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Russia Contemplates Authorizing the Use of Nuclear Weapons on Those Supporting Ukraine


President Vladimir Putin stated that Moscow could potentially utilize nuclear weapons against any nuclear nations that launch an attack on Russian territory.

Russia is currently contemplating a revision to its doctrine to permit the use of nuclear weapons against nuclear powers that lend support to other nations attacking Russia.

President Vladimir Putin announced on September 25 that Russia might employ nuclear weapons in response to an attack with conventional missiles and could view any such assault backed by a nuclear power as a joint attack by both the attacker and the supporting nation.

During a meeting of Russia’s Security Council on September 25, Putin stated, “It is suggested that aggression against Russia by a non-nuclear state, but with the involvement or support of a nuclear state, be perceived as a joint attack on the Russian Federation.”

This announcement comes just prior to President Joe Biden’s scheduled meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy following the U.N. General Assembly in New York City.

Zelenskyy is expected to present Biden with a proposed plan to end the war and once again appeal to the United States to allow Ukraine to use American missiles for striking deep within Russian territory.

The Biden administration has thus far declined to authorize Ukraine to employ American arms received for offensive strikes into Russian territory, restricting their use to short-range strikes aimed at military targets.

The potential adjustment to Russia’s official nuclear doctrine serves as the Kremlin’s response to such considerations and could influence Biden’s stance on any alterations to U.S. policy in the remaining months of his presidency.

“The conditions under which Russia might resort to the use of nuclear weapons are also clearly laid out,” Putin remarked.

The Russian president further noted that a nuclear strike could be authorized in retaliation to a mass assault involving “strategic or tactical aircraft, cruise missiles, drones, hypersonic vehicles, and other aircraft.”

Russia also retains the right to deploy nuclear weapons in defense of its ally Belarus in the face of such aggression, even if conducted through conventional means, according to Putin.

Putin explained that these clarifications are designed to address the current array of military threats confronting Russia.

Russia’s existing published nuclear doctrine, outlined in 2020, permits the use of nuclear weapons in response to a nuclear attack by an adversary or a conventional attack posing a threat to the state’s existence.

In light of this, Russian officials have indicated that the conflict with Ukraine is entering a precarious phase, with Ukrainian forces maintaining control of occupied territory in Russia’s Kursk region and Ukraine losing several key towns in the southeast.

Hence, Zelenskyy has urged the West to dismiss Russia’s “red lines” and authorize Ukraine to strike deep into Russian territory.

Both Putin and Biden have suggested that such actions could trigger a conflict between NATO and Russia that might escalate into a global conflict.

Russia holds the distinction of being the world’s largest nuclear power, and collectively, Russia and the United States possess nearly 90 percent of the world’s nuclear warheads.

Putin emphasized that upholding modern nuclear weapons capabilities across land, sea, and air domains “remains the most crucial assurance of safeguarding our state and citizens, as well as a tool for preserving strategic parity and power balance globally.”

He also affirmed recently that Russia will refrain from testing new nuclear weapons as long as the United States refrains from doing the same.



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