Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin

Donald Trump suddenly announced he was moving two of America’s nuclear submarines closer to Russia after “highly provocative statements” from a senior Kremlin official last week.

The declaration was quite a surprise, especially considering the US president has previously spoken of his fond friendship for Vladimir Putin and even expressed sympathy for his invasion of Ukraine.

As Kyiv’s most powerful ally – and the only major Western figure to show leniency towards Putin – Trump’s words matter.

So how did we get here? And just how concerned is the Kremlin about what might happen next?

Why did US nuclear rhetoric suddenly ramp up?

The US president has been trying to pressure Putin to end his war in Ukraine for months, even offering to oversee a peace deal which would reward the Russian president for his brutal invasion with Ukrainian territory.

But the Russian president has consistently dragged his feet.

So Trump has gradually amped up his rhetoric.

Last week, while in Scotland, he said he was going to reduce his previous 50-day deadline for Russia to end the war down to 10 or 12 days – or the US would hit Russia with more sanctions.

Former Russian president, close Putin ally and the deputy chair of Russia’s Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, lashed out at the news on social media.

He claimed Trump was “playing the ultimatum game with Russia” and said “each new ultimatum is a threat and a step towards war”.

The president responded: “Tell Medvedev, the failed former Russian president who thinks he is still in power, to be careful what he says. He is entering very dangerous territory.”

Hours later, he posted: “Based on the highly provocative statements of the Former President of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev ... I have ordered two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions, just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that.

“Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those........

© HuffPost