Vladimir Putin is once again raising the nuclear threat. The Russian president said on Wednesday, September 25, that changes had been proposed regarding his country’s nuclear weapons doctrine, at a time when Ukraine is trying to convince its allies to let it use long-range missiles against Russian territory.
“It is proposed to consider aggression against Russia by a non-nuclear country but with the participation or support of a nuclear country as a joint attack against the Russian Federation,” he said during a televised meeting with members of the Russian Security Council.
Vladimir Putin appears to be referring to Ukraine and its Western allies, which provide weapons and funding. kyiv is seeking their permission to use long-range missiles against Russia. Vladimir Putin warned in mid-September that such a decision would mean that “the NATO countries are at war with Russia.”
Russia to consider nuclear weapons in case of ‘massive’ air attack
The president warned on Wednesday that his country could resort to nuclear weapons in the event of a “massive launch” of planes, missiles or drones against its territory. “We will consider such a possibility if we receive reliable information about the massive launch of aerospace attack means and their crossing of the border of our state,” he warned.
Vladimir Putin assured that Russia has always had “a very responsible approach to these issues.” However, “we see that the current military and political situation is evolving very dynamically and we must take this into account,” he added. “This includes the emergence of new sources of threats and military risks for Russia and its allies,” the head of state said.
Since the start of the conflict in Ukraine in February 2022, Vladimir Putin has blown hot and cold about the possible use of nuclear weapons. Russian nuclear doctrine provides for a “strictly defensive” use of nuclear weapons, in the event of an attack on Russia with weapons of mass destruction or in the event of aggression with conventional weapons “threatening the very existence of the state”. Earlier, the Kremlin had announced this meeting on “nuclear deterrence”. Russia deployed tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, its closest ally, in the summer of 2023, which also announced in May a synchronized exercise with Moscow to verify its tactical nuclear weapon launchers.