Is World War III coming? US-Russia social media slugfest escalates; Medvedev’s comment sparks global alarm, Trump aide counters

A controversial comment by former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has sparked global concern over the threat of World War III. The remark came after former US President Donald Trump warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin is “playing with fire”, following which Medvedev dropped the dreaded threat of a potential Armageddon.

Trump made the statement on May 27 on Truth Social following reports of a massive Russian drone and missile attack on Ukraine, one of the largest since the war in eastern Europe began more than three years ago. Ukraine accused Russia of targeting civilian areas.

Medvedev’s WW3 threat

In response to Trump’s post, Medvedev, the third president of Russia from 2008 to 2012 and a close confidant of President Vladimir Putin, wrote on X: “Regarding Trump's words about Putin 'playing with fire' and 'really bad things' happening to Russia. I only know of one REALLY BAD thing - WWIII. I hope Trump understands this!”

The post by Medvedev, the current Deputy Chair of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, has been widely interpreted as a veiled threat of global war and triggered sharp reactions.

US response

One of Trump’s senior advisers, Keith Kellogg, who also serves as the Special Presidential Envoy for Ukraine, responded by quoting Medvedev’s X post, calling the statement “unfortunate, reckless, and unfitting of a world power.”


This follow-up from one of Trump’s top advisers can be seen as the US President’s willingness to stop the war, and the verbal proposal which called on Russia to submit a ceasefire proposal that was promised a week ago.

What sparked all this?

This whole new war of words began after Russia launched over 50 drones and several missiles at Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv. The attack caused lots of damage and was condemned internationally. Trump reacted by saying, “What Vladimir Putin doesn’t realize is that if it weren’t for me, lots of really bad things would have already happened to Russia, and I mean REALLY BAD. He’s playing with fire!”

Going by the transactional and complex relationship between Trump and Putin, the US president’s post, many believe that he wants to portray himself as a stabilizing force during his presidency and draw attention to the current escalation in Ukraine.

However, Medvedev’s response took the rhetoric to a dangerous level by invoking the possibility of World War III.

Russia has frequently invoked nuclear escalation to deter Western support for Ukraine, a strategy seen in Medvedev’s posts and Putin’s public statements.

The Kyiv drone attack and subsequent rhetoric aim to pressure Trump and the West into accepting Russia’s terms, keeping Ukraine out of NATO, and recognizing Russian control over annexed territories.

While these threats raise global alarm, they align with Russia’s aim of using its military to capture more ground in Ukraine.