Press
New tensions in the Ukraine war: After the attacks on Crimea, Vladimir Putin announced that he wanted to practice with nuclear weapons – close to the Ukraine border.
Moscow – It is the next warning level in the Ukraine war: It has now become known that Vladimir Putin is planning a tactical nuclear force exercise. According to the Defense Ministry, the Kremlin has ordered the Russian military to hold nuclear weapons exercises with the participation of the Navy – close to the soldiers stationed in Ukraine.
“During the exercise, a number of measures will be taken to practice the preparation and use of non-strategic nuclear weapons,” the ministry said on the Telegram online service on Monday. This will maintain the army’s “readiness” after some Western representatives made “provocative statements and threats against Russia.” An exact date for the exercise is not known, only that it will take place “in the near future”. There was also no mention in the announcement of the fact that the maneuvers would also involve practicing with missiles that were actually equipped with nuclear warheads.
Putin announces nuclear exercise near the Ukraine border – exact timing is still unclear
The step can also be seen as a signal to the West and Ukraine. And it follows the explosive strikes of the Kiev troops with ATACMS that were supplied from the USA. The rockets are also said to have been used to carry out attacks on Crimea.
Russia had already threatened “devastating counterattacks” after the last attacks in the direction of Crimea. Political scientist Gerhard Mangott from the University of Innsbruck also said in an interview with ntv that such counterstrikes could also include the testing of tactical nuclear weapons. According to Mangott, this would also be a step to clearly signal to the West where the “red line” lies in the war.
Russia’s nuclear exercise follows Crimean attacks – is Putin having a clear plan?
Meanwhile, the timing of the exercise could well have been calculated. As a spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry recently stated, the regime in Moscow expects that Ukraine could launch strong attacks on Crimea again before or even on May 9th. A few weeks ago it was said from Kiev that they were increasingly focusing on Crimea as a destination. May 9th would be an explosive day, as Russia celebrates the liberation of the Soviet Union from Nazi Germany in World War II on this date.
Meanwhile, Russia, which has recently made great progress on the front, is preparing for a possible new offensive. The extent to which tactical nuclear weapons could play a role there is unclear. However, one thing is clear: The USA has already made it clear that it would respond militarily to Russia’s use of nuclear weapons. (han/AFP)
#Vladimir #Putin #orders #nuclear #exercise #border #Ukraine