New Delhi: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday issued a stern warning and threatened to use nuclear weapons.
In an interview with state media, he said that he is ready to use nuclear weapons if there is a threat to Russian Statehood, sovereignty or Independence. He hoped that the US would refrain from actions that could trigger a nuclear conflict.
Reportedly, Putin gave this warning to the West ahead of a presidential vote this week in which he is all but certain to win another six-year term. In an interview with the Russian state television media President Putin described US President Joe Biden as a veteran politician who fully understands the possible dangers of an escalation and said that according to him the world is not heading for a nuclear war.
Russian Nuclear Forces Fully Prepared
- President Putin said that the Russian forces are fully prepared the country’s nuclear forces are in full readiness and they are prepared from a military-technical viewpoint.
- Putin said that Moscow is prepared and ready to use nuclear weapons in case of a threat to the Russian state, sovereignty and independence. The Russian president has stated on numerous occasions that he is prepared to use nuclear weapons ever since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
- The most recent threat he gave was in his State-of-Nation address last month, where he warned the West that deepening its involvement in the Ukraine war would risk a nuclear conflict.
- When the state media asked him about the use of battlefield nuclear weapons in Ukraine he said there has been no need for that. He said that Moscow would achieve its goals in Ukraine and the doors are opened for talks and emphasized that any deal would require a firm guarantee from the West.
- He also said that a recent increase in the Ukranian drone attacks deep inside Russia is part of efforts to derail the country’s three-day Presidential Election which will start on Friday 15th March 24 which he is all but certain to win.
Early on Wednesday, Russian officials mentioned another Ukrainian drone attack. At least two individuals were hurt and a fire was started when one of the drones struck an oil refinery in the Ryazan area. Thirty additional drones were shot down in the country’s southwest, while another was shot down as it approached a refinery close to St. Petersburg.
