Trump touts U.S. nuclear arsenal edge over Russia and China, calls Medvedev “stupid”

President Donald Trump veered off his prepared remarks in a speech to senior military officials, delivering a meandering address that touched on topics ranging from renaming the Gulf of Mexico to nuclear deterrence against Russia, CNN reported.

Trump shifted from scripted comments to a free-flowing monologue. He repeated his decision to call the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America,” lamented media criticism, and described his efforts to end wars in Gaza and Ukraine. He also spoke about his Nobel Peace Prize ambitions, and his “love for the word tariff.”

The centerpiece of his unscripted remarks came when he described ordering nuclear submarines to move near Russia last month after provocative comments by Dmitry Medvedev, the country’s former president and deputy chair of its Security Council.

“We were a little bit threatened by Russia recently, and I sent a submarine, nuclear submarine, the most lethal weapon ever made. Number one, you can't detect it. There's no way. We're 25 years ahead of Russia and China in submarines. Russia's actually second in submarines. China's third, but they're, you know, they're coming up,” Trump said.

He continued, warning about nuclear risks:

“And you don't have to be that good with nuclear. You could have one-twentieth what you have now and still do the damage that would be so horrendous. But I announced that, you know, based on his mention of nuclear, and it was really a stupid person … I moved it. A submarine or two. I won't say about the two over to the coast of Russia. Just to be careful because we can't let people throw around that word.”

Trump concluded with a remark that drew attention for its phrasing:

“I call it the N-word. There are two N-words, and you can't use either of them. And, frankly, if it does get to use, we have more than anybody else.”