‘There is no going back’

Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev yesterday said that any weapons in Moscow's arsenal, including strategic nuclear weapons, could be used to defend territories incorporated in Russia from Ukraine.

Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, said that referendums being organised by Russian-installed and separatist authorities in large swathes of Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory will take place, and that "there is no going back":

"The Donbas (Donetsk and Luhansk) republics and other territories will be accepted into Russia."

Medvedev said the protection of all the territories would be significantly strengthened by the Russian armed forces, adding:

"Russia has announced that not only mobilisation capabilities, but also any Russian weapons, including strategic nuclear weapons and weapons based on new principles, could be used for such protection."

The referendums due to take place in the Russian-held parts of Ukraine's Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia provinces, as well as part of Mykolaiv province, from oday are widely expected to produce results overwhelmingly endorsing joining Russia.

If formally admitted to the Russian Federation, the occupied territories will under Moscow's nuclear doctrine be entitled to protection from Russian nuclear weapons.

Meanwhile, G7 foreign ministers have said they will pursue further sanctions against Russia, following President Vladimir Putin's move to mobilize reservists for the war in Ukraine.

The G7 would "pursue further targeted sanctions and are committed to sustained economic and political pressure on Russia," they said after a meeting on the fringes of the United Nations General Assembly.