Speaking at a Democratic fundraiser President Biden declared the risk of nuclear “Armageddon” the highest since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.
Biden said Vladimir Putin is “not joking when he talks about the use of tactical nuclear weapons or biological or chemical weapons,” adding that the threat from Putin is real “because his military is — you might say — significantly underperforming.”
Biden also warned that the use of a lower-yield tactical weapon could easily spiral out of control into global destruction.
U.S. officials reiterated that nothing has changed in intelligence assessments that indicate Putin is imminently planning to deploy nuclear weapons.
Kaiser Health News reports that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has spent $290 million on additional radiation sickness medication. The money is purchasing an “undisclosed” amount of the Amgen drug Nplate — approved to treat blood cell injuries from acute radiation sickness.
Yesterday two Russian asylum seekers arrived by boat to St. Lawrence Island to a Native Alaskan community to avoid compulsory military service.
Department of Homeland Security officials said the two Russians “were transported to Anchorage for inspection, which includes a screening and vetting process, and then subsequently processed in accordance with applicable U.S. immigration laws under the Immigration and Nationality Act.”
Alaskan Senator Dan Sullivan stated he encouraged federal authorities to be prepared for additional asylum seekers; Senator Lisa Murkowski said the situation underscored “the need for a stronger security posture in America’s Arctic.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin is turning 70 today, and the Kremlin says he intends to be working.
The head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, said Friday that Putin’s reign over Russia had been mandated by God, as he congratulated him on his birthday.
“God put you in power so that you could perform a service of special importance and of great responsibility for the fate of the country and the people entrusted to your care,” the patriarch said, praising him for “transforming” Russia’s image, and protecting its national interests.
