Russia has begun conducting three days of nuclear drills involving tens of thousands of troops and the launching of missiles.
NBC News detailed that the drills will rehearse the "preparation and use of nuclear forces in the event of aggression." The defense ministry added that rocket forces, the Northern and Pacific fleets, as well as aviation units will take part in the drill.
The entity went on to say that the exercises will include training in how to use the country's tactical nuclear weapons currently deployed in Belarus.
The development comes as hostilities between Russia and Ukraine continue, with Moscow failing to make gains over the past weeks.
The Kremlin said Monday that the peace process is currently stalled but negotiations could resume.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was responding to comments by President Donald Trump, who suggested Friday that recent Russian missile strikes on Kyiv, including one that killed 24 people in an apartment building, may have set back diplomatic efforts to end the war.
The remarks came after Ukraine launched a sweeping overnight drone operation targeting Moscow and other Russian regions over the weekend. Russian authorities said air defenses destroyed hundreds of drones, while at least three people were killed in the Moscow region.
Russian officials said a woman died after a drone struck her home in Khimki, northwest of Moscow, while two men were killed in the nearby village of Pogorelki. Authorities in the Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine, also reported the death of a truck driver after a drone strike.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said at least 12 people were wounded in the capital during the overnight barrage, most near the entrance to the city's oil refinery. He said refinery operations and "technology" were not damaged.
Russian state agency Tass, citing Sobyanin, reported that 81 drones were specifically aimed at Moscow, making it one of the largest attacks on the capital since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy openly acknowledged the operation and defended it as retaliation for Russia's continued bombardment of Ukrainian cities. "Our responses to Russia's prolongation of the war and attacks on our cities and communities are entirely justified," Zelenskyy said, adding that the drones traveled more than 500 kilometers from Ukrainian territory and successfully penetrated heavily concentrated Russian air defenses around Moscow."
This time, Ukrainian long-distance sanctions have reached the Moscow region," Zelenskyy added. "Their state must end its war." The strikes came days after Russia ended a brief and shaky Victory Day ceasefire linked to annual celebrations commemorating the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.
