Ex-PM Warns Being ‘Exterminated By Russians’ If Ukraine Doesn’t Win ‘Very Bloody’ War

Ukraine’s former Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk warned that Russian forces would kill Ukrainians if they win the “very bloody” war.

Speaking in a wide-ranging interview with RFE/RL’s Georgian Service, Yatsenyuk, who served as Ukraine’s prime minister between 2014 and 2016, said the country only had two options in the war: win or be killed.

"We have just two options: to win or to lose; to survive or to be exterminated by Russians," he said.

Despite the grim warning, Yatsenyuk said he believes Ukraine will win the war, citing his country’s staunch military resilience and the failings of a “completely corrupted and outdated Russian military.”

"I strongly believe that the victory will come," the former prime minister added.

However, Yatsenyuk warned the Russians will aim to achieve any type of victory by May 9, the anniversary of the surrender of Nazi Germany that ended World War II. The date is also when Russians and Ukrainians commemorated together shortly before the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.

Yatsenyuk’s warning comes as Russia on Wednesday test-launched a new intercontinental missile from a silo launcher located in the Arkhangelsk Region of northern Russia. The test launch was part of the Kremlin’s attempt to warn Western countries that showed support to Ukraine. The missiles would “force all who are trying to threaten our country in the heat of frenzied, aggressive rhetoric to think twice,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said in televised remarks.

Putin also pointed out that the intercontinental missile, also called Sarmat, was built exclusively from domestic components. This will allow Russia to quickly deliver the weapon to its forces.

The Sarmat has been in development for several years. The Russian Defense Ministry claimed the missile has the “highest range in the world” and will be capable of carrying hypersonic glide vehicles and other types of warheads.

The Sarmat could be commissioned by the Russian military this fall once trials have been completed.

The new intercontinental missile was previously mentioned by Putin in a 2018 speech. During the remarks, Putin boasted that the weaponry would render NATO’s defenses “completely useless.”