The president has suggested several new criteria that would merit a nuclear response
Russia should update its nuclear doctrine to clearly define circumstances that would prompt Moscow to launch a nuclear strike, President Vladimir Putin told a meeting of the national security council on Wednesday. He also suggested an expanded list of such reasons that would include “reliable information” of a major airstrike being launched against Russia.
A list of threats and of nations or military blocs that require a nuclear deterrent from Russia should be expanded in the updated version of the doctrine, Putin told the meeting.
“Aggression against Russia by any non-nuclear state… supported by a nuclear power should be treated as their joint attack,” the president said.
Moscow would also “consider” resorting to a nuclear response if it gets “reliable information” about a “massive” missile or air strike launched by another state against Russia, according to Putin. The weapons used in an enemy’s potential strike could include anything from ballistic or cruise missiles to strategic aircraft and drones, he stated.
“We reserve a right to use nuclear weapons in case of aggression against Russia and Belarus,” the Russian president said, adding that the principle had already been coordinated with Minsk. Nuclear weapons can be used if an enemy poses a “critical threat to either state’s sovereignty through the use of conventional weapons,” he explained.
Putin did not elaborate on when changes to Russia’s nuclear doctrine will take effect. Senior Russian officials, including Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov and Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov have been discussing potential changes to the doctrine in recent months. In late August, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that the document was “being reviewed.”
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