"World War 3": Ex-Russian President Warns Trump After Putin's Criticism

Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has warned  Donald Trump of World War III after the US President said his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, was "playing with fire" by continuing the war with Ukraine. The threat came as Trump said he would "absolutely" consider new sanctions on Moscow amid missile and drone bombardment in Ukraine that left many dead.

"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!" Medvedev said in a post 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!

— Dmitry Medvedev (@MedvedevRussiaE) May 27, 2025

Medvedev served as Russia's President of Russia between 2008 and 2012 and Prime Minister between 2012 and 2020. 

Trump's Frustration With Putin

Trump's frustration at his failure to end a war he said he could solve within 24 hours boiled over the weekend after Russia's drone barrage killed at least 13 people. Diplomatic efforts to end the war have intensified in recent weeks, but Putin has been accused of stalling peace talks.

On Tuesday, he warned Putin of serious consequences, saying, "What Vladimir Putin doesn't realise 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!"

Though Trump did not specify what the serious consequences would be, the Wall Street Journal and CNN both reported that the Republican was now considering fresh sanctions as early as this week. Trump told reporters on Sunday he was "absolutely" weighing such a move.

Meanwhile, Moscow, which invaded Ukraine in February 2022, did not react to Trump's comments on Tuesday, but it had earlier sought to blame Ukraine for the impasse. Moscow insisted it was responding to escalating Ukrainian strikes on its own civilians and accused Kyiv of trying to "disrupt" peace efforts. Russian authorities said almost 150 Ukrainian drones had been intercepted, including 33 heading toward Moscow.