Medvedev warns of nuclear dystopia as Western leaders meet in Brussels

A top Kremlin official warned on Wednesday that the United States’ actions in Europe were part of a long-term plot to destroy Russia and that continued hostilities could push the world towards a nuclear dystopia.

Deputy Security Council Secretary Dmitry Medvedev said he believed the United States had conspired to destroy Russia as part of a “primitive game” since the Soviet Union fell in December 1991, Reuters reported.

"It means Russia must be humiliated, limited, shattered, divided and destroyed," he said in a statement.

Although Medvedev said Moscow would never allow Russia to be destroyed, he warned that the Biden administration was playing with fire and further steps towards operational success could lead the world towards a dystopian crisis that would ultimately end in a “big nuclear explosion.”

The former president also warned that the collapse of the Russian Federation could lead to a fractured country and political instability “with a maximum number of nuclear weapons aimed at targets in the United States and Europe.”

A collapse, he added, could even lead to five or six nuclear armed states across the Eurasian landmass run by "freaks, fanatics and radicals.”

"Is this a dystopia or some mad futuristic forecast? Is it pulp fiction? No," Medvedev said.

Although the U.S. has repeatedly stated that it does not want to see the collapse of Russia, noting that its interests are best served by prosperity and stability in Moscow, Medvedev’s comments have demonstrated increased paranoia within Putin’s inner circle.

Russian President Vladimir Putin first announced the invasion of Ukraine one month ago on Feb. 24 in what he called a “special military operation” aimed at denazifying Ukraine and defending Russian speakers from an alleged “genocide.”

Since Russian forces first entered Ukraine, thousands of people have died and nearly 10 million individuals have been displaced.