President Vladimir Putin issued a warning to the West, threatening to use nuclear weapons if the West fired conventional missiles at the country. He also said that Russia would view any attack on it supported by a nuclear power as a joint attack.
In response to ongoing discussions in the US and UK over granting Ukraine permission to launch conventional Western missiles into Russia, the Kremlin has decided to revise Russia’s official nuclear doctrine.
Putin announced this while addressing the Russian Security Council, explaining that the country had to adapt to a rapidly evolving international environment that posed new dangers to its safety.
Putin stated, “We have clearly established the conditions for Russia’s shift to the use of nuclear weapons.” He went on to say that if Moscow detected the beginning of a large-scale missile, aircraft, or drone attack, it would consider taking such measures.
Putin also stated that Russia reserves the right to employ nuclear weapons in the event of aggression against it or its ally, Belarus, which may include conventional weapons.
Putin established the current published nuclear doctrine in a 2020 decree, which states that Russia may use nuclear weapons in the event of a nuclear attack by an enemy or a conventional attack that threatens the state’s existence.
Putin’s innovations include broadening the threats that justify Russia’s nuclear strike, including Belarus as an ally under the nuclear umbrella, and defining a rival nuclear power’s support for a conventional strike on Russia as an attack on it.
