‘World War III Has Already Begun’ Declares Putin-Backed Russian State TV

A Russian news program claimed on Wednesday that World War III with the West has finally begun because of their intervention in the war on Ukraine, as the United States and other Western countries continue to send more weapons over to the embattled country.

Olga Skabeyeva, a hawkish news host for the state television channel Russia-1 said that the “special military operation” in Ukraine was over as she states that the efforts have expanded over towards starting a larger war against NATO forces, according to the New York Post.

“A real war has already begun — World War III,” she said. “We are forced to conduct a demilitarization not only of Ukraine, but of the entire NATO alliance.”

Russia has largely been angered by the West’s reactions to its invasion of Ukraine by setting up sanctions and sending new weapons and rockets directly to Ukrainian forces, with Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskow claiming that the deliveries hamper peace negotiations, BBC News reported.

“Such supplies do not contribute to the Ukrainian leadership's willingness to resume peace negotiations,” he said.

The United States has defended its position regarding sending weapons to Ukraine as a way of bringing Ukraine’s negotiating position up against Russia, and that they had extracted a promise from Kyiv that the weapons will not be used to target Russian territories.

Skabeyeva, in saying that Russia is currently at war against the West for their stance on Ukraine, also raised the possibility of nuclear war during the program.

“There are so many people who have lined up to interfere with the Russia’s special operation on the Ukrainian territory that we must act, but we have yet to figure out how to act without resorting to a nuclear strike.”

Ukrainian resistance in the Donbas region has been strong, but Russian forces are making gains anyways due to their numbers and firepower. The United States, however, hopes that the new weapons system sent to the country will help turn the tide on the conflict.

“These are precision guided systems with extended range. And so for high value targets that that allow them to keep some of the pressure off of Ukrainian forces on the front, we think these systems will be very useful,” Defense Undersecretary Colin H. Kahl said.