lawmaker.”
Want our best stories with fewer ads and alerts when the biggest news stories drop? Download our app on iPhone or Android
