Experts state their opinion on Russia`s recent nuclear doctrine

(MENAFN) Russia’s revised nuclear doctrine, signed by President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, could force the US and other Western countries to rethink their military aid to Ukraine, according to defense and political experts. The new doctrine allows Moscow to consider a nuclear response if Russia or Belarus is attacked by conventional weapons, especially if the aggression threatens their sovereignty or territorial integrity. The doctrine also states that any aggression by a non-nuclear state, in collaboration with a nuclear power, could be viewed as a joint attack, triggering potential nuclear retaliation.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov clarified that the new rules could enable Russia to consider a nuclear response if Ukraine uses Western-supplied non-nuclear missiles against Russian territories. War correspondent Thomas Roeper suggested that President Joe Biden’s actions, particularly allowing Ukraine to strike Russia with long-range missiles, complicate any potential peaceful resolution for President-elect Donald Trump. Political strategist Anthony Webber added that the current US approach risks escalating the situation, encouraging reckless behavior in Europe.

Dmitry Medvedev, former Russian president and now deputy chairman of the National Security Council, warned that using NATO weapons to attack Russia could lead to a retaliatory nuclear strike on Kiev and NATO facilities, potentially triggering World War III. Russian officials, including Andrey Klimov and Yuri Shvytkin, stressed that Western nations, particularly France and the UK, should understand the severe consequences of supplying weapons to Ukraine. However, Vladimir Bulavin, head of the Federation Council’s Defense and Security Committee, emphasized that Russia views nuclear weapons strictly as a deterrent and would only use them as a last resort to maintain strategic stability.

MENAFN23112024000045015687ID1108916773