United States President Donald Trump has ordered two nuclear submarines to travel closer to Russia, in his latest tit-for-tat with Russian leader Dmitry Medvedev.On Friday, Trump posted on his platform Truth Social that the submarine movements came in response to the “highly provocative statements” Medvedev, a former Russian president, made this week.A day earlier, Medvedev had warned that Trump should be mindful of “how dangerous the fabled ‘Dead Hand’ can be”, a reference to Russia’s Cold War-era nuclear weapons system.“I have ordered two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions, just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that,” Trump wrote.“Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those instances.”In recent weeks, Trump has been enmeshed in an escalating war of words with Medvedev, who currently serves as the deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council under current President Vladimir Putin.Medvedev and Putin have a close relationship: When Medvedev served as president from 2008 to 2012, Putin was his prime minister. Afterwards, when Putin returned to the presidency, Medvedev served as his prime minister from 2012 to 2020.But as Trump voices increasing frustration with Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, he has increasingly singled out Medvedev, a noted war hawk, as a target for his anger. Both men h …
