Military: Russia expands doctrine on the use of its nuclear weapons

According to Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin, nuclear power Russia is adapting its doctrine on the use of nuclear weapons to the tense international situation. Russia’s list of military threats against which nuclear weapons can be used as a deterrent has been expanded, Putin said at a meeting of the National Security Council in the Kremlin in Moscow.

The new doctrine increases the risk, especially for Western nuclear powers such as the USA and France, of becoming the target of a Russian counterattack should they, for example, support the nuclear-free Ukraine in an aggression against Russia.

Putin said, “I would like to draw your attention to something else: the updated version of the document proposes that an aggression against Russia by a non-nuclear-weapon state, but with the participation or support of a nuclear-weapon state, should be considered a joint attack on the Russian Federation.” The Kremlin released a video of Putin’s speech at the beginning of the meeting of the Security Council body on nuclear deterrence.

Putin: Protection also applies to Belarus

Putin stressed that the revised documents on the use of strategic nuclear weapons also apply to neighboring Belarus, which forms a union state with Russia. Putin had already stationed nuclear weapons there. Experts from the Defense and Foreign Ministries, the Security Council and other authorities had drawn up the doctrine. “We see that the current military-political situation is changing dynamically,” Putin said.

According to this, the use of nuclear weapons is also possible if the existence of the two states is threatened by attacks using conventional weapons. Putin pointed out that this could be the case, for example, in the case of massive air attacks using fighter jets, cruise missiles, drones, hypersonic weapons and other flying objects. However, the nuclear strategy also stipulated that the use of nuclear weapons was the last resort to protect state sovereignty.

During his war, Putin repeatedly threatened to use nuclear weapons and also put the arsenal on high alert. Against the backdrop of the West’s arms deliveries to Ukraine, Russia has been discussing a change in its nuclear doctrine for some time. The possibility of a pre-emptive strike has also been discussed repeatedly. So far, the doctrine only allows the use of nuclear weapons as a counterattack. Putin stressed that Russia has always handled the issue of nuclear weapons responsibly.

Ukraine demands release of long-range weapons

Putin’s appearance in the Security Council, which included the defense minister and the heads of the secret services, took place before President Joe Biden’s meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, scheduled for this Thursday in the United States. Zelensky will present his “victory plan” in the fight against Russia’s war of aggression. He is calling for the release of long-range weapons for strikes against military targets deep in the Russian hinterland.

However, Chancellor Scholz has also ruled out the delivery of long-range precision weapons to Ukraine in the future, regardless of decisions made by the alliance partners. He recently reiterated his rejection of the delivery of Taurus cruise missiles with a range from Ukraine to Moscow (around 500 kilometers), arguing that this would entail “a great risk of escalation.” NATO partners and nuclear powers the USA, Great Britain and France have delivered cruise missiles with ranges of up to 300 kilometers.