Russia Will Simulate, At Putin’s Order, Use of Tactical Nuclear Weapons, “in Response to U.S. Threats”

In a statement published on Telegram on Monday, the Ministry of Defense in Moscow announced that Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the organization “in the near future” of an exercise with “non-strategic nuclear weapons”.

To justify the exercise, the ministry led by Sergei Shoigu, a long-time ally of Vladimir Putin, evokes “provocative statements and threats” from “certain Western officials”.

“During the exercise, a series of measures will be taken (…) for the preparation and use of non-strategic nuclear weapons,” the Russian Ministry of Defense said, quoted by Agerpres.

The exercise will mainly involve missile units from Russia’s Southern Military District and naval forces, states Agerpres, citing Reuters and France-Presse news agencies.

This announcement follows statements from Moscow against the possibility of deploying nuclear weapons in Poland. Polish President Andrzej Duda said last month he wanted such weapons in his country after Russia militarized the Kaliningrad enclave and installed nuclear weapons in Belarus amid the war in Ukraine.

In the context of the war in Ukraine, the Kremlin leader has repeatedly threatened to use nuclear weapons. The US and other Western states routinely denounce such threats and assure that they have yet to observe any changes in Russia’s nuclear posture. At the same time, Kiev considers these threats as an attempt to demoralize and discourage the West to support the Ukrainian army in the face of the Russian invasion.

The invasion of Ukraine by Russian armed forces, ordered by Vladimir Putin on February 24, 2022, led to the worst deterioration in relations between Moscow and Western capitals since the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962.

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