Annexed Ukrainian regions under nuclear protection as rest of Russia, says Kremlin

Weeks after annexingthe Ukrainian territories, Russia on Tuesday said allfour annexedregions are under the protection of its nuclear arsenal.

"All these territories are inalienable parts of the Russian Federation and they are all protected. Their security is provided for at the same level as [it is for] the rest of Russia's territory,"Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the reporters.

When pressed if Moscow was also planning to conduct nuclear drills, Peskov attempted to deflect the question."There is an established system of notifications to inform about the conduct of exercises, and this is carried out through the channels of the Ministry of Defence," he said.

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As reported by WION, Russia annexed Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, earlier this month after conducting a referendum.In his speech, Putin told the West that the annexation was irreversible and called on Ukraine's army to give up and negotiate a surrender.

"We call on the Kyiv regime to immediately stop fighting and stop all hostilities... and return to the negotiating table," the Russian leader said.

Meanwhile, Ukraine's allies, especially the US rejected the referendum. President Joe Bidencalled Russia's annexation declaration "fraudulent" and said Moscow was contravening international law.

"The United States condemnsRussia'sfraudulent attempt today to annex sovereign Ukrainian territory. Russia is violating international law, trampling on the United Nations Charter, and showing its contempt for peaceful nations everywhere,"Bidensaid in a statement.

Prior to the referendum, Putin had issued a veiled warning that Moscow will be willing to use any means (most certainly hinting at nuclear bombs) to defend the country.

“If the territorial integrity of our country is threatened, we will of course use all means at our disposal to defend Russia and our people,” said Putin.

(With inputs from agencies)

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