Kira Rudik, people's deputy of Ukraine, told Newsmax on Tuesday that most of her country's citizens are "not afraid of the escalation" with Russia "because escalation is what we are living under every single day."
Earlier on Tuesday it was reported that Ukraine had targeted a Russian weapons arsenal using long-range U.S.-made ATACMS missiles. The attack marked a major escalation on the 1,000th day of the war.
The Associated Press reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin formally lowered the country's threshold for use of a nuclear weapon, even in response to a conventional attack.
Rudik said that Putin has been trying to "blackmail the West" since the start of the conflict.
"What we have seen is that they did not change their strategy generally, which was to use all of their weapons and resources, including those of their partners such as Iran and North Korea. We are not afraid of the escalation because escalation is what we are living under every single day and every single night," she said on "National Report."
Rudik said that since many Ukrainians spend their nights in bomb shelters, Putin's threats of a nuclear strike rings hollow.
"Every time when Russia launches yet another barrage of missiles on peaceful cities, or to destroy our energy infrastructure, which is basically almost destroyed right now [we are hiding in shelters]," Rudik said. "And we know that if Russia had an ability to launch a nuclear weapon or increase their pressure on the front line, they would already have done that."
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James Morley III ✉
James Morley III is a writer with more than two decades of experience in entertainment, travel, technology, and science and nature.
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