A Russian TV show simulating a nuclear attack on Ireland shows how disinhibited the Kremlin has become to the idea of nuclear war on the west.
Russian State television has broadcast clips outlining what would happen if the country detonated a nuclear missile off the coast of Donegal.
The clips were broadcast on state-owned TV channel Russia-1 and presented by Dmitry Kiselyov, who is known to be a close associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
And another nuclear threat to the UK from Russian state TV's Dmitry Kiselyov:
He says his country's Poseidon nuclear underwater drone could cause a tsunami that would "plunge the British Isles into the depths of the sea" and turn them into a "radioactive desert" (with subs) pic.twitter.com/usElgqHeIG
— Francis Scarr (@francis_scarr) May 1, 2022
Ireland is not mentioned directly in either of the clips; however, Mr Kiselyov talks about “plunging the British Isles into the depths of the sea” as clips demonstrate what would happen if a Poseidon nuclear underwater drone was detonated off the north coast.
The clips suggest the blast would cause a “gigantic tidal wave up to 500m high” and carry extreme doses of radiation across Ireland and towards Britain. Mr Kiselyov notes that Ireland and Britain would be left a “radioactive desert”.
In another clip, Mr Kiselyov notes that one Sarmat missile would be enough to ‘sink Britain once and for all’ and claims “everything has been calculated already”.
On Newstalk Breakfast this morning, Security and Defence Analyst Senator Tom Clonan said the broadcast was “significant on a number of levels”.
“Basically, the person who is presenting these clips of the detonations off the Irish coast is a guy called Dmitry Kiselyov and he is very close to Vladimir Putin,” he said.
“He is one of his inner circle, so on one level, this tells you about the thinking in the Kremlin. How disinhibited they are now about the threat of nuclear retaliation on the west.
“This was first raised in February by Putin himself when he warned the world of a retaliation of which humanity has never seen before.”
"Absolutely horrific"
He said the threat presented in the programme “would represent the destruction of both countries and basically the annihilation of millions and millions of people”.
“It is an absolutely horrific threat,” he said. “I mean to actually put it into a graphic and to present it in that way.”
Senator Clonan said people should remember that the broadcast is propaganda – with Russia highly unlikely to consider a nuclear attack.
“I know there are a lot of people listening to this who will be frightened by this or it may provoke fear or unease,” he said.
“The chances of this happening are extremely small. This is just propaganda, but it is, nevertheless, it is completely unacceptable language.”
Ambassador
He said the Government must now summon the Russian ambassador to demand an explanation.
“I would say to threaten the Irish people with violence [is unacceptable],” he said.
“We are a neutral state, we have always been a positive actor in international affairs and we are members of the UN security council.
“I really would like to see the UN and its secretary general take a much more vocal and active role in calling out Putin.”
Questioning
He stopped short however of calling for the ambassador’s expulsion from Ireland.
“The concept of having an ambassador and a channel of communication is something that goes right back to medieval times, even during the most bitter conflicts in the past,” he said.
“So, I don’t think we are at that point yet but certainly [Ambassador Yuri] Filatov should be called in and we should be asking him to confirm, is this a plan? Is this something you are considering?”
You can listen back here:
