Foreign Affairs

Putin Threatens Nuclear War If West Deepens Intervention In Russia-Ukraine War

[State Department Photo/Public Domain]

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned Thursday that Moscow is ready to enter a nuclear conflict with the West if it further interferes with the country’s ongoing war against Ukraine.

Some European Union members of NATO raised the possibility this week of sending allied troops to Ukraine to bolster the country’s defenses against Russia, with French President Emmanuel Macron going so far as to say “nothing can be ruled out” in ensuring a military victory for Kyiv. Putin said during his annual address on Thursday that Russia’s nuclear forces are geared up for conflict should Western nations send troops to Ukraine, warning that Moscow is capable of striking them directly.

“The strategic nuclear forces are on full combat alert and the ability to use them is assured,” Putin said. “Efforts to develop several other new weapons systems continue, and we are expecting to hear even more about the achievements of our researchers and weapons manufacturers.”

BREAKING: Vladimir Putin threatens NATO with nuclear war, if they sent troops to Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/iUP8a671rq

— The General (@GeneralMCNews) February 29, 2024

“[The West has] started talking about the possibility of deploying NATO military contingents to Ukraine. But we remember what happened to those who sent their contingents to the territory of our country once before,” Putin said. “Today, any potential aggressors will face far graver consequences. They must grasp that we also have weapons – yes, they know this, as I have just said – capable of striking targets on their territory.”

Putin also noted that nuclear conflict should be avoided, as it would almost certainly result in global destruction. He said that the U.S. and the West need to work with Russia on ensuring an “indivisible security framework” in the Eurasia region.

“Everything they are inventing now, spooking the world with the threat of a conflict involving nuclear weapons, which potentially means the end of civilization – don’t they realize this?” Putin said. “They continue to think of this as a kind of action cartoon.”

The White House condemned Putin’s comments on Thursday.

“As we have said before, Russia’s nuclear rhetoric is reckless and irresponsible,” White House National Security spokeswoman Adrienne Watson told the Daily Caller News Foundation in a statement. “We will continue to support Ukraine as they defend themselves from Russian aggression. We have not seen any reason to adjust our own nuclear posture, nor any indications that Russia is preparing to use a nuclear weapon.”

The Kremlin warned on Tuesday that conflict with NATO would be an “inevitability” should allied members send troops to Ukraine. Several NATO members announced after Macron’s comments on Monday that they would continue to support Ukraine’s war effort, but had no plans to send soldiers to the region.

President Joe Bide claimed in December that if Russia conquers Ukraine and attacks a neighboring NATO nation, “then we’ll have something that we don’t seek and that we don’t have today: American troops fighting Russian troops.” Biden made these remarks during an urgent request for increased U.S. military aid to Ukraine, a proposal currently being negotiated in Congress.

“President Biden has been clear that the U.S. will not send troops to fight in Ukraine,” Watson told the DCNF in a statement. “We think the path to victory for Ukraine is for the House of Representatives to pass the national security supplemental so Ukrainian troops have the weapons and ammunition they need to defend themselves and continue to fight courageously for their freedom and independence against Russia’s invasion.”