РУССКИЙ
11:43 02.02.2026 •
Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev
Photo: TASS
Russia has not seen any submarines that US President Donald Trump said last year he would send toward Russia’s coast, Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev said in an interview with TASS, Reuters, and the Wargonzo project.
He noted that the US leader is introducing new methods of governance and is effectively the first US president to govern through social media.
"One can joke that something is ill-considered or emotional. Yes, perhaps that is the case. He wanted to send a couple of submarines somewhere, and we still haven’t found them," Medvedev remarked.
In late September, Trump claimed that he had ordered the redeployment of two submarines to Russia’s coastline. Earlier, in August last year, the US leader wrote on the Truth Social platform that he had instructed the relocation of two US nuclear-powered submarines to "appropriate areas," allegedly in response to remarks by the deputy head of Russia’s Security Council. From Trump’s perspective, Medvedev had made provocative statements on nuclear-related issues.
"Trump, it is obvious, wants to go down in history as a peacemaker and he is trying. In some cases, it works out, in others it doesn’t. He is genuinely trying to do this," Medvedev noted.
According to him, the chaos often used to describe the actions of US President Donald Trump in fact conceals a carefully thought-out policy. "He (Trump — TASS) is an emotional person, but on the other hand, that very chaos people like to talk about, which his actions are said to create, is not quite so. It is obvious that behind it lies a fully deliberate and well-calibrated line," the deputy head of the Security Council emphasized.
Therefore, Medvedev added, Trump’s style of governance is "original, but in some ways quite effective."
Medvedev also noted that US President Donald Trump, as a former businessman, "acts forcefully," which is quite effective in dealings with many European countries. "As a former businessman — and there are no truly former businessmen, just as there are some other things that are never truly former — he always acts forcefully: I will scare you, then step back, and you will agree to half of my terms," Medvedev explained.
The deputy head of the Security Council noted that "this is quite effective — in relations with the UK, with other European countries, and with many other countries as well."
"It is absolutely clear that the fact of a military victory is very important. And it is visible across a number of parameters," Medvedev noted, adding that he would like the objectives of the special military operation to be achieved as soon as possible. "I would like this to happen as quickly as possible," he emphasized.
At the same time, he added that the objectives of the special military operation were initially set by Russian President Vladimir Putin and have remained largely unchanged since then.
"The objectives of the special military operation were originally stated by our country’s president, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin. They have remained practically unchanged since then. There are some nuances, but overall they are what they were and remain so," Medvedev emphasized.
The goal of Russia’s victory in the special military operation includes preventing new conflicts, Medvedev said.
According to him, the fact of a military victory is very important, but it is also necessary to think about what comes next. "But it is no less important to think about what will come afterward. After all, the goal of victory is to prevent new conflicts. This is absolutely obvious," Medvedev emphasized.
"To be honest, Europe surprises me. I am not surprised by the United States, which pursues its traditional policy regardless of who is in power. Yes, it is easier to work with some people there than with others. I have also worked with different American presidents. But Europe has surprised me greatly," Dmitry Medvedev said.
"Because Europe is undermining the very foundations of its existence by its actions. And this is shocking," he noted.
According to Medvedev, the European Union is free not to like Russia’s leaders or Russia’s political system, "this is their right." "But when in a bid to reach some selfish or narrow political goals they are dismantling the fundamentals of their own economic wellbeing just to punish Russia, this is perplexing," he said, pointing to the deplorable state Europe’s energy and other sectors are now in.
Medvedev noted that witnesses to today’s events "for understandable reasons" did not live through World War II. "I spoke a lot with my grandfathers. I know what it was like and how it happened, but still, we did not see it ourselves," he added.
"And for all the differences between what was then and what is now, the main thing remains the same. We are defending our country, we are defending our loved ones, our closest people — our families, our children, our grandchildren. That is how it was then, and that is how it is now. And in that, I see the absolute continuity of these events," Medvedev explained.
"Trump is the president of the United State of America. He was elected by the American people. And we respect this choice," Dmitry Medvedev said in the interview.
"Moreover, Trump won, let's be honest, in a difficult struggle. It takes willpower and courage to resist the system," he noted and recalled that the American leader had no government experience at all when he began his political career, which is "unprecedented."
"Trump is the embodiment of the American system. He is the president of the United States and reflects the will of the American people," Medvedev emphasized once again. "As for us, we are ready to work with any legitimate president.".
US President Donald Trump has managed to handle many internal processes in American politics, although it is believed that the "deep state" does not accept him, Medvedev said.
"He (Trump -TASS) has managed to cope with many domestic processes, although he is believed to be opposed by the ‘deep state,’" he said in an.
"Obviously, there are supporters of the Republican policy, but there are factions within the Republicans. And there are Democrats," he added.
Dmitry Medvedev quoted a fragment from Mikhail Bulgakov's novel "The Master and Margarita", speaking about the future fate of Ukrainian Vladimir Zelensky.
"I don't want to discuss the fate of this character, because he's already so full of all of us. Here I even judge by what colleagues write there. But I can only say one thing. You know, as one well-known resident of Kiev said: "Annushka has already spilled oil." And that means he can't take his head off," Medvedev said.
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