Russia: RT editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan calls for a thermonuclear explosion in Siberia

Berlin newspaper Russia: RT editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan calls for a thermonuclear explosion in Siberia Article by Katerina Alexandridi • 1 H. Simonyan frequently rails against the West, especially since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine. Margarita Simonyan, the head of Russia's state-funded RT television network, has suggested that her country should trigger a thermonuclear explosion in a remote location "somewhere in Siberia." In her opinion, this would amount to a "nuclear ultimatum" for the West, which will not give in until it is truly damaged, as she said in her broadcast on October 2nd. According to Simonyan, “the collective West is trying to strangle Russia with the hands of Ukraine.” In her opinion, Western countries “will not stop at all.” In this sense, “the nuclear ultimatum is becoming more and more immediate and unchangeable,” otherwise Ukraine’s allies “will not let up until it hurts them very, very, very much.” As the Moscow Times reports, Simonyan's comments were immediately condemned. Maria Prusakova, a Communist Party deputy in Russia's lower house of parliament from the Altai Republic, called her call a "deep insult" to Siberians. “You must at least apologize to the residents of Siberia,” Prusakova said on Wednesday. The mayor of Siberia's largest city, Novosibirsk, Anatoly Lokot, warned that thermonuclear explosions "do not bode well" as they could have consequences "for thousands of years." Simonyan, often referred to in Western media as Russia's "chief propagandist," is known for her often extremist views, particularly since Russia's invasion of Ukraine. This time, however, even the Kremlin distanced itself from her. President Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said their words "do not always reflect the official position."