The Times: Putin Fears For His Life
5- 25.11.2024, 13:51
- 8,444
Is nuclear blackmail a bluff?
Last week, President Putin warned that he had changed the doctrine governing Moscow's use of nuclear weapons so that other nuclear-armed states could be struck if they allow conventional weapons to be used to attack Russian territory. Ukraine duly responded for the first time, using its new permission granted by the US and UK to launch missiles at military targets in Russia.
After informing the US in advance, Putin fired a ‘new’ medium-range ballistic missile’ at Dnipro. This was the absolute minimum Putin could do not to lose face, especially given his warning a few weeks ago that if the West started attacking Russian territory, he would respond with ‘nuclear firepower,’ notes Dominic Lawson, a columnist for The Times..
The columnist reports that since Western countries began supplying Ukraine with weapons for its defence, the Centre for Strategic and International Studies estimates that Russian officials have made reference to the use of nuclear weapons more than 200 times.
There was a moment when Washington actually believed the Kremlin was seriously considering deploying tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine. That was two years ago, when Russian forces were pushed back in a miserable retreat.
The reason Putin may have been seriously considering the use of tactical nuclear weapons at that time was that it seemed that Russia might ‘lose.’ But now the Kremlin will be far less worried about the state of the war, the columnist believes.
Regarding the threat of attacking NATO countries with nuclear weapons, the author doubts that Putin would go for it, believing that despite his brutality, he is really trying to stay alive.
Bank's name: Bank Millennium S.A.
Address: ul. Stanislawa Zaryna, 2A, 02-593, Warszawa
IBAN: PL97116022020000000216711123
SWIFT: BIGBPLPW
Name of the account holder: Fundacja “KARTA ‘97”
Purpose/title of payment: Donation for statuary aims
You can contact us by the e-mail [email protected]
