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By David Brennan
Diplomatic Correspondent
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NATO nations should not allow their attention on Ukraine to be derailed by any threat from Russian nuclear weapons in space, a foreign minister said, as Western leaders gathered in Germany against a difficult backdrop of war strains and political headwinds in Europe and the U.S.
Reports of a previously unknown Russian nuclear capability in space, which came from the U.S. this week, have set off a wave of speculation and concern.
But on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna told Newsweek on Friday that allies should not allow the development to distract from the practical realities of Russia's war against Ukraine or from Kyiv's desperate need for more military aid.
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Where Moscow's nuclear weapons are, Tsahkna said, makes "no difference."
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The foreign minister noted the media and diplomatic furor over President Vladimir Putin's 2023 announcement that the Kremlin would base nuclear arms in neighboring ally Belarus, plus Moscow's repeated threats to deploy nuclear arms to the Baltic Sea exclave of Kaliningrad.
NATO officials believe the small territory has hosted nuclear weapons for some time, despite the Kremlin's claims to the contrary.
"We cannot be afraid about nuclear escalation because we have to deal with support for Ukraine right now," Tsahkna said. "We must follow what is happening—it's part of our everyday job—but not be afraid. That's it."
He said that "there is already escalation," referring to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which is approaching its two-year mark and has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives while creating a new era of security anxiety in Europe and North America. Such anxiety, Tsahkna said, is the goal of Putin's regular nuclear brinkmanship.
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In response, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Newsweek in a statement: "The Baltic states and their representatives have [an] extremely aggressive stance towards Russia. This is groundless, since our country has not threatened them, nor is [it] threatening them now. As for the war, we are trying to bring an end to the war that the Kyiv regime started against its own people in 2014."
Asked if his American partners had shared any specific details on a space-based nuclear threat from Russia, Tsahkna declined to comment.
The revelation has prompted fears that Moscow might seek to disrupt or destroy vital U.S. and allied satellite networks. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said this week the threat is not "a weapon that can be used to attack human beings or cause physical destruction here on Earth."
Russia has dismissed the reports. "It is obvious that the White House is trying, by hook or by crook, to encourage Congress to vote on a bill to allocate money. This is obvious," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said. He was referring to the $95 billion Ukraine aid package stalled on Capitol Hill by Republican opposition.
"We'll see what tricks the White House will use," Peskov added.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov—who leads on arms control issues—described the reports as "malicious fabrication," according to the state-run Tass news agency.
Update 2/21/24, 10:18 a.m. ET: This article has been updated to include comment from Dmitry Peskov.
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