Reuters reports that the Russia-Ukraine conflict escalated dramatically on February 24, 2026, the fourth anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion, with explosive allegations from Moscow that the UK and France are secretly working to make Ukraine go nuclear.
Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) issued a stark statement accusing officials in London and Paris of having ”lost touch with reality” and actively preparing to arm Kyiv with nuclear weapons or related technologies.
According to the SVR, this could involve the covert transfer of European-made nuclear components, equipment, and technologies, potentially allowing Ukraine to present such capabilities as domestically developed.
The agency suggested possibilities, including the supply of a French submarine-launched ballistic missile warhead (such as elements related to the TN 75) or assistance in constructing a ”dirty bomb”, a radiological dispersal device using conventional explosives and radioactive material to cause contamination rather than a full nuclear explosion.
The SVR claimed that Britain and France view nuclear armament for Ukraine as a way to strengthen Kyiv’s negotiating position in potential peace talks, especially amid perceptions that conventional military efforts alone cannot secure victory over Russia.
The statement emphasised that such moves would violate the 1968 Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), which prohibits nuclear-weapon states from transferring nuclear explosive devices or related technology to non-nuclear states.
Russian officials responded swiftly and forcefully
Dmitry Medvedev, Deputy Chairman of Russia’s Security Council, warned that any direct transfer of nuclear weapons to Ukraine, a country at war, would force Russia ”to use any means at its disposal, including non-strategic nuclear weapons,” against threatening targets in Ukraine and, if necessary, against the supplier nations themselves.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov described the reported plans as ”potentially very dangerous” and a threat to the global non-proliferation regime.
Russia’s upper house, the Federation Council, called on British and French parliamentarians to launch immediate investigations into the allegations and urged international bodies, including the UN, IAEA, and the NPT Review Conference, to address the issue.
The West denies all
Ukraine and Western governments swiftly rejected the claims. Kyiv dismissed them as ”absurd” and a ”dirty information bomb,” with officials urging the international community to condemn what they described as Russian disinformation.
A UK government spokesperson called the accusations baseless and untrue, while French sources labelled them an ”outright lie.”
The timing of the statement, coinciding with the war’s anniversary and amid ongoing discussions of security guarantees for Ukraine, has heightened tensions.
Analysts note that Russia has repeatedly raised nuclear concerns throughout the conflict, including past warnings about alleged Ukrainian ”dirty bomb” preparations.
Sources
- Reuters: Russia accuses Ukraine of seeking to acquire nuclear weapon with help from UK and France
- RT (Feb 24, 2026): Arming Ukraine with nukes: Western elites have ‘lost touch with reality’
- RT (Feb 24, 2026): Moscow will respond if NATO gives nukes to ‘Nazi regime in Kiev’ – Medvedev
