President Vladimir Putin has ordered the Russian military to hold nuclear weapons drills involving the navy and troops stationed near Ukraine, the Defense Ministry said on Monday.
President Vladimir Putin has ordered the Russian military to hold nuclear weapons drills involving the navy and troops stationed near Ukraine, the Defense Ministry said on Monday.
“During the exercise, measures will be taken to practice the preparation and use of non-strategic nuclear weapons,” the Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
After launching the war in Ukraine, Putin has stepped up his nuclear rhetoric, warning the nation in a February address that the danger of nuclear war is “real.”
Non-strategic nuclear weapons, also known as tactical nuclear weapons, can be used on the battlefield and can be carried by missiles.
The ministry said the exercises would take place “in the near future” and that their purpose was to guarantee Russia’s territorial integrity “in the face of threats from some Western officials.”
Air and naval forces, as well as soldiers of the Southern Military District, which borders Ukraine and includes the occupied territories of Ukraine, will take part in the exercise.
The Kremlin has said the upcoming nuclear weapons drills are a response to “unprecedented” statements, including by French President Emmanuel Macron, about sending troops to Ukraine.
“Obviously, we are talking about the statements of E. Macron and the representatives of Great Britain,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov answered when asked by journalists what prompted the exercise, adding: “This is a completely new cycle of increasing tension. This is unprecedented and requires special measures.”
The Kremlin’s nuclear rhetoric during the ongoing war in Ukraine causes increasing concern among Western officials, and V. Putin often refers to Russia’s nuclear doctrine.
Last year, Russia refused to ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty and pulled out of a major arms reduction treaty with the United States.
