Russian state TV is telling viewers to stockpile food in preparation for war

Russian state TV told citizens Tuesday to stockpile food and water as the threat of nuclear war with the U.S. intensified over Syria.

Standing in front of a mushroom cloud, a presenter on state-run broadcaster Vesti 24 warned viewers to stock up on “fewer sweets and more water.”

The presenter listed off a number of food items that citizens should buy ahead of a possible war with Trump, including rice, oatmeal and sugar “for those who succumb to panic and decide to spend all their savings.”

The newscaster said 30 liters of water are needed for drinking, food preparation and personal hygiene.

“It should be noted that real panic isn’t here but across the ocean,” he added, saying bomb shelter sales “took off” in the U.S. after Trump’s election. This is true: bomb shelter sales spiked in the U.S. in late 2016 and early 2017.

The segment aired in response to growing tensions between the Washington and Moscow over the alleged chemical weapons attack in the Syrian town of Douma over the weekend. The U.S. and its international allies are weighing a military response, while Russia is denying the chemical attack even took place.

READ: Trump wants to send Assad a message — but his options are all bad

The attack killed dozens of people according to pro-opposition rescue group the White Helmets, with the World Health Organization saying Wednesday that 500 people went to Syrian health facilities with “signs and symptoms consistent with exposure to toxic chemicals.”

Responding to a Russian official who said they would shoot down any U.S. missiles aimed at Syria, Trump issued a warning on Twitter Wednesday: “Get ready Russia, because they will be coming, nice and new and ‘smart!’”

The president noted that the relationship between the U.S. and Russia is “worse now that it has ever been” and admonished the Kremlin for aligning itself with the “gas killing animal” Bashar Al Assad, Syria’s president.

The Kremlin announced Thursday that a crisis communications link between Moscow and Washington was "active" and being used by both sides in a bid to avoid an accidental clash over Syria.

Cover image: Screen grab of the Vesti 24 show warning of the impending apocalypse.